You may have heard of the new generation of analytics, Google Analytics 4, but what does this mean? GA4 is Google’s new measurement solution which has replaced Universal Analytics from the 1st of July 2023. Google Analytics 4 has been designed with key objectives in mind, ensuring it provides a more comprehensive understanding of user behaviour across all digital touchpoints, from online browsing to offline engagement.
What Does GA4 Do?
The original version of Google Analytics has helped with marketing strategies for businesses in order to analyse and track performance. Although, the big question on the tip of everyone’s tongue regarding the launch of GA4 is, what does GA4 do and what are the benefits of it? How can this platform provide results for businesses? Well, GA4 was designed with many goals in mind and can perform a wide range of functions, such as:
- Collecting both app data and website data to deliver greater insight into the customer journey
- Use event-based data rather than session-based data
- Include cookieless measurement and other privacy controls, and behavioural and conversion modelling
- Utilises a range of predictive capabilities that offer detailed guidance
- Seamless integrations with media platforms that enable your website or app to prompt user engagement
What Is Going To Happen?
If you haven’t already created a GA4 property, Google will create a GA4 property unless you have previously opted out. The new property created for you will be based on the previous settings in your Universal Analytics property.
If you have already created a GA4 property that is connected to a Universal Analytics Property, all configurations such as goals and audiences will be copied over which have not been marked as complete, unless you have opted out of this.
Universal Analytics properties will be able to use and collect data until the 1st of July 2023. From then, you will be able to access data that has been previously processed for at least 6 months.
Google has recommended that people export any historical reports during this period of at least 6 months. In further updates, Google will provide a date of when Universal Analytics properties will no longer be available. When these properties are no longer available, the Analytics interface in Universal Analytics will no longer show reports or data via the API.
How To Set Up GA4
Google has provided three options for setting up Google Analytics 4 depending on its use and whether you have a content management system (CMS). The first option is to set up GA4 data collection if you are new to analytics. The second option is to add Google Analytics 4 to a website that already had Universal Analytics, as this will add the GA4 property as well as your existing property. The third option is to add Google Analytics 4 to an existing CMS or site builder platform.
This step-by-step video on how to set up Google Analytics 4 will run you through the process of GA4 including setting up your web stream, setting up Google Tag Manager, installing the Tag Manager code, creating a GA4 configuration tag and ensuring your analytics are working.
GA4 Measurements: The Benefits
As we know, Google Analytics 4 was designed with the key objectives as the priority. There are many ways that Google Analytics 4 can assist businesses worldwide, from driving an increase in app installations, driving sales, generating leads and connecting offline and online customer engagement. Not only does GA4 provide these benefits, but it also assists with the following:
Utilise data-driven attribution to improve ROI
The data-driven attribution in Google Analytics 4 allows you to analyse all of your marketing strategies across the customer journey. Analysing the impacts can help you pinpoint and understand the impact your strategies are having on your customers, as well as understand how these marketing strategies may be influencing your conversions. To effectively optimise your campaigns, all analysis of marketing strategies can be exported to both Google Media Platform and Google Analytics media tools.
Understand your customer lifecycle
Google Analytics 4 allows you to have a complete view and access to your customer lifecycle by utilising an event-based measurement platform. This advancement in the event-based measurement platform has been highly successful for many businesses, specifically Gymshark.
Seamless insight activation
Analytics insights can be easily utilised to analyse campaigns over both app and web data, through the level of integrations with Google products such as Google Ads. Display & Video 360 and Search Ads 360 integrations are available to ensure that any GA4 property can activate data from conversions through to audiences as a strategy to strengthen the overall campaign performance.
Monitor your website traffic effectively
Wondering how to check website traffic in Google Analytics? GA4 makes it easy. With this advanced tool, you can effortlessly track and analyse visitor flow to your website. Gain insights into your visitor behaviour and optimise your online strategies.
1. Sign In: Log in to your Google Analytics account.
2. Select Property: Choose the website property you want to track.
3. Navigate To Reports: Click on ‘Reports” in the left sidebar.
4. Go To Audience: Under Reports”, click “Audience” to access audience-related data.
5. View Overview: Click on “Overview” to see a summary of the website traffic, including total sessions, users, and more.
6. Explore Detailed Metrics: To dive deeper, explore other sections like “Traffic Sources” and “Behaviour” for more insights.
7. Set Date Range: Adjust the date range to view traffic data for specific periods.
The Next Steps
It is important to be sure of which property you are using between Universal Analytics and Google Analytics. It is likely you are using a Univeral Analytics property if you set it up before October 14th 2020 and it is likely you are using a Google Analytics property if you set it up after October 14th 2020.
Making the change over to Google Analytics 4 as soon as possible is recommended to build any necessary historical data and usage before the Univeral Analytics platform is no longer available.
The New Generation Of Analytics
The advancement of GA4 and the analytics technology it provides clearly has a significant impact on the success and revenue of business campaigns. With its innovative approach to tracking user behaviour across multiple platforms and devices, businesses can gain unique insights into their customer’s behaviours, preferences and needs.
If you are looking to increase your website’s traffic and visibility whilst generating more leads and growing your business, reaching out to the team at RGC Digital Marketing for a customised search engine marketing strategy and a campaign is a great option. Search engine marketing effectively reaches your target audience to boost your online presence in the evolving digital world.
