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Proprietary, Confidential Info, Trade Secrets, Know-How—Differences for Business Success

Proprietary information is at the foundation of every successful business, and protecting all types of proprietary information is vital for commercial success. However, how to appropriately classify, and therefore effectively protect, different types of proprietary information can be confusing.

Many businesses mistakenly use the terms “proprietary,” “confidential,” trade secret,” and “know-how” synonymously. They are not interchangeable, and the differences can have tremendous legal consequences, particularly when the terms are used loosely or inconsistently. It is essential for businesses to understand how the law treats these critical information types to effectuate sufficient protective measures.

Proprietary Information

Proprietary information encompasses virtually anything a business uniquely does or creates. It includes corporate intellectual property with federal protections, such as patents, copyrights, and trademarks, as well as confidential information, know-how, and trade secrets. Proprietary information can include any type of unique data that businesses seek to protect, such as financial information, marketing information, research and development knowledge or manufacturing data. How a business treats and protects its proprietary information may qualify it for greater protection as “confidential” or “trade secret.”

Confidential Information

Confidential information includes internal proprietary information material to business operations that cannot be learned externally. It may encompass documents or physical objects, categories of documents, objects, physical areas, procedures, processes, marketing plans, payroll/personnel records, computer programs, and nearly anything else a business wishes to keep confidential. It can exist in many forms, including written, spoken, observed, or electronically stored information, and information that is not treated in accordance with stricter forms of proprietary information protection is still generally afforded common law protection.

Trade Secrets

Trade secrets encompass confidential information imparting substantial economic value to a business through an undisclosed competitive edge, such as Coca Cola’s secret formula. They enjoy statutory protection under federal and state law. They are licensable as intellectual property (in perpetuity), whereas confidential information is more generally treated as physical property that can be given and returned. Courts generally examine six factors to adjudicate trade secret status:

The extent to which the information is known outside the business;
The extent to which the information is known internally by employees and agents;
The extent of measures taken to guard the information’s secrecy;
The information’s value internally and to competitors;
The amount of time, effort, and money expended to develop the information; and
The ease or difficulty with which the information could be lawfully acquired or duplicated by others.

Businesses should use these six factors to evaluate their own confidential information and determine the appropriate level of protection needed. In general, there are four stages of trade secret asset management:

Identification—regularly identify and review company trade secrets, documenting their secret status and the value they contribute. Conducting periodic audits of confidential information, protective measures undertaken, and protocols governing employee access can aid in identifying and eliminating security shortcomings. Misappropriation litigation often requires early identification of trade secrets and protective measures with reasonable particularity.
Classification—determine which information warrants protection and the associated expense. Confidential information shared extensively internally generally requires fewer protective measures than a critical company secret. Treating these different information types similarly could inadvertently reduce a trade secret to confidential information, limiting available legal remedies if disclosed.
Protection—educate all business units to embrace protection measures as a compliance issue with serious reputational, financial, and legal implications. Policies governing confidentiality marking may help reduce theft/misuse but can also create uncertainty if an unmarked confidential document is disclosed. Businesses must assess the practical likelihood that specific confidentiality marking policies will be followed, and potential real-world consequences that may result. Additional protective measures may include password-protection and regular discussions/trainings regarding the criticality of maintaining secrecy. Ultimately, trade secrets should only be disclosed on a need-to-know basis with a plan in place for any breaches, accidental or otherwise. Inadvertent disclosure of trade secrets can negate their protected status, limiting available legal remedies.
Valuation—evaluate the “strength” of the trade secret, and ultimately the probability of future dependent cash flows. Trade secret economic value may critically influence all aspects of a company’s response following disclosure, up to and including litigation.

Legal remedies for trade secret misappropriation include injunctions (to prevent disclosure or misuse, or to enforce information destruction or return), disgorgement of profits earned through misuse, past damages, imposition of a royalty on future goods sold, punitive damages, and/or attorney fees. Both federal and state law typically allow for recovery of exemplary damages (up to twice the value of actual damages) for willful and malicious misappropriation. An increasingly common “avoided costs” theory of unjust enrichment requires a defendant to pay the research and development costs theoretically avoided by the misappropriation. See Caudill Seed & Warehouse v. Jarrow Formulas, No. 21-5345, (6th Cir. Nov. 10, 2022). However, secrecy can never be fully reinstated following disclosure, so businesses must carefully guard their critical secrets.

