Coremetrics / IBM Digital Analytics (discontinued) vs. Google Universal Analytics (discontinued)

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
Coremetrics / IBM Digital Analytics (discontinued)
Score 9.0 out of 10
N/A
Based on the former Coremetrics, IBM Digital Analytics is a discontinued analytics product. IBM acquired Coremetrics in 2010, and re-branded the platform to the IBM Digital Marketing Optimization Solution. Product support was ultimately provided by Acoustic, but the product is not a part of the company's plans going forward.N/A
Google Universal Analytics (discontinued)
Score 8.7 out of 10
N/A
Google Universal Analytics was an enterprise-level analytics solution that was sunset in July of 2024.
$150,000
Up to 1 Billion hits/month
Pricing
Coremetrics / IBM Digital Analytics (discontinued)Google Universal Analytics (discontinued)
Editions & Modules
No answers on this topic
Google Analytics Premium
$150,000
Up to 1 Billion hits/month
Google Analytics
Free
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
Coremetrics / IBM Digital Analytics (discontinued)Google Universal Analytics (discontinued)
Free Trial
NoNo
Free/Freemium Version
NoYes
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoNo
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
Additional Details
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
Coremetrics / IBM Digital Analytics (discontinued)Google Universal Analytics (discontinued)
Considered Both Products
Coremetrics / IBM Digital Analytics (discontinued)
Chose Coremetrics / IBM Digital Analytics (discontinued)
In comparison to Adobe, I believe IBM Digital Analytics and Adobe Analytics are fairly similar in terms of features. When it comes to the marketing attribution approach, IBM is what sets it apart. Additionally, pre-integrated technologies with great ROI, like LIVEmail or IBM …
Chose Coremetrics / IBM Digital Analytics (discontinued)
Cognos has exploration but it doesn't have much AI and ML functionality. Watson is much more helpful when it comes to customer experience analytics. Watson gives clarity into end-to-end journeys and effectiveness while also giving the ability to visualize the actual customer …
Chose Coremetrics / IBM Digital Analytics (discontinued)
IBM Analytics is a great tool for measuring and analyzing web traffic along with consumer behavior to a degree. When compared to other solutions and tools available in the market today, I'd suggest checking out Kissmetrics or even Google analytics over this tool. Ultimately, it …
Chose Coremetrics / IBM Digital Analytics (discontinued)
IBM Digital Analytics was already in place when our team was brought on. None of us are fans. IBM does not seem to care from a customer service level whether or not we are satisfied or getting what we need out of their offering.
Chose Coremetrics / IBM Digital Analytics (discontinued)
I think that Google Analytics does everything just a little bit better than IBM. I was brought in with IBM being so deeply integrated with existing systems that changing to another tool isn't viable at this time.
Chose Coremetrics / IBM Digital Analytics (discontinued)
The alternative products mentioned differ wildly.

Adobe Analytics is similar to IBM CXA although not as strong for transactional web assets (eStores). In keeping with IBM CXA, integration with Adobe's own suite of products is strong. However, in a heterogeneous environment, this …
Chose Coremetrics / IBM Digital Analytics (discontinued)
IBM Analytics typically goes up against Adobe Analytics in the enterprise web analytics product selection process. When we determine a client isn't after the big guns, we'll usually refer them to Google Analytics, but when individual user conversion tracking is a must, we will …
Chose Coremetrics / IBM Digital Analytics (discontinued)
We have used Adobe Analytics and Google Analytics in similar instances. IBM Digital Analytics is between the 2 products, slightly better than Google Analytics but far behind the flexibility offered in Adobe.
Chose Coremetrics / IBM Digital Analytics (discontinued)
IBM Digital Analytics is typically a choice driven by CMS and pricing decisions. In terms of stand alone considerations:

Adobe Analytics typically wins on flexibility (aka ability to customize the system to your particular business)
Chose Coremetrics / IBM Digital Analytics (discontinued)
Coremetrics was the overall most comprehensive solution at the time.
Chose Coremetrics / IBM Digital Analytics (discontinued)
The customer support, advanced analysis and no data sampling are the primarily reasons why I would choose IBM over GA.
