Mobile Web Analytics
Encyclopedia
Mobile web analytics studies the behavior of mobile website visitors in a similar way to traditional web analytics
. In a commercial context, mobile web analytics refers to the use of data collected as visitors access a website
from a mobile phone
. It helps to determine which aspects of the website work best for mobile traffic and which mobile marketing campaigns work best for the business, including mobile advertising
, mobile search marketing, text campaigns, and desktop promotion of mobile sites and services.
Data collected as part of mobile analytics typically includes page views, visits, visitors, and countries, as well as information specific to mobile devices, such as device model, manufacturer, screen resolution, device capabilities, service provider
, and preferred user language. This data is typically compared against key performance indicators
for performance and return on investment
, and is used to improve a website or mobile marketing campaign's audience response.
The majority of modern smartphones are able to browse websites, some with browsing experiences similar to those of desktop computers. The W3C Mobile Web Initiative identifies best practices to help websites support mobile phone browsing. Many companies use these guidelines and mobile-specific code like Wireless Markup Language
or HTML5 to optimize websites for viewing on mobile devices.
analytics data is not as straightforward as traditional web analytics
because many of the common methods for data collection are unreliable or do not work. Traditional tools such as Google Analytics
may provide misleading data that represents only a fraction of actual mobile traffic.
Traditional analytics software on a mobile website may only provide data for HTTP requests coming from the most advanced mobile browsers, such as those found in the iPhone
and other smart phones and PDAs, with no data on other mobile devices browsing the site.
Traditional web analytics software that uses server log parsing and associates different IPs with "unique visitors" may fail to identify unique visitors, because the IPs from which cellular wireless network HTTP requests originate are the gateway IPs of the network access providers.
Several dynamic server-side platforms are used to develop mobile sites. Server-side tracking code is recommended for more accurate analytics reporting.
Different tracking processes or mechanisms are available for each of the above platforms. For unsupported/HTML sites, the JavaScript pixel tracking mechanism is most commonly used.
Because mobile websites are typically open to access from any kind of network - fixed, Wi-Fi, cellular wireless, satellite wireless, etc. - a traditional web analytics
solution could range from fairly accurate to mostly inaccurate, depending on where the HTTP requests are coming from.
In addition, mobile web analytics involve metrics and KPIs associated with mobile device information, such as model, manufacturer, and screen resolution. These data can usually be assembled by combining device identification information taken from special HTTP headers, such as user-agents, with device capabilities stored in a device information registry, such as WURFL
or DeviceAtlas. This method is not provided by traditional web analytics
solutions because it is mobile web
-specific.
and HTTP cookie
s are so unreliable on mobile browsers. As a result, some mobile web analytics solutions only detect or count user visits per day. The best solutions provide reliable, persistent, and unique user identities, allowing accurate measurement of repeat visits and long-term customer loyalty.
. This method assumes that the end user browser has JavaScript
capabilities and that JavaScript is enabled, though it is possible that neither may be true. At this time, most mobile web browsers do not support JavaScript sufficiently for this to work.
refers to the internet gateway machine owned by the network operator
. For devices such as the BlackBerry
or for phones using Opera Mini
browser software, the IP address refers to a operator-owned internet gateway machine in Canada or Norway.
data. A number of solutions are available and the best results are obtained through the use of more than one technology.
and the browser. It can be used in conjunction with a device database such as WURFL
.
Web analytics
Web analytics is the measurement, collection, analysis and reporting of internet data for purposes of understanding and optimizing web usage....
. In a commercial context, mobile web analytics refers to the use of data collected as visitors access a website
Website
A website, also written as Web site, web site, or simply site, is a collection of related web pages containing images, videos or other digital assets. A website is hosted on at least one web server, accessible via a network such as the Internet or a private local area network through an Internet...
from a mobile phone
Mobile phone
A mobile phone is a device which can make and receive telephone calls over a radio link whilst moving around a wide geographic area. It does so by connecting to a cellular network provided by a mobile network operator...
. It helps to determine which aspects of the website work best for mobile traffic and which mobile marketing campaigns work best for the business, including mobile advertising
Mobile advertising
Mobile advertising is a form of advertising via mobile phones or other mobile devices. It is a subset of mobile marketing.- Overview :...
, mobile search marketing, text campaigns, and desktop promotion of mobile sites and services.
Data collected as part of mobile analytics typically includes page views, visits, visitors, and countries, as well as information specific to mobile devices, such as device model, manufacturer, screen resolution, device capabilities, service provider
Mobile network operator
A mobile network operator , also known as mobile phone operator , carrier service provider , wireless service provider, wireless carrier, or cellular company, or mobile network carrier is a telephone company that provides services for mobile phone subscribers.One essential...
, and preferred user language. This data is typically compared against key performance indicators
Key performance indicators
A performance indicator or key performance indicator is an industry jargon for a type of performance measurement.. KPIs are commonly used by an organization to evaluate its success or the success of a particular activity in which it is engaged...
for performance and return on investment
Return on investment
Return on investment is one way of considering profits in relation to capital invested. Return on assets , return on net assets , return on capital and return on invested capital are similar measures with variations on how “investment” is defined.Marketing not only influences net profits but also...
