Rich Internet Applications and Web Analytics

Take a look at this article from Christopher Parkin, Omniture Inc. which begins to wrestle with the difficult subject of measuring the contribution rich internet applications make to the performance of web sites against online business objectives.

"As companies strive to enhance and optimize the effectiveness of their online channel, more and more marketers and business leaders have embraced the growing trend of adding rich Internet applications (RIA) to their Web sites.

While the visual appeal of the site is undoubtedly improved with these enhancements, the bottom-line value cannot be determined unless companies know how to measure the ROI (return on investment) generated by these applications.

Applying Web analytics technology to RIA can provide insight into the trends and behaviors associated with the interactions of online visitors and can reveal answers to critical business questions such as: How did the application improve sales or conversion—or why didn’t it? What specific features contributed to that outcome?

RIA leverage advanced technologies to provide users a more “life-like” experience—usually involving technologies that dynamically alter the interface without having to refresh the browser. "

See the full article on rich internet applications here