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Drilling Down the Customer By September 23, 1999 Aiming to crack the customer code and translate the browsing and buying habits of online shoppers into e-commerce dollars, many e-tailers are turning to usage-analysis software as an alternative to traffic measurement services, such as Media Metrix or Nielsen//NetRatings. Determining how people shop, when and what items are loaded into virtual shopping carts, why carts are abandoned and which barriers stop customers from reaching the check-out point are key to understanding what can make or break an e-com site. Use of data tools such as usage analysis software puts valuable customer information at the fingertips of online merchants. Deciphering the results and forming an action plan is then up to the e-merchant. Three basic methods of collecting Web server data are from server logs, server plug-ins and network sniffers. Server logs list every request made to the server. By employing log file analysis tools, you can figure out where site visitors come from, how often they return, and how they navigate through a site. By using cookies, Webmasters can log more detailed information concerning user habits on a site. See the EC Tech Advisor article Analyzing Traffic On Your E-Commerce Site for more information. Server plug-ins add features or services; the leading Web servers have an extension application program interface (API) that is made up of a set of routines, protocols, and tools for building software applications. A lot of Web site measurement vendors offer server plug-ins to compile usage data directly from the server. Web site measurement vendors also offer network sniffers, which are programs or devices that monitor data traveling over a network. Sniffers can be used for network management but are also used by hackers to disrupt sites or steal information that is not securely stored. Who's Buying? With so much riding on obtaining valuable consumer online habits, there are now many companies in the emerging e-commerce/e-surveillance field, including Blue Martini Software, Andromedia and net.Genesis. Recently, net.Genesis unveiled its new CartSmarts software, which it bills as the first "visitor-centric" package that provides segmented analysis of Internet browser and buyers. CartSmarts gathers data by searching through Web server log files and taking information from browser cookies. That information is then sent through analytical compilers that creates more than 30 automated reports. Pricing starts at $10,000. The information gleaned about e-shopper habits includes: visitor segmentation, conversion, shopping cart activity; purchase frequence and acquisition source. Visitor segmentation data can tell an e-tailer how different shopper segments differ from each other and using that information, e-tailers can more effectively target and custom-tailor upcoming products. Conversion provides the decision points along the purchase path and delineates conversion rates for each progressive step. Shopping cart activity shows how e-shoppers use carts, which carts are abandoned and which purchases are completed. Purchase frequency and recency determines how often visitors come to a site and buy, and how they engage in a site. Acquisition source can help e-tailers understand which sites drive the most engaged visitors and buyers to a site. Additional report topics include: visitor profiles, providing demographic information; product category reports, identifying items that should be cross-sold or upsold; ROI reports, which targets successful marketing campaigns that lead to the greatest return on investment; and customer lifetime value, reports that evaluate which buyers contribute the most to a site. Andromedia offers e-tailers its Aria eCommerce 3.0 software, and expects to launch a new version within the coming months to compete directly with CartSmarts. The company is in a quiet period, pre-IPO and was not available for comment. The U.S. Postal Service (www.usps.gov) started using Andromedia's Aria software last year in order to track and categorize visitors and determine the effectiveness of promotional campaigns. For example, the USPS found that traffic significantly soared to its unofficial, alternative URL, www.usps.com, when it was featured in its "Fly Like An Eagle," ad campaign. In late August, BlueMartini previewed its Version 2.0 E-Merchandising System, which contains six modules which cover customer buying behavior via click-stream analysis and promotions tracking, three-tier enterprise reporting system, rules-based cross-selling and enhanced gift registries and one-click buying. Click-streams record the shopping path taken on a Web site, allowing e-tailers to discover the most popular navigation paths and determine which pages shoppers look at but do not buy from. Pricing for the full suite of six modules begins at $650,000 and works with the Intel/NT and Sun SPARC/Solaris platforms with support from Microsoft SQL-Server and Oracle databases. Now that so many customer-behavior tools are able to shadow online shoppers, it's up to e-tailers to crunch those numbers and make necessary and effective changes for better-performing e-commerce sites. Knowledge is power. Use it or lose it.