Google Confirms High Demand is Delaying Analytics Reporting

Our web guru, Komra Moriko, installed Google Analytics, the free version of Urchin now available to AdWords customers, on a client site several days ago. Google's instructions noted that there could be a delay of up to 24 hours while the system picked up data from the site. Days later, she emailed to make sure the software was correctly installed and got back this emailresponse:

"Please note that this reporting delay is associated with unexpected demand for Google Analytics."

I don't know why this demand would be unexpected. Of course a free version of a great software package offered to metrics-obsessed marketers is going to create huge demand. I know Google wants to take over the entire world, but perhaps they have to stoke up the furnace a little higher to handle the heat.

As Smart Mobs noted, "The move could present a significant threat to rivals in the Web analytics sector, who may be forced to change their pricing strategies in response to Google’s free service. The service is currently available in 16 international languages."

Talk about an understatement!