

Ask HN: Lets talk stats - parkern

We all know a good metrics driven analytic tool can be the backbone to any web business.   What are some good tools that you use to learn, analyze and optimize your traffic and leads?
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jacquesm
Even though it is off sometimes by as much as 100% and has many shortcomings I
have yet to find something better than Google Analytics, but I'm sure that you
are already familiar with that.

I keep a spreadsheet on the side with most of the key indicators as well.

If the situation asks for it I'll write some quick and dirty script to analyze
a chunk of the log files.

And long ago I had a little program that would send out a packet on a UDP port
to my desktop pc, and a second program that would toggle the sound port every
time a packet arrived at that port. That made for interesting sounds, it's
amazing what you can pick up that way.

("Hey, we just got linked somewhere big")

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bemmu
I got a lot more out of Google Analytics after I discovered events and user
defined values. For an app I have, someone passing a link to a friend is an
event. If that app is used embedded in Facebook rather than MySpace, I can
segment based on user defined values.

