Not having analytics = driving with your eyes closed

SEOmoz has a report on Searchfest 2008.

I found this section to be most insightful.

About web analytics:

• Analytics does not simply equal “reports”
• Not having analytics = driving with your eyes closed
• Search analytics = 5 step checkup:
  • phrases
  • page views
  • time on site
  • bounce rate
  • conversion
• The time on site combined with the number of page views is the most useful data
• Conversions are slightly overrated. CEO can obsess about conversion numbers, even though conversions can happen months after someone visits a site.
• Onsite search = a missed opportunity. Try to track what your users are searching for and see if you can better offer it to them.

I alway like to put a custom search box on sites, not a Google search box. This way I help visitors find what they are looking for. Even better, I can login to the Admin panel and see exactly what phrases visitors are searching for and if the search found a page or more on the site. If the search result returned empty that is a HINT to create some content on that topic [of course, only if relevant to site focus]