SiteMeter free – test
Recently I wrote already the free version of eTracker tried and my impressions. Now I installed the free version of SiteMeter times and run some time on this site to give you a few impressions.
Installation
sitemeter_02.pngThe Setup and installation of the tool is is very easy. Just copy and paste it into the page a code snippets. Particularly positive: Man gets offered two versions, one with JavaScript and a day without JavaScript, you have the choice. The account is set up after only a few minutes and the visitors are counted. Also the tagging code is quite clear and so forever long as with eTracker. As well as SiteMeter you have a small logo on the site in buying take, where the code was inserted. Well, at least you can choose between different styles of the logo ;-)
Interface
sitemeter_03.pngThe user interface is somewhat Loveless, who places worth on a nice surface is here definitely wrong. I also find the clarity is not particularly good. The navigation is divided into two parts left the main navigation and bottom again navigate to other reports. Specifically the navigation below I saw immediately. Certainly this could be in the left navigation integrate.
Standard reports
The Summary dashboard is the most important information about visits and page views. Detailed reports show the visitor on different timelines. Considerable effort is made to the last visitors can be viewed by referrers, location and entry, exit page.
sitemeter_01.pngThe Footernavigation is divided into four blocks. Navigation trends, location tracking, visitor tracking and Web browser. Very funny here the distance report indicating how far visitors on average are away from the location of the site. To you must however, manually set the location in the settings.
The report “Traffic Prediction” is very well done. This calculates how much traffic based on existing data in the next few days, weeks and months is.
Missing reports
As already with the free version of eTracker reports that exclude a reasonably useful almost absent from SiteMeter. I must find my favorite reports about the origin of the user and used keywords in the search engines. There is also no segmentation function within the reports, let alone filter.
sitemeter_04.pngE-Mail reporting
Positive I found that me to easily do regularly sent a report by E-Mail, this is however exactly Loveless decorated like the rest of SiteMeter and makes no fun at all to read, even the clarity is here completely missing. The layout is pretty zerschossen according to the mail program.
Conclusion
Basically it is the free version of SiteMeter not more than one counter. The really interesting reports missing here completely and are only available in the paid version that go from $ 6.95 for 25,000 PIs. What does the free version can better even such classics as Webalizer and AwStats. For me, it is clear at this point that the SiteMeter code is again banned from my side. But the next one is already installed ;-)