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Behavioral analysis: Analytics and heat maps

Development / LaunchquantitativeIntermediate

TL;DR

Automatic collection of real-time navigation data to observe clicks, scrolls, and interaction paths.

Detailed description

Web Analytics + Heat Maps is a quantitative methodology that combines automatic behavioral data with interaction visualizations to understand how users navigate and use websites or applications. This technique collects metrics such as pages visited, time spent, conversion rates, and navigation paths, complementing them with heat maps that show where users click, how far they scroll, and which areas capture their attention. Research demonstrates its effectiveness in identifying real usage patterns and optimizing digital experiences (Hotjar; Nielsen Norman Group). It is especially valuable for products with sufficient traffic where objective understanding of user behavior at scale is required.

Main objective

Measure real user behavior in digital products (clicks, conversions).

Use cases

WebMobile appsDesktop applicationsActive digital products

When to use it

When the product is online for monitoring and optimization.

Effort level

Low to Medium

Recommended number of users

Hundreds to millions

Advantages

  • Non-intrusive to users
  • Provides real usage patterns
  • Scalable and easy to visualize
  • Detects dead or invisible zones
  • Easy to interpret

Disadvantages

  • Doesn't explain the 'why' behind behavior
  • Requires careful interpretation
  • Doesn't show intentions or motivations
  • Limited in dynamic interaction

When to use

  • After launch
  • To validate paths, buttons, and conversions
  • To detect improvement opportunities

Metrics

  • 📊Conversion rate
  • 📊Bounce rate
  • 📊Time on page
  • 📊Heat map clicks
  • 📊Most visited pages
  • 📊Conversion funnel
  • 📊Scroll percentage per page
  • 📊Attention time per section
  • 📊Frequent drop-off points
  • 📊Most clicked areas
  • 📊Scroll patterns

Practical example

Use Google Analytics to see abandonment rate at ecommerce checkout.

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