Know-How

Know-how generally refers to technical skills, including information, knowledge, techniques, and experiences, that are difficult to reduce to tangible form; it is often associated with trade secrets, but can include confidential or proprietary information. Know-how is licensable (in perpetuity) and can be a valuable intellectual property asset in a carefully drafted license. As state contract law principles generally govern know-how licenses, interpretations vary among courts. While licensed know-how may include trade secrets, know-how generally does not require the same type and level of protection as trade secrets for enforcement of a license. Commingling trade secret and know-how terms in a license, therefore, may unintentionally demote the trade secrets and eliminate potential misappropriation remedies. SeeBohler-Uddeholm America v. Ellwood Group, 247 F.3d 79, 107 (3d Cir. 2001).

In a patent licensing context, licensing particular “know-how” required to utilize a patented invention may extend the licensee’s competitive advantage beyond the time-limited license of the patent itself. Careful consideration is also required when drafting a know-how license in combination with any federal intellectual property right license(s), such as patent/know-how licenses. License grants, terms, and royalty schedules should be separately defined so that it is clear that royalties occurring after patent expiration are tied only to the know-how. See Kimble v. Marvel Entertainment, 135 S. Ct 2401 (2015).

Nondisclosure Agreements (NDAs)—Preventing Harmful Disclosure

Legal protection for confidential information stems from common law and equitable principles that a) businesses need secrets to stay competitive, and b) maintaining confidentiality is a moral imperative. NDAs additionally harness contract law to protect all forms of proprietary information. NDAs can be adapted for various parties, specific goals, and even particular state jurisdictions. NDAs may be unilateral, e.g., outlining employee confidential information access during and post-employment, or bilateral, e.g., between businesses collaborating on a project, merger, or sale. When drafting or reviewing an NDA:

Identify Relevant Parties: define the disclosing party and recipient. Also consider additional potential parties, such as accountants and business partners.
Specify Confidentiality: define all relevant proprietary information. Most NDA breaches occur through misunderstanding, not dishonesty, and are often avoidable with clearly defined parameters. Covering vast categories of information with general definitions is inappropriate; such clauses are typically not upheld. As noted, treating trade secrets as general confidential information may reduce statutory protections available. Define any specific exclusions clearly, such as prior information or public knowledge. Employees must specifically understand what may be disclosed and under what conditions to avoid inadvertent disclosure to the public domain. Businesses should track what and when information is disclosed, such as through databases, record-keeping systems, or document check-out systems.
Identify Obligations: define specific protection requirements in the agreement and determine how onerous they may be, such as requiring every information custodian to sign separate NDAs or to exercise a particular level of caution. Identical contract terms may be a necessity in one situation but a restrictive burden in others. Noncompete and nonsolicitation terms are frequently included in NDAs; it is prudent to be aware of these terms, particularly in light of recent FTC efforts to restrict the future use of non-compete agreements.
Duration: define how long secret information must be protected, depending upon the type of business, transaction, and information. Consider how long after the termination of the relationship/project the secrecy obligations should be maintained.
Information Return: define whether confidential information intentionally disclosed for business purposes must subsequently be returned or destroyed, automatically or by request, and what confirmation is required.

Remedies for Breach: Consider at the outset the best course of action if a receiving party breaches an NDA. A valid NDA may provide for monetary damages or an injunction against a breaching party, but an invalid NDA may result in loss of confidentiality. It can require significant resources to prove an NDA breach. Remedies may take varying forms, e.g., injunctions, indemnification from losses caused by the breach, and breach-of-contract damages. However, damage may be irreparable once the protected information becomes public, and it may be best to simply keep invaluable corporate “crown jewels” strictly under lock and key.

Original document, Proprietary, Confidential Info, Trade Secrets, Know-How—Differences for Business Success
Source: Fox Rothschild
Adapted for Academy.Warriorrising

How do you choose the best course of action from multiple options?

