QUINT|essential
Welcome to the inaugural edition of Phase 5’s e-newsletter,
the QUINT|essential, where you can find information and insight
on research and marketing topics.
We have decided to launch our 5-times-a-year newsletter (hence
the name) to stay in touch with our clients and colleagues, to share
some of our thinking on marketing and industry issues, and to let
you know a little more about what’s happening at Phase 5.
Our first feature is about Performance
Measurement for the Web. Future issues will address a range
of subjects on research, customer experience and marketing issues.
We hope these spark your thinking and provide you with tools to
manage more effectively.
In this issue:
Feature
Performance Measurement for the Web
For
in-depth coverage about Usatility and to request
a our white paper, please contact Cynthia
Smith,
Phase 5’s Director of Business Development. |
e-Business Reality
Web sites have become a core tool in customer service and client
acquisition for any organization. Managed well, Web sites allow
corporations, businesses and governments to attract customers, sell
services, deliver digital products services, and provide customer
service and support.
The financial services industry has capitalized on the potential
of the Web to attract and service clients. Insurance company sites,
for example, let consumers obtain quotes and apply for insurance
online. Banks market and acquire customers for a range of products
though online channels. They also service clients through online
banking, trading and account management.
Technology companies, governments and media and information companies
have embraced e-business with equal enthusiasm.
We know from experience that our clients in these sectors spend
hundreds of thousands, even millions of dollars, not to mention
countless hours and seemingly endless creative energy on Web initiatives
designed to attract, service and retain customers.
Web Performance Measurement – The Current State
What surprises us is how few organizations have a thorough program
to assess the performance of these sites from anything but a technology
perspective. Most e-business organizations have implemented server-side
analytics and load analysis software that tell them how the IT infrastructure
performs. Unfortunately, only a few organizations have well conceived
systems that allow them to assess how these sites are performing
in terms of meeting their business objectives.
Compared, for example, to the customer satisfaction and loyalty
measurement systems that most large organizations have in place,
Web performance measurement is ad hoc, haphazard and does not provide
the strategic insight required to maximize ROI from Web-based customer
acquisition and service. Typically, organizations attempt to measure
some online behaviour through Web log analysis. Some enterprises
conduct visitor surveys from time to time, to profile visitors and
measure satisfaction. Others conduct periodic usability testing,
typically in the context of site redesigns or the addition of new
functionality.
In part, these piecemeal approaches are the result of the relative
new-ness of the Web. In our experience, these approaches are also
the result of organizations not having a completely articulated
sense of the objectives of their Web sites. The complexity of Web-based
goals: brand- building, customer acquisition, servicing, information
provision, product development also creates unique measurement challenges.
Building an Integrated Performance Measurement Program
To manage its online investments, organizations require an integrated
measurement program that includes profiling, behavioural, perceptual
and other business metrics. The diagram below [or see a larger
image] identifies five key areas that managers need to consider
when building Web performance measurement program for their organization.
- Profiling. While it may seem obvious, many
leading e-business organizations don’t know who is visiting
their Web sites. Beyond demographic and technographic characteristics,
it’s important to understand visitors’ relationship
to the organization. Are they customers or prospects? Do they
visit offline properties? Are they potential partners or employees?
- Utility and satisfaction. To deliver a compelling
value proposition, managers need to know why people come to the
site and what they are expecting. They also need to track - on
an ongoing basis - the extent to which their site is meeting user
expectations.
- Brand attributes. Web sites should deliver
on your organizations’ brand promise and create a holistic
customer experience across all channels. Once organizations understand
how desired brand attributes translate to the online medium, they
can measure brand performance and understand the contributions
of their online initiatives to their overall brand equity.
- Reach. Measuring reach includes understanding
how many visitors are using your sites, where they’re going
online and what’s getting them to your site. A detailed
assessment of reach should also tell you whether Web site visitors
are using other service channels, and if so, which ones and how
often.
- Usability. Most organizations understand the
importance of building in qualitative usability testing before
conducting redesigns. However, far fewer have measures to track
usability metrics over time. More and more, organizations need
ongoing assessment of the accessibility of their Web sites to
people using adaptive technologies.
While every organization will track different measures to reflect
its unique value proposition and customer base, these five areas
form the cornerstone of an integrated Web performance measurement
program that will help managers meet the business objectives
of their online initiatives.
Usatility - Phase 5’s Approach to Web Performance
Measurement
Based on years of experience helping private and public sector
organizations manage their online initiatives by keeping them user
centred, Phase 5 has developed a proprietary approach to Web performance
measurement called Usatility. Usatility
provides clients with a comprehensive measurement program that allows
them to manage their Web initiatives.
For
in-depth coverage about Usatility and to request
a our white paper, please contact Cynthia
Smith,
Phase 5’s Director of Business Development. |
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Other Stories
Phase 5
Wins Government Online Panel Study
Phase 5 is pleased to have been awarded a recent contract to help
the Government of Canada further its online Government Online strategy.
To support the Government of Canada's service vision to have its
most frequently used services online, and to help realize a 10%
increase in citizen satisfaction with government service by 2005,
the federal government has engaged Phase 5 to recruit and maintain
a Government Online Research Panel over the next 1-2 years.
Research projects conducted using the panel will focus on eGovernment
issues such as privacy, citizen engagement, common look and feel,
marketing and promotion activities, take-up and use of government
on-line services, and multi-channel service integration.
For information on this study, or to learn about the benefits of
building your own online research panel, contact Brent
Diverty. Brent can be reached at (613) 241-7555 ext. 118.
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Phase 5 Sponsors
ArtsWeek
Phase 5 is proud to serve as a research sponsor for ArtsWeek being
held in Toronto, September 20-28.
ArtsWeek is a citywide celebration of the arts that highlights
Toronto's arts and diverse cultures and increases community participation
in the artistic life of the city. Now in its 17th year, ArtsWeek
has grown to attract more than 400,000 people to hundreds of events
annually. It is the largest multidisciplinary, neighbourhood-focused
festival of its kind in Canada.
Phase 5 will be assisting The Toronto Arts Council in the design
and analysis of visitor data that will be used to support future
sponsorship initiatives. For more information, visit the ArtsWeek
Web site or contact Arnie
Guha at Phase 5. Arnie can be reached at (416) 599-7555, ext.
231.
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