How to prepare for Google Analytics 4

In March 2022, Google announced a new version of Google Analytics (GA). This latest version, GA4, promises to provide more accurate and granular data about how users interact with websites and apps. It also offers a number of new features designed to help businesses better understand their customers.

How to prepare for GA4

So what does this all mean for small and medium-sized businesses? Well, first and foremost, it means that if you’re relying on Google Analytics to track your website traffic, you’ll need to upgrade to the new version. But don’t worry – the process is relatively simple and should only take a few minutes.

The current version of Google Analytics will be deprecated in July 2023, so you’ll need to upgrade before then. We recommend creating a GA4 property as soon as possible so that it can start tracking data alongside GA3.

You’ll need to sync up both properties and export your current goal-setting onto GA4 using the goal migration tool.

What does GA4 bring to the table?

Once you’ve upgraded, you’ll be able to take advantage of all the new features GA4 has to offer:

User-ID tracking: You’ll be able to see how individual users interact with your website or app across multiple devices. This will give you a better understanding of the customer journey and allow you to optimise your marketing efforts accordingly.

Enhanced data collection: GA4 offers more accurate and granular data than its predecessor. This will help you fine-tune your marketing efforts and make sure you’re reaching the right people with the right message.

App + web reporting: With GA4, you’ll be able to see how users interact with your app and website in one place. This will give you a better understanding of the customer journey and help you optimise your marketing strategy.

Google Tag Manager support: GA4 includes built-in support for Google Tag Manager. This will make it easier to deploy and manage your tracking tags, saving you time and effort in the long run.

The bounce rate metric has been removed from GA4.  This means that you won’t be able to see how many people bounced from your website after viewing only one page. It has been replaced with the “engaged sessions” metric, which are sessions that tick any of the below conditions:

• Lasted more than ten seconds.
• Contained a conversion event.
• Contained views of more than two web pages.

What’s next?

Tracking what is happening on your website or your app is vital for understanding how users interact with it. This data can then be used to improve the user experience and make sure you’re reaching your target audience. Google Analytics 4 is a significant upgrade from the previous version and offers a number of new features that will benefit businesses of all sizes.

Whilst it may take time to adjust to the changes, the end result will be worth it. Your business will be able to make more informed decisions based on accurate data that tells you exactly what users are doing.

If you’re not sure how to upgrade to GA4 or take advantage of all the new features, don’t worry – we can help.  We offer a bespoke monthly report dashboard for all of our clients to help them understand their website traffic and make the most of GA4. So we know the ins and outs of analytics and can offer you the best possible support.

Get in touch today to find out more about how we can help you upgrade to GA4 and make the most of the new features.