Identify the problem

The first step in choosing the best course of action is to clearly define the problem that you are trying to solve or the goal that you are trying to achieve. You need to ask yourself what is the main challenge, opportunity, or question that you are facing, and why is it important to address it. You also need to consider the context, scope, and constraints of the problem, such as the time frame, budget, stakeholders, and ethical implications. By identifying the problem, you can narrow down your focus and avoid irrelevant or unrealistic options.

Generate alternatives

The next step is to generate as many possible solutions or actions as you can think of that could potentially solve the problem or achieve the goal. You can use various techniques to stimulate your creativity, such as brainstorming, mind mapping, research, or asking for feedback. The key is to be open-minded and avoid dismissing or judging any idea prematurely. You want to have a diverse and comprehensive list of options that cover different angles and perspectives.

Evaluate alternatives

The third step is to evaluate each option according to some criteria that reflect your desired outcomes, values, and priorities. You can use a simple matrix or a table to compare and rank the options based on their advantages and disadvantages, risks and benefits, feasibility and effectiveness, and alignment with your goals. You can also assign weights or scores to each criterion to reflect their importance. By evaluating the alternatives, you can eliminate the ones that are clearly inferior or incompatible, and identify the ones that are most promising and viable.

Choose the best option

The fourth step is to choose the best option from the remaining ones based on your evaluation. You need to consider which option has the highest overall score or rank, which option meets your most important criteria, and which option you feel most confident and comfortable with. You also need to be aware of any biases or assumptions that may influence your choice, such as anchoring, confirmation, or availability bias. You can use tools such as pro-con lists, decision trees, or scenarios to help you visualize and justify your choice.

Implement the chosen option

The fifth step is to put your chosen option into action and execute it effectively. You need to plan the steps, resources, and timeline for implementing the option, and communicate it clearly to yourself and others who are involved or affected by it. You also need to monitor the progress and performance of the option, and adjust it as needed based on the feedback and results. You can use tools such as action plans, checklists, or dashboards to help you track and manage the implementation.

Review the results

The final step is to review the results of your chosen option and assess its quality and impact. You need to measure the outcomes and outputs of the option, and compare them with your expected goals and criteria. You also need to evaluate the process and experience of choosing and implementing the option, and identify what worked well and what could be improved. You can use tools such as surveys, interviews, or reports to help you collect and analyze the data and feedback. By reviewing the results, you can learn from your decision and apply the lessons to future situations.

Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?

Original document, How do you choose the best course of action from multiple options?
Source: LinkedIn
Adapted for Academy.Warriorrising

How to File for a Patent

This step-by-step guide describes the legal process of filing for a patent.

Now that you’ve determined that you have an invention that’s potentially marketable, you’ll want to protect that invention — and your business — by filing a patent application with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (PTO). The PTO is the domestic government agency responsible for examining patent applications and awarding patents. A patent gives the holder the right, for a certain amount of time, to keep others from profiting off of manufacturing, using, selling, or importing into the United States something similar to what you’ve invented.

Sounds like a no-brainer, right? Well, the bad news is that filing a patent application is a complex legal process, one that costs money and takes time. That process involves searching patents that have already been awarded, filling out a written application with detailed descriptions and possibly drawings of your invention, and an average of two years of back-and-forth with the patent examiner before your application is awarded — or denied.

The pages ahead will provide guidance to help you determine whether you need help in filing your patent application, how to conduct a search of already issued patents, and understanding the fee structure.

How to File for a Patent: Deciding to D-I-Y or Get Help

The advent of the Internet has put a variety of government patent resources at every inventor’s fingertips. That’s the good news. The bad news is that the patent system is still quite complex and you need to understand this before deciding to file a do-it-yourself patent application. Just consider this tidbit: Patents are arranged according to a massive classification system encompassing more than 450 subject classes and 150,000 subject subclasses. The Index to the U.S. Patent Classification System, an alphabetical subject listing of these various classes and subclasses, is produced by the PTO to aid searchers of the system. “The Classifications,” writes Richard C. Levy in his Inventor’s Desktop Companion, “are to searching a patent what the card catalog is to looking for a library book. It is the only way to discover what exists in the field of prior art [prior patents]. The Classifications are a star to steer by, without which no meaningful patent search can be completed.” The Index is fortunately now available online on the PTO’s website.

