Abstract:

Clicksteps is a new approach to the analysis of click streams, i.e., the sequences of page views of individual visitors to a site. It is a technique that focuses on the entire sequences, in contrast to the single page oriented focus of current weblog analysis tools. Specifically the technique is able to calculate distances between sequences, facilitating a segmentation of visitors to a website based on their navigational behavior through a site. In an empirical case study concerning a financial services site, the Clicksteps technique uncovered three types of customers and a key success feature of the site. It is concluded that this technique uncovers valuable information that is not available with other techniques. This information can be used to increase the efficiency of a site by, for example, modifying structure of a site, or changing the promotional strategy. From a wider, multi-channel perspective, results of a Clicksteps analyses can provide practical insights into the information needs of prospects and customers of a business organization.