As the web becomes more entrenched in business operations across a variety of industries, it’s increasingly being used for more than simply e-commerce, according to an online poll of marketers by analytics provider WebTrends/NetIQ.
Among approximately 1,000 e-business professionals who responded to WebTrends’ online survey, lead generation edged out e-commerce as 30% identified lead generation as their site’s primary objective, versus 28% who identified e-commerce. 20% of those surveyed identified media and content as the main purpose of their web site, while 9% said their web site was built primarily to provide self-service. A surprising 7% did not know what their primary site objective was.
"We're seeing that Internet retailers are using the web more and more often as a lead generation tool as they are getting more insight into their online and offline channels through the measurability of web analytics," says Brent Hieggelke, vice president of WebTrends Marketing for NetIQ. " Internet retailers need to consider their online as well as offline channels when thinking about their web strategies, as the web can serve not only to increase sales online but also to drive more customers into their stores."
The WebTrends data also show another trend: marketing departments are taking ownership of sites, versus the IT departments that oversee their development. That’s a shift from two years ago, when Jupiter Research reported that by a 2 to 1 margin, it was the IT department that owned and managed the site optimization process within companies. 38% of those surveyed said that their company’s marketing manager owns and manages the process for web site optimization within their organization, while 36% still say it’s their company’s web development team. 9% said that their company’s IT department is primarily responsible for managing their company’s site, while 4% said their company out sources that function. And 14% reported that no individual has been designated to hold primary responsibility for owing or managing web site optimization at their company.
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