One of the best definitions of convergence analytics comes from ClickZ.com. They advise to think of convergence analytics as the marketing equivalent of “one ring to rule them all.” But what does it mean exactly?
1. What Convergence Analytics Is
In other words, convergence analytics is taking various stats and data from a number of different marketing data sources and looking at them (analyzing them) through centralized dashboards or even one dashboard.
The data itself can REALLY come from a variety of sources and that’s the whole point of convergence analytics. For example: traffic stats, browser-based behavior and activity patterns, app usage, demographics, social media activity, social gaming, call-center information, CRM data, and so on. The possibilities (in theory) are endless.
2. The Value
More accurately, the value of convergence analytics lies in the possibility to quickly find patterns between different kinds or types of data and then using these conclusions to take educated action with your campaigns.
One of the problems in today’s marketing (not only in online gaming) is that what most marketers call “targeted campaigns” are actually nothing near being targeted. For instance, just because your prospective customer visited a online gambling site one month ago, doesn’t mean that displaying a casino ad to them will be any sort of targeted. Ultimately, you never know what this person wants or needs. Convergence analytics can change that.
3. Where To Go
The concept of convergence analytics is quite a new one and still in its infancy, so there are no actual in-depth all-knowing services available. But a number of companies has already started to offer some kind of solutions that follow the main idea.
Not surprisingly, one of these companies is Google…with their ever-expanding range of analytics features, and now new data from projects like Google+, Google Local, Webmaster Tools, the +1, and let’s not forget the Google search engine itself. Paying attention to what Google does is probably the best strategy to follow here.
Of course, there are other companies that you can look into to find some useful services and tools. For example: Anametrix, GoodData, or Domo.
Be careful though. Just because someone uses the term convergence analytics doesn’t mean that this is what they actually offer.
4. The Barrier
As always with all sorts of new solutions, the main problem is learning how to understand the data and take action on it the right way. The sole fact of having a centralized convergence analytics dashboard won’t change much in your affiliate business…
Possibly, the only actual way of incorporating convergence analytics into your business is to either hire a consultant or spend a lot of time in various dashboards yourself. Either way, it will require time and money.
5. The Verdict
In the end, convergence analytics may just be the next step of online marketing and performance analytics. Every day, marketers get access to more data, more data sources, more influence, more tools, and essentially more numbers of various nature. Being up-to-date with convergence analytics is something sure to pay off.