As AOL's VP for Metrics and Forecasting, Ken Harrop spent more than 10 years developing and implementing full Web analytics capabilities, including enterprise-reporting systems and tools for business intelligence, audience measurement and online advertising. He is now using that experience as a consultant, helping companies across industries maximize the return on their online investments. To find out more about this emerging consulting opportunity, Consulting's One on One sat down with Harrop, CEO of the recently-launched Infinitive Analytics.
Consulting: Why did you start this firm?
Harrop: I met with a lot of companies when I was with AOL. And one thing that I found repeatedly was that companies had little to no alignment between their Web presence and their strategic objectives. It was as if they were a totally separate online business. I've spent my career working in advertising and online analytics. And I've grown to recognize this space is really taking off. Companies are starting to realize that there's a need for people with expertise in analytics to help them make the most of the Web. Before we started the firm, we looked at organizations and saw some real opportunities. In this economy, opportunities are strong because customers are increasingly turning to companies' online sites. More and more customers are looking to interact online.
Consulting: What are you finding are companies' biggest online shortcomings?
Harrop: Companies measure their web activity, but they don't manage it well. They have a lot of data, but do not know what actions to take. Most companies don't know how best to set up navigation to increase efficiency and drive greater online marketing.
One of the promises of the Web was that you can gain greater knowledge about who is visiting a site – far more than Nielson' s TV ratings or Arbitron's radio ratings. You can do a lot with the technology today. There's so much more you can capture today about who is viewing and interacting with online display ads. But when we look at larger organizations, they are awash in data. Some are measuring the right things, but not taking thinking through actionable next steps.
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