Google Analytic vs Godaddy Analytics

[Itworx4me]

I have been running both Analytics on my site and I get 2 different kinda stats from each. Godaddy's number seem to be inflated but not sure....Google seems more realistic.....Not sure which numbers to believe because they are so far apart on stats....Which do you prefer and why?

 

[Dean]

Is go daddy analytics only for people that use go daddy servers / hosting?

 

[TheLaw]

No offense, once you say the word "Godaddy" the laughs begin. I have no idea how it works and I don't know anyone who would rely on them. Most of it is bargain basement which is why people in the industry don't take it seriously. I use Clicky for backup and comparison purposes. In addition, different analytics packages use different methods to track.

 

[Itworx4me]

Is go daddy analytics only for people that use go daddy servers / hosting?

Yes the site is on a godaddy server....Once my clients contract runs out I will be moving away from godaddy.....

 

[Dean]

Yes the site is on a godaddy server....Once my clients contract runs out I will be moving away from godaddy.....

I see, not sure how many here use godaddy hosting.

I do have a tiny shared account with them for some specific reasons, but I've not looked at it in years. I believe 1500 accounts on that server last I checked.

 

[Walter]

Do you know Piwik?
Free, open source, real time analytics used by more than 150,000 sites...

 

[TheLaw]

Do you know Piwik?
Free, open source, real time analytics used by more than 150,000 sites...

It is superb. I couldn't get it to work properly on some of my sites but, if it does, it's a fantastic open source replacement. There is also Open Web Analytics too, which is a little different and a little hipper although takes up server resources.

 

[ragtek]

It is superb. I couldn't get it to work properly on some of my sites but, if it does, it's a fantastic open source replacement. There is also Open Web Analytics too, which is a little different and a little hipper although takes up server resources.

What problems did you get?
I had never problems with piwik

 

[Walter]

The only bad thing with Piwik is the database space needed for a popular site

 

[TheLaw]

What problems did you get?
I had never problems with piwik

In addition to not being sure that it measured all the traffic coming in, it also refused to provide more than 1 search engine and 1 keyword that would come in per day. I'll try again with some other sites but I could never get that to work. I saw the FAQ but it only addressed no data, not a single entry in both areas (can't remember that part of the panel with which it appears.) It may have also underreported traffic a little. I'll try it again on a different server but I'm not expecting different results.

 

[Anthony Parsons]

Analytics software that Google use is the most accurate, as I have compared this with industry grade analytical software, and the results are within 1% when using raw log files.

Most stat software, ie. awstats, etc, reads everything that comes to your site, thus inflated figures. Analytics uses real visitors only, not all the other bits and pieces that ping your server for something, but aren't an actual user... including search engines, as they are not users, yet would inflate as a visit according to most low grade statistical software.

 

[SilverCircle]

Analytics software that Google use is the most accurate, as I have compared this with industry grade analytical software, and the results are within 1% when using raw log files.

Most stat software, ie. awstats, etc, reads everything that comes to your site, thus inflated figures. Analytics uses real visitors only, not all the other bits and pieces that ping your server for something, but aren't an actual user... including search engines, as they are not users, yet would inflate as a visit according to most low grade statistical software.

Google Analytics alternatives like Piwik or OWA are pretty accurate as well, because they use the same method of tracking users (embedded JavaScripts, so you /need/ a visitor with a browser to record the visit) and won't inflate the results with search engine hits. They might be even more accurate, because a fair number of people are blocking GA via browser rules, but if you're running your own analytics tools you can install them on the same domain thus avoiding all the adblock and proxy filters that block scripts from outside the original domain.

Piwik is quite good with a very modern UI, a complete set of features and your visitors might be less concerned about being tracked, especially when you be honest in your privacy policy telling them all the bloody details.

Agreed on the fact that tools like awstats or webalizer and basically everything that generates visitor stats from the server logs are old school and not really useful today - the signal to noise ratio is normally unacceptable.