Google Analytics 4 Upgrade: Migrate from Universal Analytics

Google Analytics 4 is a significant upgrade from Universal Analytics, offering a more comprehensive view of your website visitors and behavior.

The upgrade is mandatory, as Google will be discontinuing Universal Analytics in July 2023.

To migrate to Google Analytics 4, you'll need to create a new property and set up the necessary tracking codes.

This process is relatively straightforward, but it's essential to understand the key differences between the two platforms to ensure a smooth transition.

Upgrading to Google Analytics 4 is essential because Universal Analytics will stop collecting data altogether after July 1, 2023.

Google Analytics 4 is the new Business Intelligence tool in Google's suite, and it will implement automatic privacy enhancements to comply with GDPR regulations, such as not collecting users' IP addresses and facilitating data deletion while minimizing data retention time frames.

You must switch from UA to GA4 because it's mandatory for everyone, and not upgrading means missing out on the platform's enhanced data collection functionalities and not having the same level of integration with Google marketing tools and other advanced third-party software.

The key benefits of upgrading to GA4 include more powerful conversion funnel analysis, cross-domain and multiplatform tracking of user behavior, free BigQuery integration, and more accurate credits for conversion sources.

Here are some of the main benefits of migrating to Google Analytics 4:

Upgrading to Google Analytics 4 gives you access to a more advanced and future-proof analytics platform with enhanced tracking capabilities, cross-device and cross-platform insights, machine learning-powered features, and a more comprehensive understanding of user behavior.

To prepare for the Google Analytics 4 upgrade, you must first audit your Universal Analytics Property correctly. This involves making a report of all your valuable data points in Universal Analytics and saving them in your preferred format, such as CSV, PDF, or Google Sheets.

The data points you audit will be crucial in replicating them in Google Analytics 4, so take your time to ensure you get everything right. Once you're satisfied with your audit, you can start migrating items to GA4.

You'll also need to set up content groups through page tagging, which can be done using Google Tag Manager. This will help you create content groupings and track events in GA4.

Auditing your Universal Analytics Property is the first step in preparing for the transition to Google Analytics 4. You must make a report of all your valuable data points in Universal Analytics and save them in your preferred format, such as CSV, PDF, or Google Sheets.

It's essential to be thorough in this process, as you'll need to replicate these data points in GA4 later on. Make sure to identify all the important data factors you want to migrate, as this will save you time and effort in the long run.

To ensure a smooth transition, it's crucial to understand the data you've collected in Universal Analytics over the past few months. This will help you "move" these data points into GA4 with ease.

Setting a migration date is a crucial step in the preparation process. You should set a specific timeline or date to make your new GA4 properties a single source of truth for your organization's data and reporting.

Consider waiting until you have a year-over-year data stream within your G4 properties before switching everything to GA4. This will allow you to accurately compare data between the two versions of Google Analytics.

Universal Analytics will stop recording data on July 1, 2023, so it's essential to migrate to GA4 before then. You can't hide from the Google disclaimer that says you must move to GA4, so click on "Manage GA4 migration" and let's get started with your new property on GA4.

Here are some key considerations to keep in mind when setting your migration date:

By setting a clear migration date, you'll be able to plan and prepare for the transition to GA4, ensuring a smooth and successful migration process.

You'll be informed about further steps, including creating a new GA4 property, copying basic settings, starting data collection, and giving you the option to turn on enhanced measurement. And just like that, your new GA4 property has been created!

However, this is just the basics. Select "Go to your GA4 Property", and continue with the following step. Keep in mind that your UA account will remain unchanged until July 1, 2023, and you can click on "Open Connected Property" to check UA data.

To start collecting data, you need to configure your Google Tag Manager. This is because data collection isn't active for your website, and Google Analytics 4 is not collecting any data yet.

First, make sure to turn on Enhanced Measurement on your property, as it will activate recommended events automatically. Then, set up your Google Tag Manager on your website.

