About
The Maryland Analytics Program (MAP) aims to enable state agencies to make data-driven decisions. Maryland Digital Service (MDDS) manages the Maryland analytics dashboard, located at analytics.maryland.gov, and the data collection tool associated with it.
As part of the Maryland Analytics Program, state agencies benefit from:
- A state-of-the-art analytics tool for public-facing informational and transactional websites
- Training on analytics tools and reporting
- Help desk and Engineering support
The Maryland analytics dashboard spotlights how people interact with state government websites. This data helps agency stakeholders understand how constituents interact with their websites. The dashboard also shares information about:
- Traffic patterns (Page views and visits)
- Devices, browsers, and operating systems
- Most popular content pages
- Accessibility levels
- Readability levels
- Quality levels
We do not track personal data on individuals and no identifying information is collected on our constituents.
Not all of Maryland's state government websites are represented in this dashboard.
Definitions
Quality Assurance
Quality Assurance addresses the credibility and usability of the user-facing characteristics on a website. This is checked through content quality (typos, broken links, etc.) and freshness; ease of usability via several factors, including navigation, page load speeds, and accessibility; and a secure and confidential experience with links to only safe domains and not collecting personally identifiable information.
Accessibility
Accessibility is about removing barriers that prevent people with disabilities from doing what they need to do online. Integrating web page elements to accommodate keyboard-only users and screen readers, among other assistive technology tools, improves the user experience for all. Best practices include conformance with Web Content Accessibility Guidelines and initiatives such as WAI-ARIA, which provides guidance on tracking and measuring how sites implement and use Accessible Rich Internet Applications.
Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) refers to the discipline of creating content that will show up when users type relevant terms into search engines such as Google, Bing, and Yahoo. Content quality and engagement, effective use of links and media to enhance user experience, and the site’s responsiveness on mobile devices affect SEO. Technical elements also contribute to how it’s accessed, crawled, and indexed by search engine bots.
Sessions
A session is a group of user interactions with your website that take place within a given time frame. For example, a single session can contain multiple page views, events, social interactions, and eCommerce transactions. A session ends after 30 minutes of inactivity or at midnight.
Page Views
A page view is recorded every time a page is viewed on your website. This metric includes repeated views of a single page by the same user.
Total Users
Total Users is the number of users who have initiated sessions on your website during a specified date range. This metric helps you understand how many unique visitors engage with your site.