Even given the wealth of online resources now available, most experts still counsel inventors to retain help when filing patent applications and searching the databases of existing patents and published applications. Utility patent applications — the most common of the three types of patent applications — are complex documents with myriad requirements, and as Levy indicates, “smart inventors use experienced patent counsel to assure that they obtain the strongest patent protection available on their inventions. There is too much at stake. Smart inventors do not rely on patent-it-yourself books.” Design patent applications, however, are far less complicated so many inventors take care of those documents themselves.

The following are some of the categories of professionals who might be able to help you research and file your patent application:

Patent Attorneys. Before making an arrangement with a patent attorney, savvy inventors take steps to ensure that they have found competent, responsible legal counsel. The first step is to make sure that the lawyer is registered with the PTO. Attorneys listed with the PTO are required to have minimum academic and professional qualifications, and must pass a PTO examination. Inventors should also make certain that their legal counsel is familiar with the field or industry in which the invention would be used. In addition, they should do their best to insure that their attorney has all relevant information needed to make the best possible patent application. Finally, experts counsel inventors to shop around to find the best combination of price and value, and they encourage them to secure written agreements on attorney fees.
Inventor Associations. Groups such as Invent Now, a non-profit organization affiliated with the National Inventors Hall of Fame, or United Inventors Association, another non-profit, have online resources that can help answer your questions about filing a patent application. Most states, and some cities, also have local inventor associations that may be able to help you with resources.
University Intellectual Property Departments. Sometimes universities, particularly law schools, have staff that can either help inventors research patent information or be retained to conduct the research for a fee.
Patent Search Firms. Patent search companies can be found in local yellow pages, but inventors need to be careful in making agreements with such firms. Some are perfectly legitimate, but others prey on unsuspecting inventors, saddling them with service contracts or other bad business arrangements. Given this reality, inventors should ask for references, evidence that the search firm has prior experience in the field in which their inventions are classified, and a signed letter of non-disclosure before agreeing to any arrangement with a search firm.

Dig Deeper: How to Find a Good Patent Lawyer

The following are some of the categories of professionals who might be able to help you research and file your patent application:

Patent Attorneys. Before making an arrangement with a patent attorney, savvy inventors take steps to ensure that they have found competent, responsible legal counsel. The first step is to make sure that the lawyer is registered with the PTO. Attorneys listed with the PTO are required to have minimum academic and professional qualifications, and must pass a PTO examination. Inventors should also make certain that their legal counsel is familiar with the field or industry in which the invention would be used. In addition, they should do their best to insure that their attorney has all relevant information needed to make the best possible patent application. Finally, experts counsel inventors to shop around to find the best combination of price and value, and they encourage them to secure written agreements on attorney fees.
Inventor Associations. Groups such as Invent Now, a non-profit organization affiliated with the National Inventors Hall of Fame, or United Inventors Association, another non-profit, have online resources that can help answer your questions about filing a patent application. Most states, and some cities, also have local inventor associations that may be able to help you with resources.
University Intellectual Property Departments. Sometimes universities, particularly law schools, have staff that can either help inventors research patent information or be retained to conduct the research for a fee.
Patent Search Firms. Patent search companies can be found in local yellow pages, but inventors need to be careful in making agreements with such firms. Some are perfectly legitimate, but others prey on unsuspecting inventors, saddling them with service contracts or other bad business arrangements. Given this reality, inventors should ask for references, evidence that the search firm has prior experience in the field in which their inventions are classified, and a signed letter of non-disclosure before agreeing to any arrangement with a search firm.

Dig Deeper: How to Find a Good Patent Lawyer

How to File for a Patent: Conduting a Patent Search

Inventors, lawyers, and patent experts all advise inventors armed with a possible new product or design to undertake a comprehensive patent search before taking any other steps toward filing a patent application. If you don’t do the search, the PTO examiner sure will and if the examiner rejects your application based on “prior art” (patents that have already been issues), you’ll lose out on the application cost, in addition to the energy and time you put into the process.

Steps to Conducting a Patent Search

Some inventors choose to undertake the task or researching existing patents and published applications themselves, often with the aid of patent software programs. The PTO has designated several Patent and Trademark Depository Libraries (PTDLs) around the country to receive and house copies of U.S. patents and patent and trademark materials, to make them freely available to the public, and to provide the public with information about patent and trademark information. The PTLD staff are available to help you with training on U.S. patent searches and research, which include the Cassis DVD-ROM system, the PubWEST database, and the USPTO website.

