In the 28 days (to December 31) 5,600 individual unique readers – Google Anayltics – visited Kinglake Ranges News. Just 523 unique visitors read The Local Paper online. “AWStats counts too much, while Google Analytics counts to little.”
We haven’t made these figures up (we never have, nor have we ever -unlike some – used a VPN (which we often use) to manipulate our statistics. All IP addresses and devices used for managing Kinglake Ranges News are blocked to prevent inaccurate data.
Following criticism from The Local Paper we decided to use and compare AWStats and Google Analytics to provide ‘unique viewer’ data. Even then, we’re still number one.
The Local Paper has complained – and published – on several occasions that their AWStats figures were much higher than those represented by SimilarWeb/Google Anayltics as published by Kinglake Ranges News. This is true.
AWStats over-counts, and Google Analytics under-counts. So if Kinglake Ranges News has more viewers on an under-count then what will AWStats say?
49,432 more viewers for Kinglake Ranges News than the The Local Paper. (June-November 2018).
We’ll use AWStats statistical data too in the future.
Whether one uses Google Analytics (SimilarWeb) or AWStats, we’re still Murrindindi Shire’s number one online news site.
In fact, AWStats only increases our lead on our nearest competitor.
For example, WordPress Statistics and Google Analytics show 924 visitors for January 3, 2019. AWStats shows 1,907 viewers for the same day. We’ll happily use AWStats for comparison.
If anyone needs to be called before the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, it would be Ash Long, not Ash Geelan.
After all, Long was happy to use the editor, Ashley Geelan’s work in his publications until a request for payment was made, despite Long earlier staing that:
“you don’t need to do a cadetship, you’re well beyond that,”
Long said in 2017 providing free articles (see working for free) until asking Long for payment. I was told that he (Long) “makes no money” from his Local Media company.
If our competitor was a fair and decent person, then they, like ourselves, will publish their WordPress, Google Analytics/Similar Web and AWS data in a table or graph, unaltered. We doubt it. ( A table will be published when 2018 data is finalised).
It should be noted that Long includes print circulation figures based on how many copies of their newspaper is printed and distributed. This is not the same as actual readers.
We don’t include print figures as we don’t publish a print edition. Why waste the paper? There’s no need to. It’s 2019. Not 1979.
We are aware of – and witnessed several times and participated in (some) – three local distributors who simply grab their bundles of The Local Paper and put them straight in the skip bin, still bundled, on a Wednesday morning.
These so-called ‘circulation’ figures are then included in circulation figures. Printed is not the same as actually ‘taken home and read’.
Following the release of December’s and 2018 data, we’ll publish statistics from WordPress, Google Analytics, Similar Web and AWStats. We will also compare each source for differences between figures and publish a comparison.
Using data analysis we call on our competitor to publish theirs too. We doubt they will.
Only one local media platform has proven integrity: Kinglake Ranges News.
Will an advertising guru masquerading as a journalist, Ash Long, publish all his stats? We doubt it.
The table will have 3 columns: WordPress Statistics, Google Analytics (SimilarWeb) and AWStats. And four rows: The Local Paper, Kinglake Ranges News, Alexandra Standard and Yea Chronicle.
Given our competitor has complained about data manipulation and ‘fake statistics’ we can’t wait to publish this table. The question is whether they have the (doubtful) integrity to participate in true, 100 per cent transparency. It’s doubtful at best.
Kinglake Ranges News is Murrindindi Shire’s first and number one (no matter what source of statistics one uses) news site. We Lead. They Copy.
