What is Google Analytics 4 (GA4)?
-
2023 saw the sunset of Universal Analytics and with that, GA4 became the only version of Google Analytics for most users (those of you using Analytics 360 have an extra year to migrate). It’s been a bumpy road from the initial launch of GA4 and as the deadline approached and adoption remained low, Google resulted in the auto-migration of UA properties to GA4 – and it did not go well. We’ve been working now for 18+ months to get our clients migrated to GA4, long before the migration deadline, and have vast experience in implementing GA4 across lots of different CMS platforms, client goals, e-commerce/lead-gen, CRMs, third-party integrations, server-side tracking, and more. One of our dedicated analytics experts was also invited to talk at Measurefest, the data-focused sister conference of Brighton SEO. When it comes to GA4, we’ve got you covered:
- 120+ websites migrated to GA4 from Universal Analytics
- Implementation of server-side tracking for GA4 & Social Media Platforms.
- Cross-platform & cross-domain tracking setups and data accuracy verification.
- Universal Analytics data backup.
- Audits of existing setups to ensure data and reporting accuracy.
Better Data Means Better Decisions
We no longer rely on word of mouth or hunches to create content or a digital marketing strategy, we rely on access to marketing data. Simply put, understanding how your customers and clients behave gives you the opportunity to create online marketing campaigns that are more tailored to said behaviour, thus increasing the likelihood of them purchasing your goods or services. With Universal Analytics and other business data sources, you see more of the landscape of your industry.
Integrating an analytics package will show you the right way to go and prevent you from repeating mistakes and creating customer experiences that convert.
Soon, your strategy phase will be governed by the data, and your campaigns will be shaped by it.
The beauty of Google Analytics Consultancy is that we help you see more of your data. We’ll go beyond the surface-level reports and insights and give your company a bespoke setup, under the banner of a continuous process of improvement, that improves your business processes and decision-making.
After all, better data means better decisions.
Resources
Useful & Helpful Stuff
Google Analytics Consulting Services
In our experience, many businesses understand the need to have an analytics package of some description but are overwhelmed by options and never quite get the most out of the solution they choose, be it GA or otherwise.
By investing that bit more in a Google Analytics expert you’re enhancing the data that you receive, you’ll enjoy a richer picture because the data will be fuller, and filled with more insights. We sit down with you or your marketing team to understand how GA’s initial setup should be based on you and your business goals. From the start, we shape it around you so that going forward, your platform is built to provide you with what matters from day one.
Top-notch Google Analytics support goes beyond numbers, with our help, the insight you’ll see will show you the opportunities where you can increase traffic and online presence. You’re able to plug gaps and invest in a multi-channel strategy that ensures you’re seen at all stages of the customer’s purchase journey – which can start from an initial decision and last for weeks before they finally purchase.
1 Analytics Strategy
Our Google Analytics Consulting team begin any process with a strategy meeting where we sit down and discuss your business objectives, we also carry out an analytics audit to ensure that the initial setup we carry out is accurate the first time around. This initial step is very important as it’s this which provides you with a Google Analytics setup that works for you. We’ll work to understand what custom reports you want to create, what accurate conversion attribution to use, and other wider analysis requirements.
2 Implementation
Once we’ve uncovered the ‘why?’ behind your desire to set up an analysis service our Google Analytics experts get to work implementing and integrating your GA into your website. We take care of everything in your stack and integrate Google Tag Manager, Google Data Studio, Attribution Model, BigQuery, and CRM. We can work with your team, whatever stage they are at in their implementation journey to guarantee that everything runs smoothly.
3 Optimization Process
A comprehensive analytics consulting service is only halfway done once it has installed Google’s Analytics platform for a business owner. The second, and arguably most important part of GA integration is the ongoing analysis process. Our consulting isn’t a one-and-done thing, it is ongoing. As you analyse the data that is coming through we’ll be on hand to offer insights and explain what each element means. Further, we’ll make your review stage centred around in-depth reports that are clear and allow you to make business-critical decisions quickly and decisively.
4 Ongoing Education
Long term, if you want to be able to view your analytics without having to rely on an SEO agency, we get this. Our extensive industry knowledge means we can provide formal and informal training and support at levels that suit you – need a question answering quickly about conversion rate optimisation? Just pick up the phone and we’ll be there. Or, if you’re after something more extensive, we can arrange an afternoon of full days’ worth of training to get you sorted.
5 Google Analytics Maintenance
Google isn’t static, it updates its algorithms multiple times a week and releases hugely significant updates every quarter or so. With each of these significant updates, it is vital to revisit your Universal Analytics to check that your tracking setup is in line with the new update’s conditions and your existing key performance indicators (KPIs). Our approach to your GA’s is going to be long-term and packed with assistance when you need it.
Google Analytics 4 Migration
It’s the biggest thing to happen to the search engine’s Analytics platform in a very long time – the introduction of, and the subsequent need to migrate to, Google Analytics 4 (GA4).
GA4 was released back in 2020 and Google promised that this 4th iteration of Analytics would offer more in-depth analytics, additional search parameters, and exciting new features such as cross-domain tracking, among others, all of which are designed to deal with a cookie-less future.
Google has given users of the current version of GA (also known as Universal Analytics, a term we’ve used on this page sporadically), time to migrate data onto GA4 while still enjoying the ease and familiarity of the current platform. The need to migrate data is so that businesses can continue to enjoy the insights of year-on-year (YoY) data.
This deadline for sunsetting the enterprise version of UA was 1st October 2023, but it was recently extended a year, to 1st July 2024, to allow more time for companies to migrate data.
‘We’re focusing our efforts and investments on Google Analytics 4 to deliver a solution built to adapt to a changing ecosystem. Because of this, throughout 2023 we’ll be shifting support away from Universal Analytics 360 and will move our full focus to Google Analytics 4 in 2024,’ said Google in a recent statement.
This extension provides a fantastic opportunity for businesses that missed the original deadline in 2022 to migrate to do so now. The sooner you do it, the more historical data you’ll have access to.
At Embryo we have Google Analytics 4 consultants that can either help you migrate to the new platform from your current Universal Analytics setup. Or, if you’ve never carried our analytics projects and are starting with a clean slate, our data-driven analytics consulting service
Enjoy Peace of Mind and Work With Expert Google Consultants Today.
Let our consultants focus on making sure your business is performing excellently on Google.