What is Google Analytics 4?
If you don’t know already, data is essential to every business. Without accurate and reliable data, how are you as a business owner supposed to make the right informed decisions to push your company forward? If you aren’t properly collecting and analyzing your data, you can end up wasting time and money on marketing strategies/designs that just aren’t working.
Chances are you already have tracking set up on Google Analytics, and there are some big changes coming in the next year. It’s important to ensure you are ready for the changes so you can continue to track your data.
Right now companies can record data with Universal Analytics and Google Analytics 4 (GA4). If you started tracking data before October 2020, you are most likely using the common Universal Analytics. In October 2020, Google announced Google Analytics 4. This has slowly started becoming the default tracking platform and is a completely different program from Universal Analytics.
Google Analytics 4 is much more event-focused, rather than focusing on page views and time spent on the page. You can automatically get data on scrolling, outbound clicks, video engagement, file downloads, and add more custom events to fit your business’ tracking needs.
Google Analytics 4 will also make it easier for you to determine the journey of your customers. Unlike Universal Analytics, GA4 has the ability to track a user regardless of what device they are on. If someone starts browsing your website on their phone and then switches to their computer, you will know. Instead of relying on cookies, GA4 uses machine learning technology to share insights with you and make predictions. This version of analytics is more privacy-friendly for website visitors.
Recently, Google announced that Universal Analytics will stop processing all new hits on July 1st, 2023. This means that everyone will need to switch to Google Analytics 4. To make sure you don’t lose your past data and are ready for future data, there are a few things you need to do.
How Do I Prepare For Google Analytics 4?
If you or your marketing team created an Analytics account over two years ago and your property ID starts with a UA, you will need to switch properties to prepare for July 1st, 2023. Navigate to Admin settings and click on Setup Assistant. Here you will be able to update tracking codes for your website, but make sure to remove the old tracking codes so you don’t lose page speed time with unnecessary code.
One of the downfalls to Google Analytics 4 is that your past data from Universal Analytics will eventually disappear. There is no word as of now when this will happen, but it will be some time after January 1st, 2024. Users will have at least six months, possibly more, to collect all the data they will need.
Eventually, the day will come when you won’t be able to access past data found in Universal Analytics. Don’t just let all of your data go to waste. Think about what data you have been reporting on and what data you haven’t been recording but would be beneficial to have so you can look back on it in the future.
Once you have an idea of what data, metrics, and reports you want to keep, you can download the data before it is deleted. The data comes in a .xsl file. It is a little harder to analyze the data in Excel as compared to the graphs and advantages of the online Google platform, but it is better than letting your historic data go to waste.
Another way to prepare is to understand that the data you are used to may be changing. For example, I talked earlier about how GA4 allows you to track sessions across multiple devices. Well, that means the way that sessions are counted is different than in Universal Analytics. Now that a new session won’t be created when someone changes devices, you may see a decrease in overall sessions after the switch.
If you are already using Google Analytics 4, there is nothing you need to do. Just keep an eye out for updates in the future as Google is constantly changing its platforms and algorithms to fit the needs of the evolving digital landscape.
If you need help understanding Google Analytics 4, getting your Google Analytics properties switched, or need assistance setting up a new Google Analytics property, Hudson,Ink is here to help. Our team of marketing experts has years of experience with contractor marketing. We know what works and are ready to help take your company to the next level. Find out more about how you can improve your analytics and your marketing strategies. Reach out to us today at [email protected].