The PTO recommends the following steps to successfully researching patents:

Keywords. Think of applicable keywords that describe the purpose, use, and/or composition of your invention.
Find classes/subclasses. Use these keywords to find potential classes and subclasses in the PTO’s Index to the U.S. Patent Classification.
Verify classes/subclasses. Double and triple check the relevancy of the class/subclasses by using the classification schedule in the PTO’s Manual of Classification and then read the classification definitions.
Access full-text. Search the Issued Patents and the Published Applications databases on the PTO website by ‘Current US Classification.’ Read the full-text of issued patents and published applications.
Review claims. Look at the claims, drawings of inventions and read the specifications of other patents and applications.
Check references. Cross-check references and look at “field of search” areas for other classes and subclasses to search.

Be aware that the majority of applicants choose to secure the services of a patent attorney or a professional patent search firm. Patent attorneys typically hire professional researchers to do the actual patent search; the turnaround time with lawyers who specialize in handling such searches is usually fast, but they are also expensive because of the mark-up charge that attorneys impose.

Dig Deeper: How to File a Trademark

How to File for a Patent: The Types of Patent Applications

Bringing the patent process into the 21st Century, the PTO has established an Electronic Filing System letting you file applications over the Web. You can also still file paper forms and mail them to the Commissioner of Patents. But how you choose to file your patent application is only one of many decisions you need to make during the process.

Here are some other decisions you need to make:

Provisional vs. Non-provisional

There are two types of patent applications that inventors may file. A non-provisional application automatically begins the patent review process and may lead to the awarding of a patent. But starting in 1995, inventors were also allowed to apply for a provisional application, which establishes an official filing date for the invention and allows you to use the term “Patent Pending” in connection with your invention, but it doesn’t launch the examination process. The provisional application gives you 12 months to file a corresponding non-provisional application, but the benefits include that the patentability would be judged as if the application were filed on the earlier date and the 20-year patent term would be measured from the later non-provisional application filing date, the PTO says.

Utility vs. Design vs. Plant

There are three types of patents — utility, design, and plant.

Utility Patents. These are the most common kind of patents. They are granted to inventors who, according to the PTO, invent or discover any new and useful process, machine, manufacture, or compositions of matter (mixtures of ingredients, chemical compounds), or any new and useful variations of existing products, processes, or compositions.
Design Patents. Inventors can also obtain patents on the appearance of a product, provided that it is a new and original design.
Plant Patents. This kind of patent is granted to anyone who invents or discovers and asexually reproduces any distinct and new variety of plant, including cultivated sports, mutants, hybrids, and newly found seedlings.

Utility Patent Application Transmittal Form (Form PTO/SB/05) or a transmittal letter should be filed with every patent application to instruct the USPTO as to what actual types of papers are being filed (e.g., specification, claims, drawings, declaration, information disclosure statement). It identifies the name of the applicant, the type of application, the title of the invention, the contents of the application, and any accompanying enclosures. (Form PTO/SB/21 is to be used for all correspondence after initial filing.)

Patent Drawings: Professional vs. D-I-Y

Sometimes patent applicants are required to submit drawings of their invention – particularly when the nature of an application requires a drawing to understand the invention. Patent experts advise inventors to secure the services of an experienced patent draftsman when the time comes to make patent drawings. “The requirements for drawings are strictly enforced,” warns Levy. “Professional draftsmen will stand behind their work and guarantee revisions if requested by the PTO due to inconsistencies in the drawings…. Because the design patent is granted for the appearance of the article, the drawing in the design patent is more critical than the drawing in a utility patent. The design drawing is the disclosure of the claimed design, whereas the utility drawing is intended to provide only an exemplary illustration of some aspects of the mechanism described in the specification and claims.”

Dig Deeper: The Pros and Cons of Computer-Aided Design (CAD)

How to File for a Patent: Patents and the PTO

On average, it takes the Patent and Trademark Office 24.6 months to process patent applications and issue approved patents. Examinations of patent applications, which are undertaken in the order in which they are received, are arduous exercises, encompassing inspection of legal compliance and comprehensive searches to ensure the invention’s legitimacy.