, and is used to improve a website or mobile marketing campaign's audience response.
The majority of modern smartphones are able to browse websites, some with browsing experiences similar to those of desktop computers. The W3C Mobile Web Initiative identifies best practices to help websites support mobile phone browsing. Many companies use these guidelines and mobile-specific code like Wireless Markup Language
Wireless Markup Language
Wireless Markup Language , based on XML, is a markup language intended for devices that implement the Wireless Application Protocol specification, such as mobile phones. It provides navigational support, data input, hyperlinks, text and image presentation, and forms, much like HTML...
or HTML5 to optimize websites for viewing on mobile devices.
Drawbacks of applying traditional web analytics
Collecting mobile webMobile Web
The Mobile Web refers to the use of Internet-connected applications, or browser-based access to the Internet from a mobile device, such as a smartphone or tablet computer, connected to a wireless network....
analytics data is not as straightforward as traditional web analytics
Web analytics
Web analytics is the measurement, collection, analysis and reporting of internet data for purposes of understanding and optimizing web usage....
because many of the common methods for data collection are unreliable or do not work. Traditional tools such as Google Analytics
Google Analytics
Google Analytics is a free service offered by Google that generates detailed statistics about the visitors to a website. The product is aimed at marketers as opposed to webmasters and technologists from which the industry of web analytics originally grew. It is the most widely used website...
may provide misleading data that represents only a fraction of actual mobile traffic.
Traditional analytics software on a mobile website may only provide data for HTTP requests coming from the most advanced mobile browsers, such as those found in the iPhone
IPhone
The iPhone is a line of Internet and multimedia-enabled smartphones marketed by Apple Inc. The first iPhone was unveiled by Steve Jobs, then CEO of Apple, on January 9, 2007, and released on June 29, 2007...
and other smart phones and PDAs, with no data on other mobile devices browsing the site.
Traditional web analytics software that uses server log parsing and associates different IPs with "unique visitors" may fail to identify unique visitors, because the IPs from which cellular wireless network HTTP requests originate are the gateway IPs of the network access providers.
Several dynamic server-side platforms are used to develop mobile sites. Server-side tracking code is recommended for more accurate analytics reporting.
Platforms
- HTML/JavaScript
- WordPress Mobile Pack
- PHPPHPPHP is a general-purpose server-side scripting language originally designed for web development to produce dynamic web pages. For this purpose, PHP code is embedded into the HTML source document and interpreted by a web server with a PHP processor module, which generates the web page document...
- .NET.NET FrameworkThe .NET Framework is a software framework that runs primarily on Microsoft Windows. It includes a large library and supports several programming languages which allows language interoperability...
- Java
- PythonPython (programming language)Python is a general-purpose, high-level programming language whose design philosophy emphasizes code readability. Python claims to "[combine] remarkable power with very clear syntax", and its standard library is large and comprehensive...
- ColdFusionColdFusionIn computing, ColdFusion is the name of a commercial rapid application development platform invented by Jeremy and JJ Allaire in 1995. ColdFusion was originally designed to make it easier to connect simple HTML pages to a database, by version 2 it had...
- Ruby on RailsRuby on RailsRuby on Rails, often shortened to Rails or RoR, is an open source web application framework for the Ruby programming language.-History:...
- node.js/Connect
- TypePad Pro
Different tracking processes or mechanisms are available for each of the above platforms. For unsupported/HTML sites, the JavaScript pixel tracking mechanism is most commonly used.
Because mobile websites are typically open to access from any kind of network - fixed, Wi-Fi, cellular wireless, satellite wireless, etc. - a traditional web analytics
Web analytics
Web analytics is the measurement, collection, analysis and reporting of internet data for purposes of understanding and optimizing web usage....
solution could range from fairly accurate to mostly inaccurate, depending on where the HTTP requests are coming from.
In addition, mobile web analytics involve metrics and KPIs associated with mobile device information, such as model, manufacturer, and screen resolution. These data can usually be assembled by combining device identification information taken from special HTTP headers, such as user-agents, with device capabilities stored in a device information registry, such as WURFL
Wurfl
WURFL stands for Wireless Universal Resource FiLe. It is a community effort focused on mobile device detection: the problem of presenting content on the wide variety of wireless devices. WURFL is a set of proprietary API's and an XML configuration file which contains information about device...
or DeviceAtlas. This method is not provided by traditional web analytics
Web analytics
Web analytics is the measurement, collection, analysis and reporting of internet data for purposes of understanding and optimizing web usage....
solutions because it is mobile web
Mobile Web
The Mobile Web refers to the use of Internet-connected applications, or browser-based access to the Internet from a mobile device, such as a smartphone or tablet computer, connected to a wireless network....
-specific.
