Hey folks - well, weather intervened when we tried to do this program in February but we should be in good shape on March 31st for our Google Analytics event on Wednesday the 31st with Derek Allard of Gravity Switch. Everything nice I said about Derek Allard the last time I sent this email out still stands......but since I posted that I actually had the chance to sit down with Derek and go over one of my web sites from a search engine/Google Analytics perspective. I learned a lot, and can definitely say that it's worth the time to learn as much as possible about what Analytics can do and its lessons on content and lead generation. I'll paste in my previous email with current event information below. Hope to see you there. best regards, Jon Reed, Hidden-Tech Board Member "Hey folks - If you're on the fence about the program this Wednesday maybe this email will be the encouragement you need to make it happen. I know that for my clients, figuring out how to track and measure the impact of social media and promotional campaigns on web site traffic and product conversions has become a priority. I expect Derek to have excellent content for us on this topic. Derek Allard, our presenter, has been a long time Hidden-Tech supporter, and has always brought a collaborative spirit and good web counsel to any Hidden-Tech event he has attended (Thanks Derek!) I should also mention for those of you on Twitter, Derek has a good Twitter presence also. http://twitter.com/derekallard Hope to see you this Wednesday!" ********************************************** Hidden-Tech Presents: USING GOOGLE ANALYTICS TO IMPROVE YOUR WEBSITE ********************************************** When: Wednesday, March 31, 5:30 to 8:00 p.m. (program 6 to 7:30) Where: Media Education Foundation, Community Room, Northampton, MA <http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=60+masonic+st,+northampton,+ma+01060&sll=37.0625,-95.677068&sspn=54.884801,113.203125&ie=UTF8&ll=42.320716,-72.633147&spn=0.00633,0.013819&z=16&iwloc=addr>map Refreshments: Snack provided, drinks and sandwiches can be purchased from Woodstar Café next door Suggested donation at the door: $10 For More information: <http://www.hidden-tech.net>www.hidden-tech.net The days of having a website to have a website have come and gone. Today's websites are dynamic, ever-changing environments centered around objectives and goals. But how do you know if you are meeting those goals? How do you know what should be changed on your website? While many businesses have Google Analytics installed on their website many of them rarely look at the data being gathered. For shame! The data gathered by Google Analytics is invaluable when considering revisions to your website. Among the more useful pieces of information are: * Most visited pages * Least visited pages * Where your visitors are located * How your visitors are finding your website * Your bounce rate (how many people visit your site and immediately leave) * Your best referrers All of this information (and more) can then be used to adapt your website to better achieve your goals and also help you with determining if your marketing dollars are well spent. The data gathered by Google Analytics is invaluable, and I want to show you how to make the most of it! About our presenter: Derek Allard recently joined Gravity Switch as a programmer where he brings a passion for standards based website design. He has experience working on large scale projects as part of a team as well as working independently with small businesses and non-profit organizations. He stays current with best practices for website coding by reading books and blogs and listening to podcasts. He also spends considerable time each month analyzing client websites using Google Analytics as his primary tool and offers suggestions for website improvements based on this analysis. Derek graduated magna cum laude from Franklin Pierce College with a B.A in English. He also holds multiple certifications for website design from his post graduate studies. *************************