Setting up ecommerce tracking is a must, but it won't magically replicate from UA to GA4. You need to set it up again, and your new ecommerce tracking parameters will only track after being created.

Migrating to Google Analytics 4 is a necessary step to continue using Google products. Organisations rely on Google Analytics for reporting, so it's essential to agree on when the new GA4 property will become the "single source of truth" for data and reporting.

You'll need to start by creating a list of items to recreate in GA4. This includes common items like organizations, which are crucial for reporting across departments. Setting up organizations in GA4 is a crucial step in the migration process.

Once you have your list, you can begin migrating individual items to GA4. This involves setting up common items like organizations, custom dimensions, and metrics. Custom dimensions and metrics are the same in GA4 as they are in Universal Analytics, so you can migrate your existing tags without a hitch.

However, you'll need to set them up in the Google Analytics 4 interface. To do this, click on Admin in the correct account and property, and select Custom definitions under the Properties column. From there, you can create custom dimensions and metrics.

Ecommerce tracking is another item that won't migrate automatically from Universal Analytics to GA4. You'll need to create separate tags for GA4 ecommerce tracking using Google Tag Manager. This is the simplest and quickest way to set up ecommerce tracking in GA4.

Ecommerce and tracking require a bit more work during the Google Analytics 4 upgrade.

You'll need to set up ecommerce tracking again from scratch in GA4, as it won't automatically replicate from Universal Analytics.

Google recommends using Google Tag Manager to implement ecommerce tagging across your site, making it the easiest and fastest way to get started.

It's essential to implement these tracking items before July 1, 2022, so your new ecommerce tracking can start collecting data as soon as possible.

However, if you can't complete the setup before July 1, 2022, just do it as quickly as you can.

Reconnect your Google products to your new GA4 property by selecting each product you use, like Google Ads, and connecting your new GA4 property from the top level of the property admin navigation.

You can connect multiple GA properties to a single Google property, so there's no need to remove your existing Universal Analytics product links to connect GA4 too. This means you can keep using your existing product links in Universal Analytics without any issues.

Manually reconnect your old Google products to your new GA4 property by going to your Admin panel and linking all products from the very beginning. This includes products like Google Ads, BigQuery Integration, and more.

You don't need to remove Google Ads or other Google Products from Universal Analytics to connect them to GA4, so you can rest easy knowing you won't lose any functionality.

You'll need to set up ecommerce tracking again in GA4, as your old setups won't magically replicate from UA to GA4.

Google recommends creating a separate set of tags for GA4 ecommerce tracking, even though it's the same as UA.

Google Tag Manager is likely the easiest and fastest way to implement your ecommerce tagging across the site.

For detailed information on ecommerce migration, visit Google's GA4 ecommerce migration guide.

Ideally, you should implement these tracking items before July 1, 2022, as they will only start tracking when they are created.

However, if you can't complete them all before July 1, 2022, just complete them as quickly as you can.

It's best to wait until you have year-over-year data in your GA4 property before changing your single source of truth to GA4, due to the differences in metrics and tracking between UA and GA4.

If you can get your new GA4 implemented prior to July 1, 2022, you can likely start using it as your single source of truth as of July 1, 2023.

Custom and manual events are a crucial part of Google Analytics 4. You can easily create GA4 events via the user interface, which is a great feature compared to the old Universal Analytics event scheme.

One of the greatest features of GA4 is the fact that you can easily create GA4 events via user interface. This means you are no longer limited to the old UA event scheme - event tracking is now more accurate and can be whatever you want.

To replicate your old UA events on GA4, identify the events you were using on UA and replicate them on GA4 through the Event Menu. These can be YouTube video views, clicks on buttons, scrolling through a page, or all custom parameters that you want.

GA4 comes with a set of integrated events via the Enhanced Measurement feature, so make sure that you are not trying to create an event that already exists on GA4 beforehand! This will save you time and effort in the long run.

