Supported Software, the infrastructure optimising company in the JSE-listed DataCentrix group, has announced the local availability of Landmark Systems` PerformanceWorks WebWatcher, software that measures real, rather than synthetic, e-business transactions.
When combined with Landmarks`s PerformanceWorks for e-Business suite, WebWatcher allows users to create a comprehensive solution for e-business performance. Organisations are increasingly employing e-business applications such as e-commerce and Web-based customer service, says Supported Software MD Leon Theron.
"The explosive use of Web-based transactions has not only created a fundamental shift in how businesses interact with their customers, but has resulted in increased competition and exposed organisations to greater risk if their Web sites fail to perform," Theron points out.
In response to the expanding demand for e-business management, Landmark has developed a suite of software products to reduce the risk and improve the performance of e-business applications.
META Group`s Corey Ferengul, programme director of service management strategies, comments: "Companies are quickly deploying e-business applications, without regard for the unique needs of e-commerce management. These are the most public applications for any enterprise. Availability and performance, measured against a service level, require a unique toolset. Failure to deploy such a toolset can expose e-commerce applications to a public failure, and harm a company`s ability to conduct business online."
Theron adds: "Operating a successful and profitable Web-based business is a complex task: everyone is looking to improve the appeal and effectiveness of their site. Up until now, optimising your site`s performance was largely a process of trial and error. WebWatcher allows e-commerce providers to examine the actual behaviour of their Web customers, see what is working - and what isn`t - and adjust their site accordingly."
Theron says WebWatcher has the potential to become a strong sales and marketing tool.
"Being able to track and refine a Web site based on live data from end-user allows organisations to increase efficiency and responsiveness. The winners in the e-business race will be those who leverage customer service as a key competitive differentiator, by capturing and maintaining loyal customers through fast and reliable Web-based service."
When a customer begins an e-business transaction, WebWatcher downloads an applet to collect data, including the time required to download pages, how users navigate the site, response times for receiving and processing requests, and where and why users abandon transactions.
Because PerformanceWorks WebWatcher and its patent-pending technology presents the realtime, end-user perspective, organisations gain an immediate understanding of the Web application as seen by their customers, allowing them to pinpoint problems and restore performance within minutes.
In addition to the end-user view, PerformanceWorks WebWatcher also monitors Web servers (including Microsoft Internet Information Server, Netscape Enterprise Server and Apache Server) and gathers metrics such as time to service a request at the server, and network or browser rendering latency. These metrics are then correlated to understand performance of the aggregate user community.
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