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225 Dyer Street
Providence, RI 02902   

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WEB, DESIGN, ANALYTICS

Google Analytics 4

6

Oct 2022

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Every business is different, but the basics remain the same. Thus, marketing automation can help your business grow in wide-ranging ways.

Everything You Should Know About Switching to Google Analytics 4

In today's digital world, businesses must overcome new obstacles to measure and comprehend consumers' complicated, multi-platform experiences. Google Analytics 4 (GA4) significantly changes how websites and app properties are monitored. It's an entirely new approach to collecting and presenting your website's data, with many features and a new interface.

However, the news may leave you wondering if you should comply with the new updates. Google will stop processing updates for Universal Analytics (UA) properties, and you won't have any choice but to move to GA4 with the deadline on July 1, 2023.

Setting up GA4 on your website entails adding the new tracking code snippet, setting up all your conversions, and testing to ensure everything works as planned. That's why, at Ninedot, we've produced a cheat sheet to help you out. Check out our GA4 cheat sheet that has all the information you need

  • Track your business's critical data and metrics
  • Transition smoothly from your current analytics platform
  • Upgrade your experience and become a power user

What is Google Analytics 4?

Google designed Universal Analytics for a generation of online data measurement based on the desktop web, autonomous sessions, and more readily observable data from cookies. This system of measurement is rapidly becoming obsolete.

Google developed GA4 using AI-driven technology to meet enterprises' changing demands and data security trends. Previously, Analytics was separated between web properties, the conventional Google Analytics (GA), and Firebase Analytics, which specifically catered to app needs. GA4 offers you a flexible and effective way to measure various types of data, giving you a strong analytics solutions designed for the future. It is now time to make GA4 your cross-platform analytics solution.

Google Analytics 4 vs. Universal Analytics

The most significant difference between GA4 and Universal Analytics is that GA4 allows you to access a report on activities that occurs on websites and applications. There are also 5 more big differences that you should be aware of.  

1. GA4 Has a New Dashboard

The first thing you'll notice is the entirely new dashboard. It is more simplified, and many of the reports you are familiar with are no longer available or have been relocated. The right-hand navigation bar has home, reports, explore, advertising, configure, and library buttons.

2. GA4's Measurements are Events

Universal Analytics' most essential metric was the page views. All measures in Google Analytics 4 are events. You can now get a complete insight into how people engage with your app and website, rather than just viewing broad statistics. GA4's new engagement metrics include;

  • Engaged sessions
  • Average engagement time
  • Engagement rate
  • Engaged sessions per user
It also monitors additional aspects, such as attribution, demographics and events. This is a significant shift that will make it easy to track clients throughout their journey. GA previously thought page views were the most relevant measure; this is no longer the case. The additional settings may need some adjustment, but you will have access to more data.

3. GA4 Offers Marketers More Control

GA4 enables you to configure the dashboard so that you only view the most crucial reports for your company. It also works well with Google Data Studio, allowing you to generate custom visualizations of the acquired data.

You may also construct custom segments based on trigger events, effectively a subset of website or application events. This allows you to monitor consumer interactions more precisely.

For instance, you may establish segments based on all conversion events in a certain region. These features provide a more detailed picture of your users and their activities.

4. GA4 Provides Cross-Platform Tracking

With UA, tracking users across multiple platforms was nearly impossible. GA4's property tracks web and app data, thus the beta name Google Analytics App+Web.

You can examine the whole customer experience, including acquisition, engagement, monetization, and retention, with cross-platform monitoring. You can use GA4 to monitor the user experience from beginning to end—and from platform to platform.

5. GA4 Uses AI technology to Fill in Data Gaps

Understanding your audience's historical behavior is useful, but it does not assist you in making proactive choices. With GA4's AI-powered predictive analytics, you can make data-driven decisions on a large scale.

Predictive analytics may have a substantial influence on retargeting strategies for most businesses. The AI metrics include;

  • Revenue prediction
  • Purchase probability
  • Churn probability

With these metrics, you can develop audiences based on their predicted behaviors. For example, clients are likely to purchase a product or service in the next month or those likely to spend more than $100 on a single purchase.

These measurements may also help you improve your website performance. Depending on their habits and demands, you can develop custom funnels for various audiences. These ideas will continue to improve as GA4 collects more data.

Can Businesses Use Google Analytics 4 & Universal Analytics?

Certainly, assuming you already have an existing Universal Analytics account. GA4's adoption does not involve removing your current Google Analytics (GA) setup. You'll want to retain this in place for the rich historical data, with the GA4 insights serving as a supplement.

 

If you are setting up Google Analytics for the first time, you may immediately begin using GA4. There is no need to build a new, separate Universal Analytics profile since such profiles will be discontinued in July 2023.

 

Should You Make the Switch to GA4?

The sooner you implement GA4, the more historical data you'll collect. Even if you don't have time to understand the layout or choose how to utilize the insights, adding GA4 to your website is crucial since it will begin collecting data immediately. GA4 will continue to operate in the background so that you can access statistically meaningful data when you are ready to explore its potential.

 

How to Set up Google Analytics 4

If you wish to have year-over-year data in GA4 before the UA retirement, you must complete a full implementation by the relevant dates, such as July 1, 2022, for UA. If these deadlines are not met, GA4 will contain gaps, hindering year-over-year comparisons in 2023. 

 

Since GA4 is a new product, you can't just press the update button on your current UA property. You must consider various factors before the transition process. We understand that the process can be challenging for you, so we are here to help you.

 

At Ninedot, we're a group of no-nonsense expert collaborators who drive to create solutions that inspire and position companies for lead generation and customer acquisition growth. Contact us and schedule a free website audit to avoid the panicked rush by upgrading to GA4 ahead of time.

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