Google Analytics 4: Preparing For The Future

Introduction

In every phase of life, evolution is paramount. When it comes to technology, this statement holds a lot of weight. Technology is predicated on change. For businesses, adapting to change is necessary. If your business runs online, you might have heard of the term “Google Analytics”. It is a tool that will help you get the best out of data.

Your business site collects all sorts of data and with the help of analytics, you will be able to apply it better. At Wisoft Solutions, we are constantly looking for new ways to help out our clients. One of the newest ways is through Google Analytics 4. It is a newer iteration of the analytics platform that stores and analyzes the data. 

Through GA4, we will be able to extract more information and harness the power of data better. If you are confused by the terminology and what it means, don’t worry, this guide is an introduction to Google Analytics 4. 

What will happen to Universal Analytics? 

As with anything, when the new comes in, the old goes out. The precursor of Google Analytics 4 is Universal Analytics. And thanks to Google moving on to GA4, starting from July 1st, 2023, Universal Analytics will no longer be operational. For those of you that are still using it, it is a good time to start operations on Google Analytics 4 now.  

What is Google Analytics 4?

So, the big question is what is Google Analytics 4? GA4 as it is commonly referred to as is the newest version of Google’s analytics tool. It is a far more robust tool that is designed to analyze the data from various touchpoints and to deliver results that are reflective of user behavior, rather than events. This change is what will help businesses get more useful insights for the new decade of the 21st century. 

What's new in Google Analytics 4?

Google Analytics 4 is a big step up from Universal Analytics. GA4 uses different data structures and utilizes a different data collection logic. This means that it automatically places priority on users rather than sessions. Earlier, we are used to singular events, now a newer model means it focuses on each user interaction as a single event. Now, we will NOT be clubbing user interactions into a single session, instead, the data is far more extrapolated and businesses will get to know the touch map of each user. This gives the marketing far more flexibility in terms of cross-platform analysis and tracing user pathways. This can help predict user behavior, which will in turn help you maximize your business. 

Now we at Wisoft Solutions are firm believers in privacy. Later in the guide, we will explain how GA4 does not intrude into user actions. 

Google Analytics 4: How do I get started?

If you haven’t already, it is time to switch to GA4. You can use it alongside Universal Analytics till July 1st, 2023. The advantages of having Google Analytics 4 running are many. Even if you don’t use it, you can easily access all kinds of data sets later on. Google’s machine learning will increase the insights you get from the analytics. The more data sets you access, the better your marketing strategy will be. So, let’s take a look at how we can configure GA4.  

Steps to configure GA4

1. First, log in to your Universal Analytics account
2. Go to Admin > gear icon, and the bottom left navigation tab. 
3. Ensure that the account you are using is the one where you want to enable GA4
4. Ensure that the property is also the one you want running GA4
5. The first option in the property column is GA4 Setup Assistant
6. Click on Get Started once inside the GA4 Setup Assistant 
7. Once you do that, click on the blue button to create the property

Event tracking

Now, once you start with GA4, the assistant will ensure that GA4 is using Enhanced Measurement. This will only apply to your current property. If you use third-party applications and need data from form submission you will need to activate event tracking for that separately.  

Why do you need Google Analytics 4? 

We stressed earlier that we will dive deeper into privacy norms and why we think GA4 solves more problems than ever. Privacy is one of the big concerns for this decade, GA4 allows your business to track user movement online without invading privacy. Since most of us have multiple devices, GA4 uses ML to create a user journey. And Google Analytics 4 also simplifies data, helping marketers spot irregularities and identify trends.GA4 also uses overview reports that give you all the information at a glance. 

Features such as real-time reporting and life cycle reporting have also been improved. And a new feature called Analysis Hub will give you access to more advanced techniques and a template gallery. These feature subsets are not found anywhere else. Marketers will find it highly beneficial. 

There are also newer kinds of data visualizations available on Google Analytics 4. And the tool is smarter, which helps it display other types of analysis such as funnel analysis, segment overlap, cohort analysis, path analysis, and user lifetime. These can help marketers get far more insight than was possible before. 

Conclusion 

There we go, a guide on the basics of GA4. While it may not be the most conclusive report, it still provides a good overview of how things work in Google Analytics 4. The reason is that GA4 is a very comprehensive tool. Not only will it help you get a better idea of how your website is working, but the sheer amount and flow of data will give you insights that you never would have thought of before.

As Google Analytics 4 paves the way for future data insights, partnering with our SEO and digital marketing agency in Dubai empowers your brand to harness these transformative analytics effectively. By staying ahead of the curve, we ensure your digital strategy remains finely tuned for success.