Web Analytics Free of Charge, Courtesy of Google

Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) today announced that its hosted web analytics service, Google Analytics, is now free. Formerly known as Urchin from Google, Google Analytics helps businesses use performance data to improve their online marketing campaigns and websites. With Google Analytics, businesses can determine what keywords attract the most visitors, which email campaigns create more customers, and how to design web pages that hold people’s attention.

“We want to give all online marketers and publishers access to powerful web analytics to help them better understand what their customers want. With this knowledge, businesses can create more accurate advertising and build better websites,” said Paul Muret, Google engineering director, and one of the founders of Urchin. “By making this powerful service free, we aim to give all websites – large and small – the tools they need to better serve their customers, make more money, and improve the web experience for everyone.”

Google Analytics can enhance every aspect of online marketing – from selecting and bidding on effective keywords, to determining the most relevant offers in email campaigns, to optimizing website design. By acting on this information, businesses of all sizes can attract more visitors, convert more prospects to customers, and improve the overall return on their marketing investment. Google Analytics is simple enough for businesses new to web analytics to get started quickly, and sophisticated enough for the most advanced online marketers.

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