Want to Debate Standards?
One of the biggest problems we face in web analytics today is our industry’s lack of standards and common definitions. And while a great number of incredibly bright folks have put a ton of energy into solving these problems, in my humble opinion we are more or less where we started years ago — agreeing politely to disagree. Those of you who have been reading my blog for awhile know that I’m not shy about disagreement — perhaps more than anything my analyst’s mind loves a spirited debate — but I also am somewhat anxious about creating tangible outcomes.
To this end I am incredibly excited about two huddles at X Change 2009, one that was just added! The first is Forrester’s John Lovett’s “Web Analytics Standards (or a Lack Thereof)” in which John will be leading us through the current state of industry standards, proposed definitions and our collective understanding of analytics terminology. The second, and one just added to the X Change, is Jim Hassert’s “When is a Visitor Not a Real Person?” huddle in which Jim will take John’s huddle one step further and drill-down into the often irreconcilable differences found in the seemingly harmless “visitor” metric and dimension.
Last year I was forced to miss a lot of good huddles. This year a team of wild horses couldn’t keep me from missing these two.
While I have little doubt that both of these huddles will live up to the spirit of the X Change my hope is that they will go one step further. I would love to see both produce some kind of actionable outcome, something that we can carry forth into our careers and the wider conversation about our industry. Given that some serious talent is already signed up for the X Change — including some of the brightest minds in the practitioner and vendor community — I have little doubt that we have the brain power … now all we need is the resolve to do something and not just push words around on paper.
If you’re a reader of this blog and want to join us at the X Change I’m happy to help you out. If you act before July 31st I am offering a 15% discount on the registration (a $300 savings!)
Come to the X Change. Agree to do more than “politely disagree” — take a stand, defend your ideas, and help shape tangible and positive outcomes.
