In 2021, Google announced that it would replace Google Analytics 3, aka Universal Analytics, with a new iteration of its web analytics platform, Google Analytics 4. Google will stop processing new hits on July 1st, 2023, and will stop processing all hits on October 1st, 2023.
Millions of large and small businesses rely on Google Analytics to understand their marketing progress and consumer preferences. Since Google Analytics 4 is the new, standard analytics software of Google, getting familiar with the key features can improve your digital marketing efforts.
This article will provide a broad overview of Google Analytics 4 and the benefits that businesses can reap by using the software.
Feel free to jump to any section of the article using the links below:
- What is Google Analytics 4?
- What is different with Google Analytics 4?
- What are the benefits of Google Analytics 4?
What is Google Analytics 4?
Google Analytics 4 is a data computation software that allows businesses to measure traffic and engagement across their websites and applications. Launched on October 14th, 2020, the software is the latest version of Google’s analytics platform.
What is different with Google Analytics 4?
Google Analytics 4 differs from its predecessor Google Analytics Universal in various key features. The new platform provides updated features such as deeper predictive insights, cross-device measurement, enhanced integration with Google Ads, codeless event tracking, and improved data controls.
What are the benefits of Google Analytics 4?
Marketers and analysts are excited by many of GA4s features. Here under are 6 Benefits of Google Analytics 4 (GA4):
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- Enhanced Measurement and Tracking: The new enhanced measurement feature allows users to track events and interactions automatically. This sort of tracking would have taken hours or days on Google’s previous analytics platforms. Using GA4, marketers can track scrolls, outbound link clicks, site searches, YouTube video engagement, and file downloads. This new approach will be instrumental in helping businesses understand the total impact of their marketing efforts across various platforms.
- Smarter Insights and Predictions: GA4 will also leverage AI to alert users of trends in their data. The software will help marketers anticipate their customers’ decisions, allowing businesses to predict churn and revenue from a particular customer segment.
- Improved User Interface: Google Universal Analytics provided users with a tremendous amount of information, albeit in an unintuitive and disorganised fashion. The new software improves the user interface by organising reports and information based on events, business cycles, and user data. Another big plus in Google Analytics 4’s user interface is that there will be a “Customise Report” tool. In addition, the core of Google Analytics 4 is based on machine learning, which means that the new software provides unparalleled automation in terms of user experience.
- Integration with BigQuery: Google Analytics 4 also offers a free integration with Google BigQuery, an advanced database solution, and Google Cloud Platform. The integration means that users can access raw data without purchasing Google Analytics 360. BigQuery lets users utilise advanced analysis of many raw and unsampled data sets from Google Analytics. Such a feature is particularly helpful for businesses with a lot of web traffic. In addition, a BigQuery integration also lets users export their data to visualisation platforms such as Tableau and Power BI.
- Effective Customer Engagement Measurement: Google Analytics 4 is designed to give a customer-centric measurement of how consumers interact with businesses. Instead of measuring customer engagement through a device, the new platform uses User IDs and unique Google Signals to picture a business-customer interaction accurately. For example, users can check if a customer first discovered their business through an ad or somewhere else with this new feature. Such information is critical to assessing the quality and progress of your business's current marketing efforts and tracking the customer journey.
- Long Term Growth: Another reason to use Google Analytics 4 is that the platform is suited to the future of the tech landscape. As the industry continues to evolve, outdated platforms might not be adaptable to rapid changes in the tech industry. However, Google Analytics 4 is different in that it can function without cookies as well. Therefore, businesses that use Google Analytics 4 are immune to significant industry-wide changes in the tech sector.
Conclusion:
Google has already started investing in the future development of Google Analytics 4, making the software a default choice for businesses seeking to operate long term. Familiarising yourself with the new software will help your business reap the benefits of further updates and Google’s latest innovations.
Keeping your business updated with the latest technology standards can protect you from abrupt regulatory interventions. In fact, Google Analytics 4 was launched as a response to the recent development in the EU regarding cookies and data tracking. Therefore, by using Google Analytics 4, you will protect yourself from breaching any privacy laws in the future.
If you are looking for a fantastic analytic tool to assess and direct your marketing efforts, we recommend that you start using Google Analytics now! Need support with GA4 book a call with one of our specialists.