Chose Coremetrics / IBM Digital Analytics (discontinued)
Google Analytics - Compared to IBM, not as strong on the product reporting (product views, abandoned carts etc.). The end results can be achieved through custom variables, but that does require custom coding. While Google does at least have a reporting API, it is not nearly as …
Chose Coremetrics / IBM Digital Analytics (discontinued)
Google Analytics is great low cost alternative to IBM Digital Analytics for smaller, low traffic sites but does not offer the in depth product performance reports we require for our retail clients. IBM can add notes on Google's user interface but Google should really add …
Chose Coremetrics / IBM Digital Analytics (discontinued)
As a consulting company, we tailor the analytics solution to our clients. Usually they start with a free solution like Google Analytics, but they rapidly end up with a paying solution because it offers a deeper analysis and less restrictions on the data.

For instance Google …
Chose Coremetrics / IBM Digital Analytics (discontinued)
Much of the work we did in IBM Digital Analytics could have been answered through Google Analytics, a much simpler, agile and FREE solution set. Not mention, given the vast number of Google Analytics USERS, free and actionable support is simply a click away ... this compared to …
Chose Coremetrics / IBM Digital Analytics (discontinued)
Have extensive use of Omniture and Google Analytics, but I find Digital Analytics the best for retailers. It's is an easy to use solution that highlights the merchandising and marketing issues related to your website.
Chose Coremetrics / IBM Digital Analytics (discontinued)
Compared to Adobe: I think Adobe Analytics and IBM DA are very close in terms of functionalities. IBM makes the difference when it comes to the marketing attribution model. Also, the pre-integrated solutions such as LIVEmail or IBM Recommendations are very easy to use and allow …
Chose Coremetrics / IBM Digital Analytics (discontinued)
I mentioned Adobe and Google and made some comparisons in prior questions. I believe that any of these packages can be made quite powerful with a good implementation, which includes a good tagging strategy. I like Coremetrics best because I believe it is easier to get a solid …
Chose Coremetrics / IBM Digital Analytics (discontinued)
I feel that Google Analytics give you what you really need, without the hefty price tag. Along with giving you what you need, it is extremely more user friendly than IBM DA and can be easily learned by a multitude of people while still giving very significant information that …
Chose Coremetrics / IBM Digital Analytics (discontinued)
At the time we signed they were a Cadillac of software, there are really only 1-2 others that can compete on their level but that comes at a cost.
Chose Coremetrics / IBM Digital Analytics (discontinued)
IBM analytics prices can get really high if you overpass the contracted server calls, also increasing the amount of credits reports can get you the price to the roof
Chose Coremetrics / IBM Digital Analytics (discontinued)
Webtrends and Omniture were on the shortlist. Webtrends tagging implementation seemed a little less flexible than Omniture and Coremetrics. When it finally came down to pricing and desired features, Omniture and Coremetrics were not significantly different, so we based the …
Chose Coremetrics / IBM Digital Analytics (discontinued)
Omniture and Webtrends were also considered. When business needs are met by both Coremetrics and Omniture, the latter tends to be more expensive. Webtrends is often a good choice when server logs are also used with page tags. Server logs is an older technology which tends to …
Google Universal Analytics (discontinued)
Chose Google Universal Analytics (discontinued)
Since our data is on Bigquery it is very easy for us to connect our database to this platform which is very challenging for us to connect the data integration part to other platforms so this is the primary reason for us to choose this platform. The second reason to choose this …
Chose Google Universal Analytics (discontinued)
As long as the budget isn't in question, then I think you get a lot more for your money for 360. Having more confidence in the data is essential, your typical GA suite is good but there are limitations. These limitations unfortunately mean that a lot of the time you are having …
Chose Google Universal Analytics (discontinued)
Nothing used any other application prior to Google Analytics 360 [(formerly Google Analytics Premium).]
Chose Google Universal Analytics (discontinued)
We prefer Google Analytics 360 because it is a simple-to-use tool that is very useful for tracking web traffic through real-time statistics, updates, and recommendations. It can create custom reports in the application itself, generating the desired results.
Chose Google Universal Analytics (discontinued)
I have looked at this - when clients use it. It is very expensive for a small business owner or solopreneuer. Google Analytics 360 is free and does the job I need it to do.
Chose Google Universal Analytics (discontinued)
Features like user segmentation and visualization of user behavior and journey. 
Custom reporting and creating custom tables with different metrics is what we miss. 
Big Query, Google Optimize and other features. 
Chose Google Universal Analytics (discontinued)
It's only got a couple more features so for most businesses it's really hard to justify the price increase.
Chose Google Universal Analytics (discontinued)
  • Easier to use.
  • Better data accuracy.
