Most of us are aware of the fact that Google recently announced the sunsetting of Universal Analytics in June 2023. So, if you have been holding switching to Google Analytics 4, your time is almost up. Though this may sound like a tough transition to some of you, it will benefit you in the long run.
In this blog, you will get to know everything related to this crucial transition and what you can do with Google Analytics 4.
What is Google Analytics 4?
It is basically the latest version of Google Analytics. This new generation of web analytics will allow marketers to effectively analyse crucial customer usage metrics and not just track traffic.
Google Analytics 4 is designed to track the entire customer journey across multiple platforms while leveraging AI and ML to provide detailed insights into how users interact with your app and website.
GA4 also pays attention to customer privacy, especially in the wake of the latest privacy laws such as CCPA and GDPR. With cross-channel data measurement, privacy-first tracking, and AI-driven predictive analytics, GA4 certainly becomes an advanced tool that provides exclusive insights.
What differentiates Google Analytics 4 from Universal Analytics?
The apparent difference between Universal Analytics and amp GA4 is that the latter enables you to report on activity that occurs on both applications and websites. There are many other differences, including:
New Dashboard
The new dashboard is the first thing that will catch your attention. It is now more streamlined, and many of the reports have now been either removed or moved. The navigation bar at the right includes buttons for Reports, Home, Explore, Advertising, Library, and Configure. At the bottom, under the insights tab, you will see predictive insights based on AI. See the illustration below for a better understanding.
All measurements are events
Page views were undoubtedly the most crucial metric in Universal Analytics, but in Google Analytics 4, all measurements are events. GA4 offers deeper insights into the user engagement metrics of your website or mobile application. It provides new metrics that include:
- Engagement rate
- Engaged sessions
- Engagement time
It also tracks many other dimensions, including demographics, events, attribution, etc. Though this is a significant change, but it will make it easier to track customer journey.
Access Predictive Insights
The past behaviour of the audience can help you understand the audience, but it doesn’t necessarily assist in proactive decision-making. With predictive metrics, you can make informed decisions. The AI metrics include:
- Churn probability
- Revenue prediction
- Purchase probability
With these metrics, you can create audiences based on predicted behaviour. For example, users who can spend more than $200 in one purchase. After identifying such users via Google Analytic 4, you can easily target them using Google Ads.
Marketers get more control
GA4 allows you to customise the dashboard, enabling you to see the reports that matter the most. It works in conjunction with Google Data Studio, allowing the users to create custom visualisations of the collected data.
On the basis of trigger events, you can also create custom segments which are essentially a subset of events that occurred on your application or website. This enables you to track customer interactions more accurately.
Cross-platform tracking
In the old versions of Google Analytics, tracking users across multiple platforms was almost impossible, but the new Google Analytics 4 can efficiently track both web and app data in one property.
Cross-platform tracking lets you see the customer journey, including user engagement, acquisition, monetisation, and retention. Now, you can use GA4 to track the user experience from start to end for different platforms. This can be quickly done via unique user IDs.
With the gtag.js script, the user ID for each logged-in session will be sent from the application or the website to amp google analytics 4. This ID will be directly reported to the GA4 property and any user metrics will be logged. When the user re-login on an alternative platform, the reports will connect the user’s data to their unique ID and resume from where it was left.
This is crucial information for any marketer, as it allows you to understand the cross-platform experience of users better.
How to set up Google Analytics 4
We have already covered this topic in our previous blog. To get more details click here.
How to use Google Analytics 4?
After understanding the new Google Analytics’s potential, now it’s time to learn how to use it efficiently. This can seem a little challenging initially, but you will develop the expertise with time. With the tips below, you can make the most out of GA4.
Test the new search bar
The search bar in GA4 allows you to instantly access more information than ever, including instant answers for specific queries, property configuration, specific insights, or the help content. Try a few queries to know how it works.
Access the new dashboard
As already mentioned above, the new dashboard can give you detailed insights. At first glance, it may look familiar, but you must look around. The placement of reports has also been tweaked. The below image will help you understand the new dashboard.
Explore the reports dashboard
In order to access the reports, click on the second icon on the left navigation bar. This will direct you to the reports dashboard, which shows you snapshots of various reports. Below is the illustration of the same.
On the left side, you can see various sections. By clicking on each of them, you can track different metrics. You can also view monetisation, acquisition, and user demographics here.
Customise your reports snapshot
GA4 can customise the snapshot of the report so you can access the data that matters the most to you. For this, you first need to create a report.
First, click Library at the bottom of the left navigation bar. Note this option is not visible in the demo account. Then, click on the Reports table and then click “Create a new report.” Now, select create an overview report.
If you wish to modify the layout of your overview, click the six dots drag indicator
Create a new event
Events are crucial in the new GA4. With events, you will be able to track almost everything. To create an event, follow the below steps:
- Head to configure > Events.
- Now click Create Event.
- Select the data stream
- Tap Create
- Now name your report. Try using the standard name that can help you organise the data.
- In the “Matching Conditions”, enter the existing event such as “click.”
- If you wish to use the same parameters as the original event, simply select “copy parameters from the source event.”
- Mention any changes you want to make to this new event.
The image below shows the create events page.
See suggested audiences
GA4 suggests new audiences and is beneficial for businesses looking to expand their user base. When you create a GA4 property, you inform Google about your business. Google utilises this information to generate insights on new audiences who may be a good fit for your business. You will see suggested audiences under the “Build New Audience” tab.
Conclusion
GA4 is undoubtedly a powerful analytics tool that provides businesses with valuable insights into their audience. There are multiple benefits of GA4, including more control over data, cross-platform tracking, and smart AI-driven insights.
These insights can help businesses access new insights into the audience, make informed decisions, and grow their business. If you have any queries regarding GA4, you can always get in touch with us.
