Okay, let's break down Google Analytics 4 (GA4). This tutorial will cover the basics, setup, key features, and how to get the most out of it.

What is Google Analytics 4 (GA4)?

GA4 is the latest version of Google Analytics. It's a major departure from Universal Analytics (UA), which stopped processing new data on July 1, 2023. GA4 is designed to:

• Focus on user engagement: It tracks events and user interactions across your website and app (if you have one) in a unified way.


• Provide cross-platform tracking: Allows you to get a holistic view of the customer journey if they interact with your business across both a website and app.


• Use machine learning for insights: It leverages AI to fill data gaps, predict user behavior, and provide automated insights.


• Be privacy-centric: Designed with privacy regulations in mind (like GDPR and CCPA), focusing on anonymization and data minimization.


• Future-proof data collection: Less reliance on cookies and more focus on first-party data.

• It's the future of Google Analytics. Universal Analytics is gone, so GA4 is the only option for Google Analytics reporting.


• Better User Understanding: Offers deeper insights into user behavior and the customer journey.


• Improved Measurement: Addresses the challenges of tracking users across different devices and platforms in a cookieless world.


• Actionable Insights: AI-powered insights help you make data-driven decisions to improve your website and marketing efforts.

There are a few scenarios:

• New Website/App (No Existing Analytics):


• Create a Google Analytics Account: If you don't already have one, go to https://analytics.google.com/ and create a Google account or sign in with an existing one.


• Create a GA4 Property:


• Click "Start measuring."


• Enter an Account Name (this is for organization, not your website name).


• Configure Data Sharing Settings (review and select options as you see fit).


• Click "Next."


• Enter a Property Name (e.g., "My Website GA4").


• Select your Reporting Time Zone and Currency.


• Click "Next."


• Select your business category and size.


• Click "Create."


• Choose a Data Stream:


• You'll be prompted to choose a platform: "Web," "Android app," or "iOS app." Choose "Web" if it's for your website. If you have an app, you'll need to configure those data streams separately.


• Enter your Website URL (e.g., https://www.example.com).


• Enter a Stream Name (e.g., "My Website Web Stream").


• Click "Create stream."


• Install the Google Tag:


• You'll be presented with instructions on how to install the Google Tag (gtag.js). There are several options:


• Install with a website builder or CMS: Some website builders (e.g., Wix, Squarespace) have built-in integrations. Follow their specific instructions.


• Install manually with the gtag.js code: Copy the provided code snippet and paste it into the section of every page of your website, ideally right after the opening tag. This is the most reliable method for full control.


• Install with Google Tag Manager (GTM): This is the recommended method for more advanced users. See the section below on using GTM.


• Upgrading from Universal Analytics (UA):


• In your existing Universal Analytics account: Go to the Admin section (gear icon at the bottom left).


• Select your UA property.


• Click "GA4 Setup Assistant" (first option in the Property column).


• Click "Get started." This will guide you through creating a new GA4 property that is linked to your UA property. You can choose to enable enhanced measurement.


• Install the GA4 Tag: Follow the same steps as above (for a new website) to install the GA4 tag on your website. It's important to have both the UA and GA4 tags running in parallel for a period to collect data in both systems until UA stopped processing data. While UA has stopped processing data you still want the old tag on your website because that is where you configured your conversions/goals.

Google Tag Manager is a tag management system that allows you to easily add and manage various tracking codes (tags) on your website without directly editing the code. It's highly recommended for GA4.

• Create a GTM Account and Container: If you don't have one, go to https://tagmanager.google.com/ and create an account and a container for your website.


• Install the GTM Code: GTM will provide two code snippets. Place the first snippet in the of your website and the second snippet immediately after the opening tag.


• Create a GA4 Configuration Tag:


• In GTM, click "Tags" > "New."


• Choose "Google Analytics: GA4 Configuration" as the tag type.


• Enter your GA4 Measurement ID (found in your GA4 property under Data Streams > Web Stream > Measurement ID).


• Under "Triggering," select the "All Pages" trigger.


• Name the tag (e.g., "GA4 Configuration Tag") and click "Save."


• Preview and Publish: Click the "Preview" button in GTM to test your setup. If everything looks good, click "Submit" to publish your changes.

The GA4 interface is different from UA. Here's a brief overview:

• Left Navigation Menu:


• Reports: This is where you'll find pre-built reports covering various aspects of your website performance. It's highly customizable


• Overview: A summary of key metrics.


• Realtime: Shows activity on your site in real-time.


• Acquisition: Shows how users are finding your website (e.g., organic search, paid ads, referrals).


• Engagement: Shows how users are interacting with your website (e.g., page views, events, conversions).


• Monetization: (If applicable) Shows revenue data for e-commerce or ad revenue.


• Demographics: Provides insights into the age, gender, and interests of your users.


• Tech: Shows the browsers, devices, and operating systems your users are using.


• Life Cycle: A group of reports including acquisition, engagement, monetization, and retention.


• User: A group of reports including demographics and tech


• Explore: Allows you to create custom reports and analyses. This is where you can really dig into the data.


• Advertising: Integrates with Google Ads and provides insights into your advertising campaigns.


• Configure: This is where you manage events, conversions, audiences, and custom definitions.


• Admin: This is where you manage your account and property settings.

• Events: The foundation of GA4. Everything is an event. Page views, button clicks, form submissions, video plays – all tracked as events. GA4 has some automatically collected events, enhanced measurement events, and you can create custom events.


