Measuring inconsistently is better than not measuring at all, but consistency will provide the best results. Image: Flickr / hoshi7 / CC-BY
Measurement and testing is the basis of any well-informed marketing strategy. Most affiliates and marketers, however, end up at some point engaging in random acts of measurement, which can lead to inconsistent results.
Know what to measure
With analytics, it is possible to measure just about anything and everything to do with your website. The kinds of statistics that will be the most informative for you depend entirely on what your goals for your website may be. If you are aiming for content that is read and shared, then time on site and bounce rate will likely be your most important statistics. If you are aiming for visits from a particular keyword, than sources of traffic from search engines may be your goal. No matter what your goals, you should define what you plan on measuring and how to measure it.
Set aside time for statistics
Once every day, week or month, you should set time aside for a review of the statistics of your website. By setting aside time to measure statistics at a regular interval, you can work it into your schedule and make note of the effects of any particular new marketing effort or set of content. Setting time aside will also help you measure statistics regularly, which gives a better overall view.
Make copious notes
One of the best things you can do for your own sanity is make extensive use of notes. With an editorial calendar, you will be able to match your content and marketing efforts to the results later. If you do not have an editorial calendar or prefer to not do the work of matching, then make use of note-taking features in your analytics programs. Mark when you publish a particular piece of content, or start a particular content focus, or get a particularly big link. By taking copious notes, you will be making the job of content analytics that much easier.
Make use of the numbers
When you consider the statistics of your website regularly, you will start to see trends and find insights that you were not necessarily looking for. This could be what type of post does well, a time of posting that is particularly effective or which social networks are sending you the most traffic. No matter what trends and numbers pop up, making use of the statistics can help make your website effective. It is important to consider numbers on a regular basis, rather than inconsistently. Random acts of measurement can get you in trouble, though even those are better than no measurement at all.