Visitor identification
Visitor identification is the most important aspect of usable mobile web analytics and one of the hardest technical aspects to accomplish, primarily because JavaScriptJavaScript
JavaScript is a prototype-based scripting language that is dynamic, weakly typed and has first-class functions. It is a multi-paradigm language, supporting object-oriented, imperative, and functional programming styles....
and HTTP cookie
HTTP cookie
A cookie, also known as an HTTP cookie, web cookie, or browser cookie, is used for an origin website to send state information to a user's browser and for the browser to return the state information to the origin site...
s are so unreliable on mobile browsers. As a result, some mobile web analytics solutions only detect or count user visits per day. The best solutions provide reliable, persistent, and unique user identities, allowing accurate measurement of repeat visits and long-term customer loyalty.
JavaScript page tagging
Page tagging notifies a third-party server when a page is rendered by a web browserWeb browser
A web browser is a software application for retrieving, presenting, and traversing information resources on the World Wide Web. An information resource is identified by a Uniform Resource Identifier and may be a web page, image, video, or other piece of content...
. This method assumes that the end user browser has JavaScript
JavaScript
JavaScript is a prototype-based scripting language that is dynamic, weakly typed and has first-class functions. It is a multi-paradigm language, supporting object-oriented, imperative, and functional programming styles....
capabilities and that JavaScript is enabled, though it is possible that neither may be true. At this time, most mobile web browsers do not support JavaScript sufficiently for this to work.
HTTP cookies
HTTP cookies are commonly used to mark and identify visitors. Although this is a standard capability for all desktop web browsers, HTTP cookies are only supported by a small subset of mobile phones. This results in visitors not being properly identified and visit-related metrics not being calculated properly. Even when cookies are supported by a device, the device may automatically clear cookies between browsing sessions to save on handset memory or because the browser does not have access to persistent storage, even if the cookie expiration time is set to a future date. The device user may also choose to disable cookies.HTTP referrer
HTTP referrer information showing where a visitor navigated from is generally not provided for mobile web browsing. This is either because the device manufacturer has disabled sending such information in the HTTP request to save bandwidth during network usage, or because the mobile network operator's internet gateway removes or alters the original HTTP header due to the gateway software or use of mobile web transcoding software.Image tags
Handset caching mechanisms impact the use of images for page tagging. In some cases, image caching on handsets is performed regardless of any anti-caching headers output by the remote server.IP address
For desktop web browsing, the network address of the client machine usually gives some form of user identification and location. For mobile web browsing, the client IP addressIP address
An Internet Protocol address is a numerical label assigned to each device participating in a computer network that uses the Internet Protocol for communication. An IP address serves two principal functions: host or network interface identification and location addressing...
refers to the internet gateway machine owned by the network operator
Mobile network operator
A mobile network operator , also known as mobile phone operator , carrier service provider , wireless service provider, wireless carrier, or cellular company, or mobile network carrier is a telephone company that provides services for mobile phone subscribers.One essential...
. For devices such as the BlackBerry
BlackBerry
BlackBerry is a line of mobile email and smartphone devices developed and designed by Canadian company Research In Motion since 1999.BlackBerry devices are smartphones, designed to function as personal digital assistants, portable media players, internet browsers, gaming devices, and much more...
or for phones using Opera Mini
Opera Mini
Opera Mini is a web browser designed primarily for mobile phones, smartphones and personal digital assistants. Until version 4 it used the Java ME platform, requiring the mobile device to run Java ME applications. From version 5 it is also available as a native application for Android, iOS, Symbian...
browser software, the IP address refers to a operator-owned internet gateway machine in Canada or Norway.
Collecting mobile web analytics data
Collection of mobile web analytics data requires a different approach from collecting traditional web analyticsWeb analytics
Web analytics is the measurement, collection, analysis and reporting of internet data for purposes of understanding and optimizing web usage....
data. A number of solutions are available and the best results are obtained through the use of more than one technology.
Packet sniffing
Also known as tagless data capture or passive network capture, this technique uses a tap between the mobile users and the web server to capture the full content of the client-server exchange. Tagless data capture techniques are increasing in popularity for mobile web analytics because they capture all users, work with all devices and do not require JavaScript, cookies, server logs, or plugins.Image tags or beacons
Images can be forced to work for mobile web analytics, provided that the transmitted image is always unique. The level of information recorded from these transmissions depends on the architecture provided by the supplier, and not all image beacon solutions are the same.Link redirection
Link redirection is an important method of tracking mobile visitor activities. It is the only reliable way to record clicks from advertising, search, and other marketing activities. It also records visitors clicking on links to leave a site. This method helps address the lack of HTTP referrer information on mobile.HTTP header analysis
This tells you a number of basic facts about the mobile phoneMobile phone
A mobile phone is a device which can make and receive telephone calls over a radio link whilst moving around a wide geographic area. It does so by connecting to a cellular network provided by a mobile network operator...
and the browser. It can be used in conjunction with a device database such as WURFL
Wurfl
WURFL stands for Wireless Universal Resource FiLe. It is a community effort focused on mobile device detection: the problem of presenting content on the wide variety of wireless devices. WURFL is a set of proprietary API's and an XML configuration file which contains information about device...
.