Google Analytics Benchmarking
If you use Google Analytics for your website statistics, you might be interested in the new benchmarking option. If you agree to share your data (anonymously), Google will give you a comparison showing your traffic stats against other similar sites.
The benchmarking service has been collecting data for the last couple of weeks and it went live today. I had a lot of fun seeing my stats against industry standards. However it's pretty much a once-off buzz at the moment. There's not much to look at, and once you've seen how a site fares there's not much point going back to that report again.
Still, Google has a solid record of starting simple and building things into something no one else saw coming. This could be the beginning of a revolutionary way to measure statistics. I'm optimistic.
Categories
Importantly, all sites are divided into three categories: Small, medium and large. Statistics for a site can only be compared against other sites in the same category. The trouble is, you don't know which category your site is in, so how can you tell what you're really being compared to?
I don't have the whole answer (yet) but I've got a reasonable estimate. Because I have a few dozen websites that get various levels of traffic, I've been able to pin down the range of statistics in each category to some extent. It's still quite rough, and the data will change anyway as the service matures, but here's how I see it:
Small: The benchmark for sites in this category is around 5 visits per day. It includes sites that get up to somewhere between 15 and 50 visits per day.
Medium: The benchmark is around 200 visits per day (2100 page views). The range is from around 50 to somewhere between 1000 and 10,000 visits per day.
Large: The benchmark is around 10,000 visits per day. The range is from somewhere between 1000 and 10,000 visits per day upwards.
I currently have one site in the large category (Google thinks I'm large - now there's an aphrodisiac :)). The site is of course mediacollege.com, which is ranking 57% higher than the benchmark for large sites. Woohoo!
Now here's an interesting idea for Google - what about being able to share data between consenting accounts, so for example, I could agree to share data with some of my competitors and we could all measure up against each other. I don't know how many people would buy into it but I'd be a starter for sure. Nothing like a bit of in-your-face competition to get you motivated.
Labels: MediaCollege, WebEntrepreneur
3-D camera with 12,616 lenses
Stanford electronics researchers are developing a camera built around what they call a "multi-aperture image sensor." Pixels are reduced in size and grouped in arrays of 256 pixels. The fascinating thing is how image depth metadata can be stored with the image, allowing photo editors to select objects in the image based on their distance from the camera. Apparently this opens up lots of other new opportunities as well.
Full article at news-service.stanford.edu.
Labels: 3DNewZealand, MediaCollege
Types of Photography
Here are a few new articles for the "Types of Photography" section at MediaCollege.com:
Astrophotography - Space photography.
Digiscoping - Photography through a telescope or binoculars.
Forensic Photography - Police and legal.
Infrared Photography - Photography in which the recording medium is sensitive to infrared light rather than the normal visible light spectrum.
Travel Photography - This article includes some basic tips on travel photography.
Labels: MediaCollege
Tip for press releases: Bad news
Here's a quick article for PR writers, or anyone faced with the unenviable task: The best way to announce bad news.
Labels: MediaCollege
Transferring a Website
Today I became aware that one of our clients had initiated a less-than-perfect domain transfer to a new server. As I type this, their site is unreachable and won't be up and running for a while yet.
If you rely on your site in any way, this wouldn't be a good turn of events. So, I posted a quick article on the best way to transfer a website from one server to another. If I've missed anything please let me know.
Labels: MediaCollege, WebEntrepreneur
Commissioned Articles
I've always liked the idea of commissioning articles but it's hard to make them profitable, especially if you need high-quality copy and you don't like plastering too many ads on the page (meaning less income per article).
I've just found a new source which looks promising and I've purchased an article about the digital camera RAW format for MediaCollege.com. I'm going to keep an eye on the stats and see how it goes, and I'll probably purchase a few more similar articles as well - enough to do some decent testing. If it goes okay this could be a great way to help build the website.
BTW I only ever purchase articles that are 100% unique.
Edit: I bought another few articles:
The end of analog broadcast
What is an IP Network Camera?
Introduction to MS Word
Labels: MediaCollege
Media College
www.mediacollege.com is my pride and joy. Of all the sites I've worked on, none have enjoyed the same level of success or given me the same feel-good sense of satisfaction. There are heaps of things for me to love about this site, including the fact that it brings in a lot more revenue than any of the others :)
Inevitably, with success you get idiots. I love the compliments I get through Media College but I could live without the constant stream of emails from people who refuse to read instructions, listen to advice or behave in a civilized manner. However I won't get sidetracked with them - they aren't worth devoting blogspace to.
Media College is the only site we have with an active
forum since we sold
The Race Cafe a few years ago. It's not hugely busy but there's a good base of helpful people and I think it's a great forum. I don't participate as much as I'd like to because things are a little hectic in my life (baby & toddler etc). Fortunately the regulars are very good at answering questions in the main forums (video, audio etc) so I tend to work more in the less-busy forums and ones which need my input (web design, MC Media Player etc). Hopefully once things calm down in my personal life I might be able to spend more time in the forum.
As for other parts of the site, there's a lot of new sections waiting for more content (e.g. new
Adobe tutorials,
Photography, etc). I intend plugging away at these areas over the next couple of years. I don't generally announce new additions or tutorials because they tend to be ongoing minor updates that don't warrant a big fuss. However I'll try to use this blog to let you know what things I'm working on and what new features to expect.
Like all my sites, Media College will never be "finished". The scope for tutorials and other resources is practically unlimited. I intend spending the rest of my working life improving this site. With the help of our regular viewers and feedback from casual visitors I think it will continue to be a big force in the field of online media education.
Massive thanks to all of you who have helped make Media College what it is. I love you all :)
Labels: MediaCollege
