Unique users are website visitors who opened a specific website for the first time and had their visit counted by the site tracker. Unique visitors are tracked via their IP address, which is cached as they navigate the website, with each webpage, link, and image viewed logged against it. It’s worth noting that only their first visit is counted as a unique individual visit, and any further visits are deemed as standard.
Counting unique users is important for any business, as it helps them:
- Measure the success of advertising – Pageviews aren’t a good measure of a campaign’s performance. However, the number of unique users shows how effective it was in driving brand awareness.
- Measure exposure – IP addresses tell businesses where in the world each unique user logs in from, giving them a regional picture of interest and spread.
- Measure customer loyalty – each unique user will use the same IP upon each visit. This allows businesses to see which customers return, from where, and how often. The more a single user visits a site, the more committed they are.
Most web analytics tools track unique visitors and give you data on them. Knowing your numbers is important for creating a website strategy that drives your success.