Implement Google Analytics (GA4) right away

Author: Reeta Laamo
12.9.2024
  • Blog

Let’s start with the main point – if Google Analytics 4 is not yet implemented on your website, you should do it today.

Google Analytics 4, or GA4, is the latest version of the Google Analytics tool, designed to help businesses and other entities better understand and utilise their web analytics. Despite the GDPR uncertainties of recent years, both regular users and digital marketing professionals have been quite satisfied with the previous version, Universal Analytics (UA), which has been in use since 2012. However, this service will stop collecting data as of July 1, 2023. That’s why now is the perfect time to explain how to proceed with implementing GA4.

Google Analytics 4 – what to consider?

For us digital marketing professionals, Google Analytics is as essential as Google is for everyday web surfers—it helps us find information, explore products, and discover answers. That’s why it’s crucial to ensure your web analytics is functioning correctly and that you have comparative data from at least the past few months.

Setting up GA4 is almost as straightforward as Universal Analytics, but tracking might be a bit more challenging for those accustomed to the previous version. The first thing to ensure is that Google Analytics 4 is already collecting data on your website usage.

Here’s how you can do it:

  1. Log into Google Analytics and check the settings to confirm that GA4 is collecting data from your website. If you created the property after October 14, 2020, it is likely a GA4 property.
  2. If GA4 has been collecting data since 2020, you’re in a fortunate position because old Universal Analytics (UA) data cannot be directly transferred to GA4. In other words, the data in GA4 will be entirely new and won’t account for your site’s historical data, which may cause some headaches and extra work.
  3. If you don’t have GA4 set up, you’ll need to create a GA4 property and data stream.
  4. Next, you’ll need to install the GA4 tracking code on your website. We recommend using Google Tag Manager for this installation.
  5. Finally, verify that data is being collected correctly. Also, remember to consider cookie consent.
  6. Now that basic data is being collected, it’s time to customise metrics and views to support your website’s goals and optimise your advertising efforts.

GA4 and the need for customization – what changes compared to UA?

Google has revamped analytics and data collection in GA4, shifting the focus from sessions and pageviews to events and analysis. Previously, in Universal Analytics (UA), metrics such as bounce rate, session duration, and pages per session were easily accessible and prominently displayed. Now, the focus is more on events and user behaviour. As a result, you may need to create custom reports to view similar tracking in GA4 as you did with UA.

Google states that the core of the new, smarter Analytics is machine learning, which helps automatically identify insights from the data to improve customer understanding and marketing performance. This, in turn, aids in achieving better returns on advertising investments.

We’re happy to assist you in determining how much customization GA4 requires to remain as effective and clear a tool as UA was. We also typically recommend building a Google Looker Studio (formerly Data Studio) dashboard, where you can conveniently visualise the data you want to track.

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redandblue is a Google Partner-certified web analytics expert firm

Data retention in Google Analytics 4

Remember this: The differences between Google Analytics 4 (GA4) and Universal Analytics (UA) extend beyond just reporting views and tracking methods; significant changes have also been made to data retention. In GA4, historical data is retained for a maximum of only 14 months. This is a very significant change compared to the previous setup.

The short data retention period in GA4 means that if you want to keep historical data for longer periods, you’ll need to manually archive it regularly, for example, to a Google Sheet, or by using Google’s paid BigQuery cloud service, which automatically archives data. Implementing Google Analytics 360 also resolves this issue, but it is an Enterprise-level solution with corresponding pricing.

In contrast, tools like Matomo Analytics do not have this issue with historical data, as data remains available in the tool for much longer.

Now is a good time to compare different analytics tools, so I recommend starting by watching the video published by MHPTeamSI on the subject.

We can explore alternatives to Google Analytics together, with Matomo being the first tool we recommend. Also, check out my article on Matomo.

redandblue helps optimise effective web analytics

If you’re unsure about the current state of your website’s web analytics, get in touch with us. Let’s review together whether you are collecting useful data and discuss how it can be used to enhance your business.

What’s great about GA4?

Top 5 features

  1. Audience-based conversion tracking: Optimise and target your advertising and engagement campaigns based on audience behaviour
  2. Conversion time measurement: Track more precisely how long it takes for visitors to achieve your set goals, improving your insights into user behaviour
  3. Event-based funnels: Enhance navigation on your site by optimising based on event-based funnels
  4. Event-based segmentation: Follow what users who register for a separate service (e.g., an intranet) do on your main site, allowing for more detailed analysis
  5. Modern and versatile reporting tool: Create excellent reports using either pre-built templates or fully customised reports with GA4’s more advanced and flexible reporting tools

Google Analytics 4 is an invaluable tool for businesses aiming to better understand and leverage their website analytics. With numerous improvements over its predecessor, GA4 excels in optimising advertising and campaign performance. For informational websites, GA4 is particularly useful for enhancing navigation and information discovery, thanks to its event-based funnels and conversion tracking capabilities.