The main objective of every E-Commerce site is to focus on the service parameters or product features. The idea is to boost sales and increase the profit margins by drawing the attention of potential customers who form your target audience. This is where an array of tools to analyze the site visitors’ behavior, come into play.

Google Website Optimizer

There are a few important tools that are used for the purpose of analyzing websites and their visitors’ behavior. Primary among them is Google Website Optimizer. Here are some of its important features:

• Google Website Optimizer is a free facility made available by Google to test from a single key element to a complete webpage of any site.
• It doesn’t necessarily tell you about the webpage or elements to test. It will merely show the page or element that has increased the conversion rate.
• This is where experts step in and analyze a web site and identify the elements to test. Based on the inputs they help you optimize it and thus increase your ROI.
• Google Website Optimizer lets you perform the conventional A/B split testing. You will be able to create two different versions of a page with A/B testing and the script which website optimizer provides will then rotate the two versions accordingly for site visitors.
• If you wish to conduct testing of multiple variables and/ or elements on the same webpage, it also lets you do it. However, if the site doesn’t have good enough traffic (say, below 1000 unique visitors a month), it is suggested that you first try out A/B testing. Test some of the most basic sit elements like the headline and check the results that you are getting.

Google Analytics

Next important tool is Google Analytics. Here are some of its important features:

• Google Analytics provides you with an in-depth analysis of the website and its visitors’ behavior pattern.
• Some of the aspects involved in the process are analyzing the existing cost per conversion, checking bounce rate of every webpage, studying the buying funnel, properly optimizing it to curtail the abandon rate and ultimately increase the conversion.
• Once goals and funnels in Google Analytics are set up are set up right and they work properly for a reasonable period of time, you will be able to know where you are primarily losing traffic and locate the most lucrative opportunities.
• Heatmaps of your site indicate to you the areas that are drawing the most number of clicks. Google Analytics does them, too. But you can get further inputs like clicks on inactive elements (things users are clicking on what aren’t links, per se), if desired.
• This may reveal areas they seek more information on, which can be a good source of quick conversions.

We shall get details regarding User Testing as well as Click Heat, Scroll reach and Mouse move map in the next post.