  • Data connections with other google tools.
Chose Google Universal Analytics (discontinued)
Unless you have very complex and edge case analytics needs, Google Analytics [360 (formerly Google Analytics Premium)] is likely going to be the best choice. From both a cost and usability stand point, Google wins. Adobe has the edge case when you need to create really custom …
Chose Google Universal Analytics (discontinued)
Amplitude is an alternative for Google Analytics and we have implemented Amplitude also. We choose Google Analytics over Amplitude because of features like segmentation of users, creating cohort, seeing the user's behavior and journey. Amplitude has all of the data but it's not …
Chose Google Universal Analytics (discontinued)
Google Analytics and Adobe Analytics are both great products and solutions. Each has advantages and disadvantages that need to be evaluated based on your business needs and the people you have to leverage them. Google Analytics is a lower overall investment than Adobe Analytics …
Chose Google Universal Analytics (discontinued)
GA is more extensive than Heap, however, it's also more difficult to wrangle the data into our own warehouse. Heap data is easier to integrate as it has data sharing for Snowflake where GA doesn't, at least not when used it. I believe Heap is less expensive.
Chose Google Universal Analytics (discontinued)
Piano Cxense and Chartbeat, in conjunction with Google Analytics are the suite of tools that we use to monitoring and measure our sites performance in realtime and historic.
Chose Google Universal Analytics (discontinued)
Adobe Analytics is a robust tool, feature-rich, and good reporting. It has focused on understanding user behavior and e-commerce performance at its core. However, with the sophistication comes difficulty in use and the ability for simple reporting and analysis. The setup of …
Chose Google Universal Analytics (discontinued)
Google Analytics Premium is more simple and focused on marketers' needs with a clear advantage for driving improvements to advertising, especially with the Google tech stack. Adobe Analytics is very complex and great for enterprises, especially those that want to measure …
Chose Google Universal Analytics (discontinued)
I don't know any competitor of Google Analytics Premium.
Chose Google Universal Analytics (discontinued)
  • There are a lot of good alternatives out there for a fraction of the cost. Also, another good reason you might want to consider another platform is due to privacy concerns. I have nothing against Google, but Google collects a lot of data about users from various Google …
Chose Google Universal Analytics (discontinued)
We think it integrates well with our website and we have people with experience in Google Analytics. The other tools are not that popular.
Chose Google Universal Analytics (discontinued)
I work with a lot of analysis for my client along with A/B tests of statistics. Google Analytics Premium provided a complete and application of results even faster, the data shared between optimize and analytics is a very big competitive advantage.
Chose Google Universal Analytics (discontinued)
There are no competitors to this software, honestly. It's in a league of its own. Premium is truly an all-in-one tool that few can do without, and it's absolutely shocking the amount of data that it can compile. If you're looking for an excellent source of information this is …
Chose Google Universal Analytics (discontinued)
Google Analytics is much more user friendly and requires less day to day management. Google Analytics should be the platform of choice unless there are complex business reasons to choose Adobe.
Chose Google Universal Analytics (discontinued)
Google Analytics had a reliable means of accessing data, but also translating raw data into credible results. In general, its functionalities are simple to understand, train others, and implement.
