This is a series of articles that will go through a step by step methodology showing how to develop a Web Measurement Plan. The methodology is based on the principles of problem solving used extensively in Quality based practices with the fundamental premise based on the Plan-Do-Check-Act cycle.
This methodology is time honoured approach and has proven to be successful in many instances across a wide range of applications.
The focus of these articles is on the PLAN stage. As can be seen by the PLAN description below, it is very general and requires a great deal of thought and development for each application. Consequently for Web Channel measurement we have developed a comprehensive methodology that can be applied either by following the steps in the blog as they are published, or through a facilitated workshop provided by Zanka Consulting.
The methodology to successfully implement a web measurement plan follows the PDCA cycle closely. Once the Key Performance measures are in place as developed in the PLAN stage, then they need to be “implemented”.
Implementation (DO) is designing the web analytics tools to deliver the identified metrics. This may require integrating several different tools such as Google Analytics, Facebook stats, Twitter stats and so on.
The CHECK phase ( sometimes referred to as STUDY) is when the data is analyzed to see whether the information is providing the insights that can be used to ACT.
The final ACT stage is where changes are made to the various web
PDCA Definition
The four PDCA Steps are (Wikipedia):
PLAN
Establish the objectives and processes necessary to deliver results in accordance with the expected output (the target or goals). By establishing output expectations, the completeness and accuracy of the specification is also a part of the targeted improvement. When possible start on a small scale to test possible effects.
DO
Implement the plan, execute the process, make the product. Collect data for charting and analysis in the following “CHECK” and “ACT” steps.
CHECK
Study the actual results (measured and collected in “DO” above) and compare against the expected results (targets or goals from the “PLAN”) to ascertain any differences. Look for deviation in implementation from the plan and also look for the appropriateness and completeness of the plan to enable the execution, i.e., “Do”. Charting data can make this much easier to see trends over several PDCA cycles and in order to convert the collected data into information. Information is what you need for the next step “ACT”.
ACT
If the CHECK shows that the PLAN that was implemented in DO is an improvement to the prior standard (baseline), then that becomes the new standard (baseline) for how the organization should ACT going forward (new standards are enACTed).
If the CHECK shows that the PLAN that was implemented in DO is not an improvement, then the existing standard (baseline) will remain in place. In either case, if the CHECK showed something different than expected (whether better or worse), then there is some more learning to be done… and that will suggest potential future PDCA cycles. Note that some who teach PDCA assert that the ACT involves making adjustments or corrective actions… but generally it would be counter to PDCA thinking to propose and decide upon alternative changes without using a proper PLAN phase, or to make them the new standard (baseline) without going through DO and CHECK steps.
The methodology for a web channel follows the PDCA cycle closely. Once the Key Performance measures are in place as developed in the PLAN stage, then they need to be “implemented”. Implementation (DO) is designing the web analytics tools to deliver the identified metrics. This may require integrating several different tools such as Google Analytics, Facebook stats, Twitter stats and so on. The CHECK phase ( sometimes referred to as STUDY) is when the data is analyzed to see whether the information is providing the insights that can be used to ACT.