• Parameters: Additional information attached to events. For example, a pageview event might have parameters like pagetitle and page_location. These parameters allow you to segment and analyze your data more deeply.


• User Properties: Attributes about your users, such as their language, country, or membership status. You can set these using the gtag.js code or GTM.


• Conversions (formerly Goals): Important actions you want users to take on your website, such as making a purchase, submitting a form, or signing up for a newsletter. You mark specific events as conversions in GA4.


• Audiences: Groups of users who share specific characteristics. You can create audiences based on demographics, behavior, or other criteria. These can then be used for retargeting in Google Ads or for analyzing user behavior within GA4.


• Data Streams: The source of data for your GA4 property. You'll have a separate data stream for your website and each app (if you have them).

GA4 automatically collects some events (e.g., pageview, firstvisit, session_start). Enhanced Measurement events can be enabled in the admin panel with no additional code. However, to track custom events or specific actions, you need to configure them. Here's how:

• Using gtag.js:

// Example: Tracking a button click
    document.getElementById("myButton").addEventListener("click", function() {
      gtag('event', 'button_click', {
        'button_label': 'Submit Form',
        'page_location': window.location.href
      });
    });

• Using Google Tag Manager:


• Create a New Tag: In GTM, click "Tags" > "New."


• Choose "Google Analytics: GA4 Event" as the tag type.


• Enter the Event Name: This is the name you'll use to identify the event in GA4 (e.g., button_click).


• Add Event Parameters: Under "Event Parameters," add any additional information you want to track with the event (e.g., buttonlabel, pagelocation). You can use variables in GTM to dynamically capture values.


• Set a Trigger: Choose the trigger that will fire the tag when the event occurs (e.g., a click on a specific button). GTM offers various trigger types.


• Save and Publish: Save the tag and publish your changes.


• Marking Events as Conversions:


• Go to the "Configure" section in GA4.


• Click "Conversions."


• Click "New conversion event."


• Enter the exact event name you want to mark as a conversion (e.g., form_submission).


• Click "Save."

• form_submission: When a user submits a form.


• purchase: When a user completes a purchase (for e-commerce sites).


• sign_up: When a user creates an account.


• videostart, videocomplete: When a user starts or completes watching a video.


• download: When a user downloads a file.


• button_click: Track clicks on specific buttons.


• scroll: Track when a user scrolls to the bottom of the page.

GA4's Exploration feature allows you to create custom reports and analyses tailored to your specific needs.

• Access Exploration: Click "Explore" in the left navigation menu.


• Choose a Template or Start Blank: You can start with a pre-built template (e.g., Free Form, Funnel Exploration, Path Exploration) or create a blank exploration.


• Drag and Drop Dimensions and Metrics: The interface is drag-and-drop. Select the dimensions (e.g., Device Category, Country, Page Title) and metrics (e.g., Events, Users, Conversions) you want to include in your report.


• Configure the Report: Customize the report type (e.g., table, chart), add filters, and segments to refine your analysis.

• Start with a "Path Exploration."


• Start Node: Select the conversion event you want to analyze (e.g., purchase).


• The path will show the steps before the event

Linking GA4 to Google Ads allows you to:

• Import GA4 conversions into Google Ads for campaign optimization.


• Use GA4 audiences for retargeting in Google Ads.


• See Google Ads campaign data within GA4.

• In GA4: Go to Admin > Property Settings > Google Ads Linking.


• Select your Google Ads account.


• Enable Personalized Advertising and enable auto-tagging.


• Click "Link."

• Start Early: The sooner you set up GA4, the more data you'll collect. Even if you're still using UA, run GA4 in parallel.


• Plan Your Events: Think carefully about the events you want to track and define them consistently.


• Use Descriptive Event Names and Parameters: Make it easy to understand what each event and parameter represents.


• Leverage Enhanced Measurement: Enable Enhanced Measurement to automatically track common events without additional coding.


• Customize Your Reports: Use the Exploration feature to create custom reports that answer your specific questions.


• Regularly Review Your Data: Don't just set it and forget it. Regularly review your data to identify trends and insights.


• Take Advantage of Machine Learning: GA4's machine learning capabilities can help you identify anomalies, predict user behavior, and fill data gaps.


• Understand the Data Differences: GA4 data will often differ from UA data due to the different data models and attribution methods. Don't expect a one-to-one comparison.

• Why is my GA4 data different from my UA data? GA4 uses a different data model, different attribution methods, and different session handling than UA. These differences will result in variations in the data.


• How do I track scroll depth in GA4? GA4 does not automatically track scroll depth. You'll need to implement a custom event using gtag.js or GTM.


• How do I track outbound links in GA4? GA4 will automatically track outbound links if enhanced measurement is enabled.


• Can I still access my Universal Analytics data? Yes, but only historical data. UA stopped processing new data on July 1, 2023. You can still access your historical UA data for a period, but it's important to export any data you want to keep long-term.


• What is the difference between Events and Conversions? Events are any interaction on your website or app. Conversions are specific events that you have marked as being valuable to your business (e.g., a purchase, a form submission).

• No Data: Double-check that your GA4 tag is installed correctly. Use the Realtime report to see if any events are being tracked.


• Incorrect Data: Verify that your events and parameters are configured correctly. Use the DebugView in GA4 to troubleshoot your setup.