Chose Google Universal Analytics (discontinued)
Google Analytics
Chose Google Universal Analytics (discontinued)
Hubspot spends too much time trying to sell you on other products instead of assisting you with your current product in a consultative manner. Google customer support doesn't consult per se, but they do focus on the current product at hand without constantly trying to upsell …
Chose Google Universal Analytics (discontinued)
Google Analytics and Adobe Analytics are very similar. I wasn't involved in the decision making process at my organization, as we had GA well before I began in my position. However, GA has a suite of other tools that complement Web Analytics that makes it extremely easy to …
Features
Coremetrics / IBM Digital Analytics (discontinued)Google Universal Analytics (discontinued)
Web Analytics
Comparison of Web Analytics features of Product A and Product B
Coremetrics / IBM Digital Analytics (discontinued)
-
Ratings
Google Universal Analytics (discontinued)
6.9
Ratings
16% below category average
Lead Conversion Tracking00 Ratings7.00 Ratings
Device and Browser Reporting00 Ratings1.00 Ratings
Pageview Tracking00 Ratings7.00 Ratings
Event Tracking00 Ratings8.00 Ratings
Reporting in real-time00 Ratings10.00 Ratings
Referral Source Tracking00 Ratings10.00 Ratings
Customizable Dashboards00 Ratings5.00 Ratings
Best Alternatives
Coremetrics / IBM Digital Analytics (discontinued)Google Universal Analytics (discontinued)
Small Businesses
StatCounter
StatCounter
Score 9.0 out of 10
StatCounter
StatCounter
Score 9.0 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
Optimal
Optimal
Score 9.0 out of 10
Optimal
Optimal
Score 9.0 out of 10
Enterprises
Optimal
Optimal
Score 9.0 out of 10
Optimal
Optimal
Score 9.0 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
Coremetrics / IBM Digital Analytics (discontinued)Google Universal Analytics (discontinued)
Likelihood to Recommend
7.0
(0 ratings)
8.0
(0 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
5.8
(0 ratings)
10.0
(0 ratings)
Usability
9.0
(0 ratings)
9.0
(0 ratings)
Availability
10.0
(0 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Performance
8.0
(0 ratings)
10.0
(0 ratings)
Support Rating
2.3
(0 ratings)
10.0
(0 ratings)
In-Person Training
-
(0 ratings)
9.0
(0 ratings)
Online Training
7.1
(0 ratings)
7.0
(0 ratings)
Implementation Rating
9.9
(0 ratings)
10.0
(0 ratings)
Configurability
8.0
(0 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Product Scalability
9.0
(0 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
User Testimonials
Coremetrics / IBM Digital Analytics (discontinued)Google Universal Analytics (discontinued)
Likelihood to Recommend
  • As mentioned earlier, transactional heavy web assets such as eStores are particularly strong candidates.
  • IBM CXA along with other, similar tools, is not set-and-forget. The solution must be well managed in order to deliver value. Purchase of the solution is one thing; driving analytic results is another. If a company's staff are not strong analytical thinkers, CXA will not help. IBM CXA is not just a technology platform - it is a basis to design strong customer touchpoints and interactions. You need to be customer journey design literate to get the best from this.
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I think this is a great platform as long as there is a dedicated team which is going to spend reviewing the data and also taking out insights from it, making it beneficial. It was well suited for me when working with a client that had a very large amount of traffic, with a large range of complex products on offer. This tool allowed us to be able to do more with the data and segmenting it more which ultimately drove our relationship forward, but also the results that we saw
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Pros
  • Marketing attribution models - capable to deliver an holistic view of the marketing channels performance
  • Multisite capabilities : allows to have a Cie view as well as individual site's view
  • Unique customer view and Live Profile: we are able to go to the visitor level and therefore use the behavioural data for marketing actions
  • Reliability of the data: we have full confidence in the data collected and the rules are clear for us
  • Support: available support 24h/7.
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  • It is an excellent cloud analytics platform that is easy to install and configure and easy to deploy and use, allowing us to measure web traffic and other tools.
  • It is an entirely online tool; it does not take up hard disk space like other desktop tools.
  • Since this tool is draggable, Google is constantly adding more features.
  • Even beginners who do not have a custom dashboard can get information. If there is a problem somewhere on the site that needs to be investigated, Google Analytics 360 will notify you.
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Cons
  • The new UI is slow, buggy, incomplete, is not intuitive, and has limited support or explanation.
  • The demo videos for the new UI showcase features that are not even available in the new UI and support said those features may never be available so they are not sure either why they are shown in the demo videos.
  • Tag management is extremely manual leaving a lot of room for human error.
  • Support across the board for the legacy UI and new UI are not very helpful. They typically do not take the time to understand the root of your problem and commonly default to the response "that feature is not available". For example, you cannot currently delete reports in the new UI even though there is a delete button available. Support says the feature is not available, so if you want anything deleted you have to submit a list to support and they will delete it for you. This is extremely frustrating when you are creating "test" reports in the new UI and then you have no option to delete them when done.
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  • As far as I can tell, this is the ultimate large scale analytics platform. It does so much and can be a very powerful tool. Maybe it's overwhelming for newbies, but that's kinda what the pro Google consultations are for.
  • Although I've never been personally responsible for paying the GA 360 bills, I know it's very pricey ($150K/year last I checked). If your business is managing a lot of high-traffic sites, and maybe you resell other Google services, then it's probably worth it for the dashboard and integration. So... it's expensive, and by definition, not for everyone.
