This is the 18th of bimonthly reports on Web use statistics for townofcary.org. The first report was in July 2001.

I. Summary of Activity

Average daily page views decreased by 12.9 percent from March 2004 and were down 19 percent compared with May 2003.

Much of the decrease from the corresponding month last year can be attributed to a handful of high-traffic pages. For example, the Town Council Current Agenda page had 10,647 visits in May 2003 compared with 1,160 in May 2004. The Agendas second tier had 9,755 page views last May compared with 2,488 this May. Last year, the Town clerk cited heavy interest in the Lowe's rezoning and, to a lesser extent, the Land Development Ordinance, as apparent explanations for heavy interest in council meeting information during May 2003. The O-R subsection of the Services second tier page had 7,000 more visits in May 2003 than in May this year. One possible explanation is interest in rezoning information.

Traffic for the Doing Business second tier page was unusually high in May 2003 with 7,966 page views and had been even higher in March 2003. The 1,204 total during May 2004 is closer to the norm. (Page views July 2003 – March 2004 ranged from 820 to 1,327.) The bids and requests for proposals page is the biggest variable in the Doing Business section.

In May 2003, two men’s church softball league pages had a total of nearly 19,000 page views. Parks, Recreation and Cultural Resources said there was no clear-cut reason for the spike in usage that month.

The Job Openings page and Employment second tier page had more views in March 2004 than in May (18,189 and 12,242 compared with 15,671 and 10,594). The Human Resources Department reported an especially busy February and March this year with postings for a half dozen major positions, about a dozen summertime Parks, Recreation and Cultural Resources jobs, and advertising for tennis center staff.

Throughout the Web site, 77 pages were viewed at least 500 times during May 2004, the same number as in March. The totals were 67 pages in January 2004, 57 in November 2003 and 61 in September 2003.

II. Vital Statistics

Average requests for pages per day – 10,459

Average daily change from previous report – Down 12.9 percent

Total requests for pages – 324,222 requests (31 days)

Total request for pages previous report – 372,411 pages (31 days)

Busiest Hours – 10 until 11 a.m., 3 until 4 p.m.

Search

Search information was available only for the final 6.34 days of the month. Previously, this information was unavailable. The following are the 30 words used most often in search engines:

cary
nc
of
town
park
north
carolina
regency
and
in
center
parks
bond
water
amphitheater
police
recreation
tennis
department
for
soccer
sas
housing
county
recycling
creek
wake
fire
the
to

Files Most Visited

(At least 500 requests, in descending order with the number of requests)

Jobs - 15,671
Employment second tier - 10,594
Recreation second tier - 9,067
PRCR Department home - 6,777
Site Index - 4,971
Amphitheatre at Regency Park - 4,081
Contacts & Locations - 3,195
New to Cary? - 3,177
Youth & Adult Athletics Program Schedules - 2,934
Amphitheatre at Regency Park Schedule - 2,722
Agendas second tier - 2,488
Current Projects second tier - 2,070
Departments & Divisions - 2,053
PRCR Events - 2,028
PRCR Programs - 2,025
Utility Billing Online – 1,994
News Releases (current year) - 1,982
Services second tier - 1,902
Bond Park - 1,819
Community second tier - 1,809
Utility Payment Options – 1,766
Employment Application - 1,756
Money Magazine news release – 1,689
Town Government second tier – 1,673
Agenda & Minutes – 1,423
About Cary – 1,390
Planning Department home – 1,368
Town Hall News (news releases index) – 1,364
Facilities, Greenways & Parks – 1,353
Doing Business second tier – 1,204
Maps Online – 1,163
Town Council Current Agenda – 1,160
Bond Park Community Center – 1,131
Maps & Directions – 1,095
Town Council – 1,085
Boards & Commissions – 1,010
PRCR Programs Brochure news release - 974
Pony League Baseball - 956
Water Conservation – 948
Utility Billing Online – Temporary Unavailability Notice – 912
Tennis Center – 906
Red Light Cameras - 865
Public Works Department home – 842
Cary Cycling Celebration - 840
Solid Waste - 838
Services T-U - 786
Camp & Art Experiences - 771
Spring Church Softball League Division B - 756
Human Resources home - 749
Finance Department Services - 728
Parks, Recreation & Cultural Arts Facilities Master Plan - 727
Planning & Zoning Board - 718
Middle Creek Community Center - 701
C-Tran - 698
Bronco-American Baseball League - 693
North Cary Park - 692
Lazy Daze Arts & Crafts Festival - 679
Skate Park - 670
Services V-Z - 667
Inspections & Permits Department home - 651
Modified B “East” Softball Schedule - 640
Colt League Standings & Schedule - 637
Inspections & Permits Procedures – 618
Town Business Opportunities - 611
Page-Walker Arts & History Center - 608
Celebrate Cary - 570
Bronco-National Baseball League - 556
Fire Department home – 553
Police Officer Recruitment – 552
Thomas Brooks Park - 549
Services – S - 547
Police Go Door-to-Door news release - 533
Engineering Department home – 523
Services A-B – 518
Services O-R - 513
Police Department Records – 513

Special Interest Files

Maps Online – 1,163
Utility Billing Online – 1,994
C-Tran - 698
Cary TV - 418
Meetings in Real Audio - 91
Programs in Real Video – (not available)

Feedback

The only Web-related feedback received by the town manager’s office was a request by a former resident for an easier way to cancel the free e-mail service subscription. The former resident suggested including a cancellation link in each notice.

Electronic Mailing List

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