Clicky vs Google Analytics: The Great Debate

This assignment was a pretty exciting one for me. I haven’t had to use other analytics tools before, so looking into alternative opportunities that differ from Google was a fun task. While I enjoy Google Analytics, I know that there are plenty of other programs out there that offer in-depth reporting in a more digestible manner. With that being said, I didn’t realize exactly how many options were out there until I started this search.

I have heard about a lot of these products before, but I wanted to find something that was new to me. A  lot of the programs I’ve heard of are paid programs, I went to find a free program that could compare to Google Analytics. Since the version of Google Analytics that most people use is completely free, I needed to know if there were comparable options for someone who might be on a tight budget.

One website that really stood out to me is Clicky. This company offers a free analytics tool for its consumers, but also has paid versions with upgraded features. Their pricing and upgrades can be found here. Their free service allows customers to track a single website and limits the daily page views. They offer upgrades like heatmaps and the ability to view users on an individual basis. “Clicky lets you see every visitor and every action they take on your web site, with the option to attach custom data to visitors, such as usernames or email addresses. Analyze each visitor individually and see their full history.” (Clicky.com, n.d.) Clicky also claims to offer “the best bounce rate metric in the biz.” (Clicky.com, n.d.)

The last claim that I mentioned made me curious about their tactics when it comes to improving bounce rate. They explain what they mean here: “There is a significant difference between a visitor with one pageview who spends less than 30 seconds on your site, and a visitor with one pageview who spends 5 minutes on your site. But no other analytics service will tell you about this difference - no matter how long any single-pageview visitors are on your site, they are all considered bounces. We think this is horribly broken and misleading, so we decided to redefine what a bounce is.” (Clicky.com, n.d.) While I agree that time can be a big factor in determining the effectiveness of a page, it worries me that a program like this could really “redefine” bounce rates to better suit their claim.

The company even goes on to admit that there have been some concerns about their bounce rate tactic. “We've had some feedback that this new measurement is no good either, because there are lots of people who used tabbed browsing and open a bunch of tabs in the background, then go and read them later. This is true, but this is also more of a "power user" tactic. As long as less than 50% of users are doing this (and we think it's probably more like 10%), then our bounce rate is a much more accurate representation of engagement.” (Clicky.com, n.d.) The idea behind this newly defined bounce rate is a good one, but the tactic isn’t executed well enough to replace the bounce rates that Google Analytics currently uses. There are too many factors that could skew this data in the wrong direction.

Another feature that stood out to me was the ability to use heatmaps on Clicky. I tend to be a very visual person so heatmaps have always been an interest of mine. With no current heatmap available in Google Analytics, I was curious about the product. Below is an example of a Clicky heatmap that a blog used to see what their users were clicking on.

 (Leake, 2013)

As shown above, school lunches seemed to be an interesting point for users on this blog. The heatmap allows the marketer to have a very visual representation of what people are clicking on. While clicks are available on Google Analytics, this heatmap allows users to collect data about clicks on each individual page. Heatmaps can help with navigation issues and prioritizing links. This can provide a more in-depth analysis on a customer’s journey through the site. I should mention here that heatmaps are provided as an upgrade, which means they do not come with the free Clicky account.

One thing that has bothered me about Google Analytics in the past is that it can sometimes be overwhelming. There is a lot of data, and it isn’t always put in the most digestible format. Clicky offers a cleaner alternative to the Google Analytics dashboard. “If you’re intimidated by the sheer amount of data to hand in Google Analytics, Clicky will be seriously refreshing. The interface is clean and uncluttered and contains only the information you are most likely to want to see at a glance.” (Ewer, 2013) Below is a screengrab from the Clicky dashboard. You can also view an example dashboard here.

While I am a fan of Google Analytics and the amount of data that can be collected, I do like that Clicky offers a digestible version. This would help me in meetings with coworkers who might not fully understand the data. While the layout is similar, Clicky breaks the data down in a way that is easier to understand on a more basic level.

Overall, I have very mixed feelings about Clicky. There are certain aspects of the program that are appealing, but my goal was to find a free alternative to Google Analytics that could comfortably compare. Clicky didn’t really come close in that regard. The simplicity of the free account is appealing for users who might need basic data. “Essentially, because Clicky is so limited, it’s not very complicated. For example, it can connect to YouTube to get some basic video analytics, but those analytics don’t really offer anything that YouTube itself doesn’t. It has keyword tracking, but limited on-site tracking of visitors and sessions. A lot of its best features are, of course, hidden behind the paywall by being part of the Pro version.” (Novak, 2016) Since some of their features only come with a paid account, I struggle to support its most basic version. The data it provides can be found on Google Analytics, and can be explored even further.

Google Analytics offers in-depth reporting and tracking, all while maintaining its free status. While viewing individual users and heatmaps are appealing, they don’t replace the amount of data that I can collect from Google Analytics, and they come at a cost. Clicky might be a great start for companies who are just beginning. There are companies who might not need as much data or companies who are just starting to grasp the concept of online analytics. If that is the case, then Clicky is a good place to start their journey. However, Google Analytics offers a world of information for anyone willing to listen, and it’s offered for free. It’s a pretty clear choice to me.

References

Clicky.com. (n.d.). Web Analytics in Real Time. [online] Available at: https://clicky.com/ [Accessed 5 Feb. 2018].

Clicky.com. (n.d.). Why Clicky's new bounce rate is the best in the biz. [online] Available at: https://clicky.com/blog/214/why-clickys-new-bounce-rate-is-the-best-in-the-biz [Accessed 5 Feb. 2018].

Ewer, T. (2013). Why I Use Clicky Analytics Instead of Google. [online] Leaving Work Behind. Available at: https://leavingworkbehind.com/clicky-web-analytics/ [Accessed 5 Feb. 2018].

Leake, J. (2013). How to See Where People Are Clicking on Your Blog with Heatmaps. [online] Pro Blog School. Available at: http://problogschool.com/heatmaps-web-design/ [Accessed 5 Feb. 2018].

Novak, K. (2016). 6 Free Alternatives to Google Analytics Tracking. [online] Growtraffic Blog. Available at: https://growtraffic.com/blog/2016/02/free-alternatives-google-analytics [Accessed 5 Feb. 2018].