A Day in the Life of a Web Analytics Consultant

I think there is much confusion about the job of a web analytics consultant so I decided to show you what a day in the life of a Web Analytics consultant is like.

6:00am
It starts generally with travelling, it seems like I spend half of my life in the car of on a plane. As a consultant it is necessary to travel to companies all over the states.

9:00am
The start of any consultancy engagement begins with a requirements gathering session. Obviously a shorter version of this will have been carried out prior to commencing the consultancy but a full length version must be carried out with all stake holders of the analytics engagement. This type of requirements gathering generally involves starting to find out which KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) are necessary and what changes the client wishes to make in the long term.

12:00pm
Lunch. I try to have a working lunch where I can learn more about the company and any challenges we may face throughout the engagement. This is an ideal opportunity to build a lasting relationship with the client.

1:00pm
Easy wins. After lunch is a perfect time to introduce an easy win to the client to show them how easy Web Analytics is and how quickly I can make a difference. For instance if they have been struggling for a long time to pick web analytics vendor then this is a perfect time to go through planning the process of picking a vendor, pointing out the different technologies available and which would suit their particular business.

15:00pm
I would generally take this opportunity to adress some of the first few KPIs outlined in the morning as to whether the client will be able to act upon them and suggest ways in which they can accurately track the data that will make up the underlying data for the KPIs. If any configuration of the the web analytics tool is required then now would be a good time to make a start on this.

14.30pm
Just before I leave I like to make sure that the client is happy with the progress made during the day and how the client would like to carry on forward. This may lead to further consultancy days or referrals which are both equally good.

17:30am
The journey home.

So that is a typical day in the life of a web analytics consultant which I like and have always found helpful to the clients that I help. If you have any different experiences of web analytics consultancy engagments then please let me know in the comments below.