From the different career options spawned by the internet, one of the highest paying and most challenging is a web analyst. This post will guide you to make a career in this new and highly rewarding field.
Everybody is mesmerized by the online world but only a few of us understand what actually makes the web tick. If you want your business to gain heights then it is essential to go deep into the technicalities of the internet.
This also means that there is a whole new world of the web that you have got to understand and know how to draw out the right analyses based on the latest web trends. A web analyst broadly does the same.
He takes the data and makes sense of it for the benefit of his business or clients. The job of a web analyst is virtually immune from an economic slowdown or recessionary phase and the demand is only going to increase to greater levels in the days to come.
Here is how you should go about making web analytics your career path.
#Why before what
Before you start jumping in anticipation over the immense prospects that this job has for you, it is better to figure out the optimal career path for you. There are majorly two types of professionals engaged in the analytics career stream.
The first is the implementers who deal with the coding part and the various technicalities of different analytic tools available. The second is analytics data reporters who work with implementers and simply fetch the data from tools.
Although both are required and the industry cannot work without any one of the two, you have to identify which of the two career paths is the right fit and why it will be the best option for you.
#So how can you become a web analyst?
You can have a degree in computer science and still not make a successful web analyst while on the other hand even a professional with a degree in marketing can be a hotshot web analyst. Thus, there is no specific educational degree that can guarantee you a career in web analytics.
However, it always helps to have some computer background along with an understanding of concepts of statistics, marketing, and technology to gain a superlative career growth.
Since the internet is a fast-moving world, you constantly need to upgrade your skills and learn on the job. In the later part of your career, you can specialize in specific niches by focusing on different web analytics tools and aspects of the internet.
Here are some specific skills that a web analyst should possess:
- Basic understanding of web design principles, information architecture, and page layouts.
- Hands-on experience in various internet marketing domains like SEO, PPC, email marketing, and online advertising.
- Understanding of web technologies like HTML, JavaScript, web servers, and server-side scripting
- Extensive experience in Microsoft Excel, and analytics tools such as Google Analytics, WebTrends, Omniture, ClickTracks, etc.
#Breaking in a career as Web Analyst
If you are already employed in the Internet industry in a slightly technical position like SEO, web designing then it is easier to shift in this role. All these roles provide the basic knowledge of how the web works.
If you want to break into this field it is advised to read all the major blogs and study material related to analytics and business intelligence. To make sure you get plenty of practical experience you can build your own site and implement Google Analytics on it. Finally, network with professionals in this field and ask for tips on how to tailor your CV according to the industry requirements.
Never dismiss the need of building a good CV before applying to new jobs. A resume for professionals in the web analytics industry will have all the above-explained skills plus additional information like a proper objective, achievements, and certifications if any. Your call for the interview depends on this. And those who are worried about rewards, web analysts are one of the highest-paid professions in the internet industry. As you increase the hands-on experience, it will reflect in the greater paychecks.
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