Cross-Device Analytics Tracking
[0:21] Intro
[1:10] Big picture analytics, why it matters and where it needs improvement.
[4:00] The story of attribution.
[15:11] How Cross-Device analytics works.
[19:15] Fingerprints on your browser.
[22:00] Is this creepy?
[22:55] Final Thoughts.
Chris is joined by Ryan Evans, co-founder at Tend.io, to chat about web analytics. They chat about why analytics and data matter and what are keys areas for improving how platforms help business owners understand their customers.
With analytics playing such a big role in business and marketing, one of the biggest issues is how overwhelming it can be. There is so much data and without training or a background in analytics, it can be easier to just not look at it, or gloss over what programs like Google analytics is showing you. This is an issue Tend.io is trying to solve in making an intuitive and easy to use analytics tool.
Even if you understand the data provided by Google Analytics, there is still the issue of it not being able to tell the story of the customer. It can’t accurately tell you the customer’s journey to get to your brand or store, or how long it took them from first glance to final purchase. It’s akin to seeing the font type and word count of a book, but not context for the story.
One solution to to finding the customer’s story is using cross-device and cross-browser analytics. This allows you, using their log in information, to track specific users across their computer, tablet, or phone as well as different browsers. Using cross-device and cross-browser analytics let’s you see more accurately how many times users have visited, what they looked at, and what device they are using to look at your brand.
A second solution is tracking cross-device “fingerprints”, such as browser settings and IP addresses that are visiting your site. This allows you to use probabilistic analysis using a combination of browser settings and IP addresses to have a high degree of confidence that you are seeing the same customer’s journey around your site.
There is the philosophical question of how creepy is it to track people who aren’t overtly giving permission to track them. Even the FCC has commented on the pros and cons of cross device tracking. The issues range from being uncomfortable with new technology, like sharing personal information on the internet before Facebook made it normal, to how companies use the information and the line between convenience and privacy.
Resources:
–intro and outro music from our friends at Sabers: https://sabersmusic.bandcamp.com/releases