I was just viewing The Social Software Blog, a blog in the Weblogs Inc. Network which was acquired by AOL in late October 2005, and I noticed that it was using SiteMeter as an metrics and analytics tool.
I also use SiteMeter on Somewhat Frank and I think it does a great job at giving me a quick real-time view of my metrics with very little set up. I simply added a small piece of code to my blog and SiteMeter serves up its logo as a tracking device for free unless you upgrade to a premium account. As a SiteMeter user I also know that the default for SiteMeter allows anyone to view your metrics from your site by clicking on the SiteMeter icon, unless you go into your account and specifically set the Privacy Setting from:
| NORMAL | Your visitors can view all of your site traffic reports and charts by clicking on your counter. |
To 'HIGH':
| HIGH | Your visitors can't see your site reports and your site will not be displayed on any public lists. After selecting this option, whenever you are logged into Site Meter, clicking on your counter will take you to your site's statistics page. Everyone else will be sent to the Site Meter home page. |
So I clicked the little colorful cube SiteMeter icon on The Social Software Weblog and much to my surprise I was directed to live blog metrics for the site. I have attached a screen-shot of one of the views displaying visits per day for the last 30 days.
I went on to examine some of the other Weblogs Inc. blogs and I noticed that Engadget, which is probably the most popular Weblogs Inc. blog, did not use SiteMeter therefore did not reveal its metrics. I have compiled a list of a few blogs in the network that my curiosity forced me to check for the same SiteMeter icon. If you are interested in metrics you can view the live metrics by clicking the links below:
Additionally, you can go find the metrics pages yourself by clicking on the cube
icon similar to the icon to shown. I just find it unusual to see live metrics from such an established brand, since metrics are usually keep more private within a business unit. So I wonder, does Weblogs Inc. even knows its metrics are exposed?
I did notice Jason Calcanis, CEO of Weblogs Inc., posted some SiteMeter metrics charts on his blog a few months ago. So maybe Weblog Inc. traffic metrics are supposed to be opened to the public for viewing.
