To users new to web analytics the above seems common sense, but once you have a better understanding of the METRIC of a visitor in web terms, rather than thinking of a visitor as one individual user, all becomes clear.

Essentially, there is really no such thing as a new visitor when you are considering the analytics of a website over an extended period of time. If a visitor makes their first visit on a given day, and then returns to the web SITE on the same day, they are both a new visitor and a repeat visitor for that day. In terms of web analysis, a new visitor is not an individual – it’s really just a measure of web data. Thinking of VISITORS as individuals can be misleading when considering your web data, so TRY to look at the big PICTURE, rather than focusing on finer points.

To users new to web analytics the above seems common sense, but once you have a better understanding of the metric of a visitor in web terms, rather than thinking of a visitor as one individual user, all becomes clear.

Essentially, there is really no such thing as a new visitor when you are considering the analytics of a website over an extended period of time. If a visitor makes their first visit on a given day, and then returns to the web site on the same day, they are both a new visitor and a repeat visitor for that day. In terms of web analysis, a new visitor is not an individual – it’s really just a measure of web data. Thinking of visitors as individuals can be misleading when considering your web data, so try to look at the big picture, rather than focusing on finer points.