Google Analytics Sends Bad News to Web Tracking Business

What remains to be seen is whether Google Analytics will cut into the service that the revenue generating analytics companies provide to the big Web commerce site that spends hundreds of thousands and even millions of dollars on Web site design and marketing programs.

These sites are willing to spend thousands to dollars to check on how online shoppers are reacting to their latest site redesign to see if some additional tweaks are in order. Their independent Web presence is strong enough that they dont need to use Google as their primary marketing platform.

To read more about Googles acquisition of Urchin Software, click here.

But the very fact that Google is offering the service will certainly prompt the bigger companies to ask why they are paying thousands of dollars for Web tracking services when Google is giving them away.

WebSideStory, Coremetrics and the like may soon find themselves under pressure to slash their fees if they cant demonstrate that they offer premium tracking services that are far superior to what Google offers.

Click here to read more about the growth of the Web analytics market.

Furthermore, Google Analytics may prove to be a significant enticement for some midsize and even some of the large shopping and commerce sites to make Google a big part of their Web advertising programs.

While Google Analytics may not prove to be the crack of doom that the some in the Web Tracking business fear, its a risk that these companies face from being in a vulnerable niche market. These companies sprung up when the Web was going through its early explosive growth phase.

There was a large demand for Web tracking services because traditional marketing companies didnt understand yet how the Web worked. That time has passed. People learned that the Web was no different from any other marketing medium and the dotcom meltdown was the proof of that.

So no one should whine that giant Google is unfairly attacking these poor independent Web tracking companies that are just trying to make a buck.

The evolution of the Web ensures that these companies will either fail or disappear one by one into larger companies such as Google as the Web commerce companies discover they can get the same services for little or no cash.

If they dont get these services as part of a service agreement with Google or some other Web search megasite, no doubt the tools will become cheap enough that they can buy them outright and do the Web tracking for themselves.

John Pallatto is a veteran journalist in the field of enterprise software and Internet technology. He can be reached at john_pallatto@ziffdavis.com.

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