Kyle James of .eduGuru shares seven Google Analytics filters that will help you better track who’s visiting your site. His suggestions, such as how to use the Full Referral URL Filter and the Directory Filter, will help you get more information from your Google Analytics account. Kyle says, “It’s as easy as setting up a new profile in Google Analytics and applying one or more filter to begin collecting data in a unique and valuable way…” 

The PR industry has been under scrutiny lately. Jeremiah Owyang of Web Strategy by Jeremiah offers his analyst perspective as to why PR is valuable. Jeremiah says that having a PR firm is an indication that the company is “beyond the garage.” He also noticed, “Companies that have PR services often do a better job at communicating to me.” Jeremiah claims those companies who enlist the help of a PR firms have a competitive advantage over those that don’t.

Sarah Palin captured a lot of media attention John McCain announced her as his running mate. Taly Weiss of Trends Spotting demonstrates how social media tools can be used to track search volume for the different candidates. Weiss concludes, “We do see Palin’s potential to contribute.” However, she goes on, “it seems Obama has many things under control.”

Why blog? There are many reasons and many types of blogs. Jed Brubaker of gnovis says, “Blogging is just one way in which to assist the collaboration and dissemination of knowledge.” Brubaker argues that at a time when schools aren’t sending kids home with textbooks, it’s important to provide an outlet where information is widely available and “every voice” can be heard. 

Vindu Goel of the New York Times writes that The Wall Street Journal is taking a different approach to its revamped site. The updates are community focused, allowing the over 1 million paid online subscribers to comment and discuss every article. “If the concept works,” says Goel, “WSJ.com could find itself as a hub for all kinds of business conversation, boosting reader loyalty and those oh-so-important page views for advertisers.”