Bruno Mertins is now Google Analytics Certified

Managed to pass the Google Analytics Individual Qualification (IQ) test with an incredible score of 91!. You may have a look at my official Google test results here. As you may know Web analytics has become the “backbone” of any successful website, Google Analytics provides us with very powerful features than will help us to quickly and easily identify actionable insights and trends. With the correct and professional use of Google Analytics we can increase our website’s traffic and marketing effectiveness, specially if you are tracking Adwords PPC Campaigns combined with E-commerce conversions.

If you are interested in knowing more about the test you can find a detail explanation about it at Google’s Conversion University. The best way to prepare for the test is to apply and experiment with some of its advanced features after going thru all of the lessons. I particularly found very interesting the E-commerce Tracking, Advanced Segmentation and the Regex Lessons. If you have used extensively other Web Analytics Software such as Webtrends or Urchin you will have no problems and difficulties completing the test. You have about an hour and a half to answer all 70 questions you can pause the test whenever you want but you will have to finish it within 120 hours.

After completing successfully the test you will receive a certificate of achievement in .PDF, Google also maintains a publicly searchable database of people who have passed the Google Analytics test and obtained the certificate. This means that starting from today I can be be search for and contacted through Google’s database!

Canonicalization issues?

Once again “Canonicalization” has become a hot topic within the SEO community given the recent addition and standardization of the “canonical tag” by all of the search engines. Recently I have been working on projects focused on the hispanic community and I have stumbled into a lot of websites with “Canonicalization Issues” that’s why I have written a much longer post regarding this on my “Spanish” section.

In the Anglo community these problems seem to be a bit more difficult to come cross, given that much more information is out there. For that reason below I have gathered some really nice articles regarding “Canonicalization”, the “Canonical Tag” issues and “other Canonical conflicts”.

What is “Canonicalization”?
Jane and Robot
Bruce Clay
Sugar Rae

What is the “Canonical Tag”?
Seo Gadget
Search Engine Land

Other issues regarding the use of the “Canonical Tag”
Google Webmaster
Matt Cutts
Helen Moverland

Hope these links can help you clear your doubts regarding the use of canonical tags and canonicalization. I’ll be adding more, if I stumble into more.