tracking users progress on web site

Question

Short version: I'm trying to determine the best way to track what the user does on our site. I.e., page they land on, what links they click, where they end up. Most of this information is stored in the log files, but is using the log file the best way for me to proceed?

Long version: My boss is preparing to spend a lot of money advertising on multiple sites. He wants to know which ads perform the best, on which sites, and how long we retain our new visitors, if at all. That is, he's not satisfied simply knowing that our ad campaign brought in X new visitors, what he wants to know is where they came from, what they did, and if they bought anything.

As I said in the short version, I know that most of this is available in the log files, but is this the best way to go about it or should I use the backend php system to track this information and store it in the db in real time? Does there already exist a generally accepted method?

Tracking a user's progress is a topic that has always interested me, but until now I've never had the the time to delve into it. If anyone has some advice on even where to begin, I would greatly appreciate it.

Answer 1

Sounds like you need to deploy a Web analytics product to your site.

Look at tools such as Google Analytics or AWStats. They will provide a reports with an analysis of the data collected by log files.

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