If an application is approved, then the inventor can proceed with his business plan, whether that involved launching a small business or seeking buyers for the invention. Many applications, however, are rejected when they are first submitted. Even applications for genuinely new products or designs sometimes need changes to meet PTO requirements. In instances in which the application is rejected, the inventor has limited options. The inventor can prepare a response to the examiner’s stated grounds for rejection, explaining why he or she believes that the examiner erred; this is a viable step, and one which sometimes convinces examiners to reconsider. The inventor can also offer amendments to the application designed to assuage the examiner’s objections.

On many occasions, however, the examiner will remain unpersuaded and will reject the inventor’s claims, If this happens, the inventor can lodge appeals with the PTO commissioner and, after that, the Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences. If the application is still deemed unacceptable, and the inventor remains determined to pursue the issue, he or she can then turn to the U.S. court system. The Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia have both heard such cases.

Dig Deeper: Are Business Methods Patentable?

How to File for a Patent: Factoring the Costs

Receivers of patents must pay fees to the PTO for services rendered when a patent is reviewed. In 1982 a law was passed that cut some of these fees (patent application, extension of time, revival, appeal, patent issues, statutory disclaimer, maintenance on patents) for “small entities.” Small entities were held to include independent inventors, small businesses, and nonprofit organizations. In addition, all utility patents are subject to the payment of maintenance fees that must be paid to keep the patent going. These payments are made at several different points of the patent’s life. Inventors need to heed this payment schedule closely, for nonpayment may result in the premature expiration of the patent (a six-month grace period is typically provided during which the fee can be paid, albeit with a surcharge). Inventors who secure the services of a patent attorney generally do not have to worry about this scenario as much, since a competent attorney will notify them of impending maintenance fee payments.

As of April 2009, new updates to PTO fees were put in place. These fees vary widely for different application forms and services. The range for initial patent application fees is between $220 and $330 – but for qualified small entities, those fees are cut in half. A full list of fees is posted on the PTO Web site located at uspto.gov.

Dig Deeper: Securing a Patent — The Inventor (and Investor) Advantage

Resources

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) maintains a website to allow inventors to search registered patents and published applications and to electronically file a patent application at uspto.gov/ebc/.

The PTO also maintains a website with patent information geared specifically for small businesses at uspto.gov/smallbusiness.

National Inventor Fraud Center is located at inventorfraud.com.

Levy, Richard C. The Inventor’s Desktop Companion. Visible Ink Press, 1995.

A report that Thomas Field wrote for the U.S. Small Business Administration, Avoiding Patent, Trademark and Copyright Problems, is available on the website of the Franklin Peirce Law Center, where he is now a professor of law.

The U.S. Small Business Administration’s sponsored report on small business patents, An Analysis of Small Business Patents by Industry and Firm Size, issued in November 2008, is available at sba.gov/advo/research.

Original document, How to File for a Patent
Source: INC
Adapted for Academy.Warriorrising

8 Website Analytics Tools for Marketing

At its core, inbound marketing is all about analytics.

Sure, creativity, content, a customer-centric focus, and enthusiasm are all essential to inbound, but another important facet is discovering what works, what isn’t working, and what can be improved in order to maximize results. Analytics drive every inbound action you take and move you toward success for both your company and your customers.

Your website is the cornerstone of how you market your business, so analytics that measure how it performs take on even greater importance. Which pages are people visiting the most? Which pages are converting? Many great tools are available to help you get a better look at how well your website is performing, along with what competitors are doing with their sites.

We’ve detailed eight of those tools in this post—use the knowledge gained from these resources to improve your website.

What Are Web Analytics Tools, and Why Should You Use Them?

Different analytics produce different data, but the underlying goal is the same: to measure the performance of your web presence. We’ve divided the metrics into four different areas of focus, with two tools in each area, for a total of eight recommended tools you should be using.

Social Metrics Advertising Tools

Facebook Page Insights: This is a free, built-in feature available for your company’s Facebook page. It can be used to see whom your posts are reaching, who’s liking your posts, and where your visitors are coming from. You can also see data on how your page’s performance is trending over time and how visitors are engaging with your content. With this information, you can optimize your social presence to increase likes, followers, and shares.
Twitter Analytics: Another free social tracking tool—and you don’t need to be advertising on Twitter to use it. Use this to learn more about who your followers are, where they are coming from, and what topics they find interesting. This tool measures engagement to show you which tweets are reaching the most people and how to make your content more successful.