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Likelihood to Renew
It is still a best in class analytics platform, but working with IBM contracting has proven to be quite a hassle at times... There are proven pros and cons to each of the major systems and vendors (most I already listed). I always recommend to establish the business questions you are trying to answer, determine which platform answers them best and decide whether it is worth the dollar investment
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I believe that once Google Analytics Premium releases some additional eCommerce capabilities, it will be the best tool on the market for multi-site customers. Google does an amazing job of fully vetting out new features and functionality before releasing them publicly, so I have found very few issues with the functionality and usability of the tool. Some of the other big players in the industry are too quick to release new features, and they are often riddled with bugs and defects. I know that when I set something up with Google Analytics Premium, I'm getting a reliable, strong product that will deliver what it promises.
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Usability
Very easy to implement and use.
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Google Analytics Premium has a very easy to use and intuitive User Interface. It's easy to find anything you are looking for and apply different segments to reports on the fly. This is very important especially if you are doing report comparisons. It's also an aesthetically pleasing design, making the general experience pleasant.
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Reliability and Availability
Never had any issues
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No answers on this topic
Performance
As reports are templated, the system is pretty quick. Sometimes you have to wait a bit for a report to render. Or you might have to re-load the page. But there is no real issue here and the system is on par with other similar systems.
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No answers on this topic
Support Rating
Overall, the level of support is very good and I would say it is a strong asset of the solution. However, you can sometimes feel that there is a difference of level among the support team.
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  • Everyday support is primarily through chat and email with the centralized, general team. Its as you would envision with an anonymous individual attempting to figure from "page one." Often responses are later in the day or next day.
  • At first signing, one account person is assigned along with an initial individual to assist in onboarding. There's an interview of the goals with GA360, but the provided deliverable document is limited in the review of one site. Also, after delivery of the onboarding document, you are left with an account individual who is looking for expanded vertical integration with other Google products.
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Online Training
Online training is really great. One of the best assets that they have. Lots of great videos, pop quizzes at the end of each module. Fantastic. Other tools have similar features, but not as good.
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There is a ton of information online about Google Analytics, but Google Analytics Premium users will have dedicated support and training from Google or an Authorized Reseller.
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Implementation Rating
See previous comment: reading and understanding the encyclopedic implementation guide is a must.
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If you already have the basic version of GA installed, "getting" GA Premium happens immediately through a virtual flipping of the switch - no need to re-implement. You'll want to expand your use of custom dimensions and metrics (you get 10x the amount with Premium). Ideally, you'll be using a tag management solution to talk with GA Premium, in concert with implementing a dataLayer (to note, Google's Tag Manager platform is covered under the same GA Premium SLA, and it's free). There are some welcomed "configurations" with GA Premium, such as integrating with DoubleClick products, activating data driven attribution models, and building roll-up executive reports - but all of these are easy point and click solutions. In comparison with any other enterprise analytics solution, implementing GA and GA Premium is traditionally easier and more flexible. And if you have any trouble or need an extra set of hands for implementation, GA Certified Partners like LunaMetrics can help
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Alternatives Considered
IBM Analytics is a great tool for measuring and analyzing web traffic along with consumer behavior to a degree. When compared to other solutions and tools available in the market today, I'd suggest checking out Kissmetrics or even Google Analytics over this tool. Ultimately, it will come down to the end user and if they are comfortable in the environment of the backend and workflows of IBM Digital Analytics.
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Since our data is on Bigquery it is very easy for us to connect our database to this platform which is very challenging for us to connect the data integration part to other platforms so this is the primary reason for us to choose this platform. The second reason to choose this is that this platform will solve our problems of multiple departments of product, marketing, business, and analytics rather than choosing separate platforms for different departments
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Scalability
This solution can support large amount of data and transaction. The way that user management features are built, it shows it is meant for large organizations.
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No answers on this topic
Return on Investment
  • Using IBM Digital Analytics has allowed us to optimize marketing spend for our clients and provide us the insight to reduce the spend on vendors that are not performing well or not bringing in qualified traffic.
  • Using IBM Digital Analytics data to power on-site product recommendations has increased the percentage of total sales from recommendation zones to around 10% compared to around 1% with manually merchandised zones.
  • Using IBM's TruePath Funnels to analyze the checkout process for various clients has allowed us to see where visitors are dropping out of the checkout process and make improvements to increase conversion rate.
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  • It helps me understand which social media platforms are most successful for me - which I should focus on and which I might want to focus less on.
  • I can also see which blog posts people are reading - so I know which topics resonate most. I can write more of those, hopefully gaining more visitors.
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ScreenShots