Management Platforms and Tools

As someone who didn’t even know what a social media platform was up until a few weeks ago, I find myself unfamiliar with management tools terms such as aggregators, shorteners, analytics, etc., as well as what their purpose is.  I am hoping with this assignment to show how a social media manager can manage their website using some of these tools. 

I decided to look into analytics, because it seems that this is an extremely important tool.  According to Sparring Minds website, “If it’s not worth measuring, it’s not worth doing”.   This is what analytics does; it tracks statistics and interprets data from your website.  It is important to track sales, stock, orders, expenses, and much more.  The most important thing to track with your business is performance. 

Bryan Eisenberg, author and marketing consultant explained it like this:  “Investing in people and the tools that those people need to be successful is key.  But it’s the people who can understand the data that really matter.  You obviously won’t use all of these tools all of the time, but it’s beneficial to know about some of the top options and how they fit into your overall web strategy. And using multiple tools only gives you further levels of insight into your customers and your success rate.”

This means that the tools and people you hire to use them are critical for your business.  Using a single tool or just one source to answer your questions will be the end of your business.  It is important to have several tools in use.  For larger businesses, more robust analytics tools can be very effective.  For smaller or mid-sized companies, there are many free or cheaper options to choose from.

 

So the question comes up:  “What are Analytics Tools?”  They are defined as:

1-      The analysis of qualitative and quantitative data from your website and the competition. 

2-      To drive a continual improvement of the online experience of your customers and prospects

3-      Which translates into your desired outcomes (online and offline)

Analytics measures the traffic, page views, measurable data, customers’ needs and services, etc.  Analytics show how your business is performing.

One of the most popular tools that is currently used by over 50% of the top 10,000 websites in the world is Google Analytics.  It is free, simple and one of the most robust analytics offered.  You can find out where your visitors are coming from, what their activity is on your site, how often they return, among other things.  According to Christopher Penn, of Blue Sky Factory, Google Analytics is really only one tool that small businesses need due to its capability for use.  However, there are several different recommended web analytic tools out there, depending on the needs and wants you have for your business.

http://www.sparringmind.com/best-web-analytics/

http://www.inc.com/guides/12/2010/11-best-web-analytics-tools.html