Click fraud is the bane of my existence. And NOT because it’s actually a problem. The PROBLEM is that every time a fear-mongering article comes out about click-fraud, I no longer get to talk about how we can help businesses grow. Instead, I get to spend my time talking people down out of trees. To put it mildly, it gets in the way of our goal to transform the Michigan economy one business at a time.

I am inspired to address the issue of click fraud after reading this New York Times (NYT) “article” (it’s actually an ad, but someone forwarded it to me that thought it was an article, so clearly the advertiser got their money’s worth). The ad takes the typical assault on Google AdWords to a whole new level. It quotes the director of the Center for Digital Democracy, which claims Obama ought to immediately address the issue:

Click fraud should be at the top of the priority list with Obama and the F.T.C.

Here’s my unusually unabashed take: if your paid search suffers from click-fraud, well… somebody isn’t doing their job. (And I’m not talking about Obama!)

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• We occasionally get asked for recommendations on books, blogs, and other resources for those who are new to web metrics and measurement. So, here is a round-up of Pure Visibility’s top five web analytics resources:
  • Best book for Web Analytics: Web Analytics: An Hour a Day by Avinash Kaushik.If you’ve dabbled at all in SEO, you may remember an SEO: An Hour a Day book. Well, the same publisher has contracted one of Google’s top web analytics minds, Avinash Kaushik, to write this similar guide on web analytics. It is introductory, but picking it up guarantees that you’ll be getting your introduction from the best, meaning no best practices left unmentioned.
  • Best blog for Web Analytics: If you like the book, another fantastic source from the same author is Avinash Kaushik’s blog, Occam’s Razor.

  This source is especially great for unpacking the oft-confusing definitions of web metrics. It is also a good place for those using Google Analytics, as Avinash is known to include detailed step-by-step introductions to the new features that Google introduces.

  • Best book for Website Optimization (SEO-focus): O’Reilly book Website Optimization.

  How does this pertain to Web Analytics? Well, in our estimation, it is virtually impossible to do any real good for your website through measurement without a sound understanding of Search Engine Optimization. The content in this guide, which covers everything from paid search to the more technical issues that can lead to problems with a site, definitely lives up to the high standards O’Reilly sets for its manuals.

  • Best book for Landing Page Optimization (testing): Landing Page Optimization by Tim Ash.

  Landing Page Optimization is the design and implementation of tests for landing pages in your website. By setting up well-planned and executed tests, you can quickly increase the ROI you are seeing for the site. This book is by an entrepreneur of one of the most advanced companies who specialize in large scale testing. It is detailed and well-written, and the discussions of various strategies remain focused on the ultimate objective, of increasing revenue.

  • Best Holistic Marketing Measurement Blog: Forrester Research’s Interactive Marketing Measurement Blog.Forrester is known for their excellent insight into the trends in marketing, online and off, through comprehensive research. This blog is a great resource for interactive marketing measurement, including larger trends like social media engagement measurement, and lead management, both of which tend to be entwined with our more traditional definitions of web analytics.

Got any more favorite resources for Web Analytics? Share them with us!

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A recent New York Times article on web growth in developing countries discusses a situation we see all too often here at Pure Visibility: an increase in web use of U.S. based technologies and products from developing countries, without an equal increase in revenue for the hosting companies.

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Pure Visibility recently supplied a visualization challenge to several students in Professor Mick McQuaid’s Information Visualization 649 course at the University of Michigan School of Information. And the results, a visualization system design for SEO Word Market Analysis by HCI Designers Jasper Liu and Li Li, were fantastic!

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The most difficult part of diving into SEO is not any specific tactic. Instead, just making sense of the enormous amount of information online and off can be overwhelming. Have you ever wondered what the most important pieces of an SEO strategy are? If so, this post is for you.

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At a recent talk I gave to the Lake Superior Ad Club, I was asked to recommend some good books on SEO. The first book that came to mind is O’Reilly’s Website Optimization, which is very recently published and has a great section on search engine optimization. We contributed chapters on paid search, and are honsetly impressed by the team of authors Andy King was able to pull together for this book. The work on SEO is no exception. However, not wanting to sound self-serving, I promised to do some research and supply more suggestions. Read More