Testing/Optimization Tools

Optimizely: This platform provides companies with a simple solution for improving website pages through A/B testing. With this tool, you can easily make changes to a page on your site and test to see if your new version is better than the old page. Use this to figure out how to make a successful website and achieve performance goals. No coding experience is necessary.
Google Content Experiments: This is another free tool from Google that helps you test and choose between different versions of your website or landing pages. Find out which parts of your page or content generate the most clicks or conversions. This tool then measures how each page performed and shows you which is the most effective. Once you find your highest converting page, you can make it live for all visitors.

SEO/Competitive Intelligence

Moz: This SEO toolset is perfect for tracking and improving your search engine rankings, as well as tracking your competitors’ rankings. With Moz, you can track keywords by campaign or location, see how you rank on both desktop and mobile devices, find out who your top competitors are, and much more—all in one package. This is a great tool that can help optimize your site and improve your rank.
SEMrush: This is another great tool to compare your performance to your competition. Perfect for companies that advertise on Google or other search engines, this tool shows how you rank among your competitors and even lets you see information such as copy, keywords, and budget. Along with these features and tools, you’ll gain valuable insight and recommendations that will help you improve your website’s performance, ranking, and advertising.

User Behavior

Google Analytics: One of the best and preferred analytics tools for marketing—and it’s free. Google Analytics tracks web traffic to your site and collects data, such as keywords, that can be used to improve your visitors’ online experience. Find out which keywords are bringing the most visitors to your site. Get reports and information about your visitors and conversions. Figure out where you might be losing visitors, and why, so that you can improve those pages and keep them from leaving.
LuckyOrange: Want to learn more about how your visitors navigate your site? This tool shows you just that. With heatmaps, user recordings, and other visualizations, you can see exactly what your customers are doing on your page. LuckyOrange shows you where people are clicking and where they aren’t, how far down the page they’re scrolling, and more. This is a great tool for improving your site’s design and content by learning what your visitors find most interesting or useful. You’ll get information on where people are coming from and which areas of your site are catching their attention.

Analyze and Take Action

Undoubtedly, website analytics can provide solid insight into how well your inbound strategies are performing. Many options besides these are out there, both free and paid versions.

Whatever tools you choose, the key is acting upon the findings. If you know something on your website isn’t working right, test alternatives and try something different. Figure out what you want to focus on and what you should be tracking, select the right analytics, and let the data guide your success.

This post was originally written on April 18, 2017, and was updated in January 2020.

Original document, 8 Website Analytics Tools for Marketing
Source:https: SmartBug
Adapted for Academy.Warriorrising

How to Create a Website – The Basics

I’m Daniel Piechnick, a professional web designer.

I wrote this beginner’s guide to help the large number of people who want to create a website (or blog), but have absolutely no idea of what to do.

In Website Setup Guide, I show you exactly how to set up a proper, normal website with a .com (or .ca, .uk or .au) domain name, from start to finish. You don’t need to know anything about computers or websites, to follow this guide and make a website of your own.

Creating a website and running it this way will cost you about $3-4 per month in total. The information in this site is all free.

Since 2009, Website Setup Guide has helped more than three million people around the world set up successful websites and blogs. Most major web design sites now follow the format and recommendations of this site, and an entire industry of copycat sites and videos based on Website Setup Guide has appeared. However, this site remains the simplest and best place to go to set up your first website.

It’s easy to create a website by following this guide, but if you ever get stuck, you can email me, and I’ll be happy to help.

How to start a website – An overview

Take note of this overview. It’s important.

To create a website, you only need to do these two things:

In steps two and three of this site, I will explain how web hosting works, and how to create a website. Step 4 (Extra Information) provides lots of general information related to setting up a website. Step 5 (Start Making Your site) covers all the actual instructions you need to follow, to set up your site.

Click Here to Continue to Step 2 – Web Hosting >>

Original document, How to Create a Website – The Basics
Source:https: Website Setup Guide
Adapted for Academy.Warriorrising