Here are some key considerations to keep in mind when creating custom events in GA4:

By following these guidelines, you can ensure that your app and web data are comparable and you can obtain an accurate understanding of the user journey across multiple platforms.

The Realtime report in Google Analytics 4 provides an overview of user engagement in real-time, showing the number of users active on your website or app. This report offers a glimpse into user behavior within the conversion funnel.

The data in the Realtime report is presented for a lifespan of the last 30 minutes, giving you a snapshot of current user activity. You can use the cards in the Realtime report to gain insights into user acquisition channels, user segmentation, and content engagement.

Here are some key insights you can gain from the Realtime report:

The Realtime report is a powerful tool that gives you a bird's eye view of what's happening on your Magento store in real-time. It monitors activity for the last 30 minutes, providing a visual representation of user behavior within the conversion funnel.

You can use the cards in the Realtime report to get insights into user engagement, with a clear overview of the number of users active on your website or app.

The Realtime report also helps you understand how users are arriving at your store, breaking down information by acquisition channels such as Source, Medium, or Campaign. This is crucial in understanding the characteristics of your visitors.

The report allows you to see what specific content is interesting for your visitors, providing insights into popular pages of your website or screens of your app.

You can identify what interactions visitors have with your Magento store, including completed conversions and the events that lead to such outcomes.

Here are some of the key insights you can get from the Realtime report:

The Reports Snapshot Report is a default overview report for Google Analytics that provides a summary of key insights and data.

You can customize it by selecting any desired overview report to be displayed, giving you flexibility in how you view your data.

To construct an overview report, simply combine summary cards derived from detailed reports.

Each property allows for a maximum of 150 custom reports to be created, so you have plenty of room to experiment and find the perfect combination for your needs.

Designate any overview report as the Reports snapshot, and it will be assigned as the default report displayed when accessing the Reports section in Analytics.

Now that you've set up your new Google Analytics 4 property, it's time to take it to the next level.

You can't migrate historical data from Universal Analytics (UA) to GA4 manually, so you'll need to follow Google's UA to GA4 migration recommendations to ensure a smooth transition.

Increase your data retention to 14 months to get more out of your analytics data, as most of the data's default is only two months.

Exclude your internal traffic to get a clearer picture of your website's performance.

Set up cross-domain tracking to understand how users navigate across different domains on your website.

Here are some additional steps to consider:

By following these steps, you'll be able to get the most out of your Google Analytics 4 property and make data-driven decisions to improve your website's performance.

Migrating from Universal Analytics (UA) to Google Analytics 4 (GA4) is a necessary change that will stop data recording in UA starting in July.

You should migrate to GA4 as soon as possible to avoid losing access to historical data after the final migration date. GA4 will only allow data history up to 6 months after the final migration date.

Google Analytics 4 will be the new analytics tool for your Google Analytics account, with a newly implemented event-based data model that comes with benefits.

The transition to GA4 requires careful planning and consideration, but its benefits to data accuracy, deeper insights, and improved decision-making make it a worthwhile investment.

Setting a specific timeline or date to migrate to GA4 is crucial, as it will make your new GA4 properties a single source of truth for your organization's data and reporting.

The main difference between GA3 and GA4 is the shift from session-based tracking to event-based tracking. This transition enables the collection of standardized data across various platforms, resulting in a comprehensive report that covers the entire user journey in the sales funnel.

GA4 introduces machine learning and Natural Language Processing (NLP) capabilities, which enable businesses to predict conversion probabilities and leverage the insights for their Google Ads campaigns. Machine learning algorithms can also detect anomalies in reports, such as missing conversion tracking or inaccurately calculated conversion coefficients.

One of the key benefits of GA4 is the ability to make data-driven decisions, optimize advertising campaigns, and ensure accurate measurement of conversion metrics. By embracing Google Analytics 4, online stores gain access to advanced analytics functionalities.

GA3 and GA4 differ significantly in terms of features and data models. The transition from GA3 to GA4 is a significant upgrade that brings new capabilities to the table.