Things Avinash Kaushik didn’t tell me
As much as I enjoy the world of web marketing and the infinite possibilities of measuring media, specifically web analytics, there are days where I simply find my job mind-numbing and painful. OK, OK, OK. I’ll admit that web analytics can deliver the euphoria of discovering hidden nuggets of insight and the ecstasy of uncovering an untapped market segment. And I’ll also admit that I like to liken myself to Indiana Jones – following trails, using my intellect to find hidden treasure. However, just like Dr. Jones, I feel like I get beat up a lot as I crawl through a good amount of filth to get where I’m going. It’s during times like these when it feels crappy to be a web analyst. Avinash Kaushik never told me there’d by days like these…
The ugly side of web analytics
Web analytics is a new(er) field. Everyone knows this (right?). The industry still comprises of professionals who are more or less, for a lack of a better word, jacks-of-all trades and master-of-some – out of necessity, if not by design. Web analysts are usually part-developer, part-marketer, part-salesman, part-teacher and unfortunately for too often, part grunt. No one told me that I’d spend hours upon hours overseeing developers (aka herding cats) as they botch up implementation after implementation. Nowhere in the job description does it say that the client sometimes just won’t listen – no matter how many times I explain something to them. Nowhere is it advertised that I would have to have to spend so much time working around so many unbelievably frustrating limitations of analytics packages. Though I was briefed that I would have to wear many hats, I didn’t know I would have to wear a helmet and a cup.
Forget insight, what about hindsight?
So much talk about the information I can extract. So much talk about how to convince hippos. Oh Avinash, why didn’t you warn me about how slow-to-react analytics vendors would be to true business needs? Why don’t their filters work? Why are the reporting abilities limited? What about those missing bounce rate metrics? Don’t get me started about having to crunch numbers in Excel…
The fact of the matter is that as sophisticated as many web analytics solutions are right now, they aren’t that advanced. They lack percentage points, standard deviations, variances, significance and simple forecasting. All these common managerial tools are virtually non-existent. However, they all do give me averages… Forgive me as I rub my temples. Oh, did I mention that a lot of these solutions are slow? No one told me that I’d have to wait days for some data queries. I’m not a BI analyst per se, but days seems awfully long considering the basic nature of the data. And as most you know, my analyst brothers and sisters, these short-comings have been around for years. Analytics tools come out every quarter – all missing some important piece of the puzzle. It’s like they don’t listen to us. If only Avinash would of warned me – I could of braced myself. *grumble* This situation, while better than 5 years ago, still “sucks”.
Macro-economic theory, take me away
It is said that if one or two companies hold the lion’s share of an industry, it’s because they have an initial technological edge. But overtime, as more entrants enter the market, this advantage fades – leveling the playing field. I can’t wait for that day. But until then, I’ll continue to create work-arounds, I’ll continue to crunch the numbers in Excel, and I’ll continue to double-tag. I’ll suffer through all of this because the rush of helping a client leverage a once unknown piece of intelligence is just too seductive. It feels too satisfying to give up. At least this part of the job Avinash did tell me about it.
Oh, OK. I get it now. Never mind.
Well, what else to say then “welcome to the real world my friend!”
First, the ugly side: drop “web analytics” – it’s like this in about any business: the IT challenges, the slow response, the misunderstanding of clients, etc.
Secondly, insight & inappropriate tools: in this day & age of social media, market noise and cool factor, it’s much more interesting for a vendor to offer Twitter measure, Facebook connection and nice looking word clouds than it is to expose themselves by revealing their statistical methodologies or provide basic quantitative analysis models that would expose themselves.
Thirdly, the market data shows it: Google is dominating and continue to gain shares rapidly while other players pace is slowing. The air between Google and Omniture is getting thinner and thinner. At the same time, I keep earing marketing people say they will redefine the future of business optimizations… I have little news for them: business analysis and business intelligence (the discipline, not the technology) has been there long before marketing found out about web analytics… for those who think web analytics is hard, wait until you seriously enter the real BI/BA world!
So glad I had 4 years of experience doing BI work prior to Web Analytics. Because we analysts need to wear different hats, we definitely need to be equipped with various knowledge and disciplines.
On the agency side, I’ve definitely struggled to convince and articulate data/insights to Hippos and clients who aren’t savvy with web. On the client side, because everything is all integrated to enterprise reporting suite (BI), managing to set up that report/metrics is definitely challenging.
For me, universal challenge as a web analyst is always been how to convince the key stakeholders to act. I think the majority of Avinash’s postings point to that challenges and he does a great job at it.
I feel you man. Thanks for sharing this topic!
Dear Rommil,
Your post makes me feel better. Yes, really, it does. No, I am not making fun of you, your troubles and frustration. No, you have all my compassion & sympathy. Why? Because you perfectly described how I feel so many times.
“Nowhere in the job description does it say that the client sometimes just won’t listen – no matter how many times I explain something to them” – Actually, it is like that in so many places. And even if they listen to you and agree with you, it doesn’t mean that they will take action. Oh, even more frustrating!!!
Keep faith. Web Analytics takes a lot of perseverance and patience. And this isn’t either mentioned in the job description I am afraid.
But I guess that fame, rewards and recognition awaiting us ahead – well, I hope so…
Michael
Hi Rommil,
Great post, truer words were never spoken. To second Stephane’s point and maybe take it a little further, the challenges with being a web analyst right now are being felt in every department because business process has a lot of work to do in catching up to the technology.
I compare doing web analysis to working in a start up rather than an established company. At a start up, everyone has to work harder and handle more diverse tasks than at a larger company, where the pressure is lower and the job descriptions more defined.
Most good analysts I know would rather wear twenty hats (and a helmet and cup), as long as they have the liberty to focus on creating great insights – not custom reports for management.
Keep up the great blogging, and the second you have your next ‘Indiana Jones’ moment all the hard slogging will be worthwhile.
Cheers,
Jim