The power of web analytics in the marketing arsenal

Conrad Bennett, at WebTrends, looks at how analysing internet movements and keywords can boost a company's marketing returns and bring in new business. He outlines how the NS&I used the technology to promote products other than the premium bonds, its market leader.

As the financial services industry continues to be rocked by failure and accusations of complacency and arrogance, it still needs to evolve its business technology systems to keep and attract customers. Maximising existing resources, like the internet, are critical for any business. Now when banks need customers’ cash even more, it is vital to be able to provide customers with the increasingly wanted self-service options and a capability to compare mortgage rates, investment options and insurance coverage. Eroding margins and fewer sources of new revenue also mean financial institutions must optimise marketing spend to grow revenue and increase profits.

A need to leverage online facilities

In order to remain competitive, organisations need to get the most out of their web presence and develop profitable one-to-one relationships with their customers.

For example, web analytics are increasingly being applied in the finance sector to better understand the behaviour of consumers within websites and measure a visitor’s journey and habits through a site. This intelligence can be used in a number of ways including measuring the return on investment of online customer service sites to growing online bank accounts, increasing cross-selling and improving the effectiveness of company portals.

Effective analytics also help integrate all your offline marketing activities with your online programmes providing a good overview. NS&I (National Savings and Investments) recently began applying web analytics to help them better understand their customers and maximise the return of its marketing campaigns.

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