Is it time to migrate to Google Analytics 4?
Nothing is unknown, Google Analytics 4 is becoming more and more important. But it's time to ask yourself one question, is it time to migrate to GA4?
Consider migrating soon as on March 16, 2022, Google announced the end of Universal Analytics as of July 1, 2023. As for the current version ofAnalytics 360, it will end as of October 1, 2023. You can visit this article from Google for more information.
So you have a little over a year to migrate.
How to prepare for migration
In order to proceed well with this migration to the GA4 Google to present this new project in 3 phases.
The first phase consisted of implementing the GA4 and officially introducing it to the general public.
The second phase is the current period where we advise you to track your data using the Universal Analytics properties as well as the GA4. This step allows you to accumulate data in the GA4.
Finally the third step will be to uninstall the Universal Analytics in order to facilitate data management. We advise you to proceed to this step when your GA4 property has accumulated more than 12 months of data.
Universal Analytics vs. Google Analytics 4
The main difference between Universal Analytics and GA4 is the type of event recorded. The data provided by GA4 is event-based as before. However, previously with Universal Analytics the existing event types were: page views, events, social networks, e-commerce transactions, user time, application views and exceptions. Now in GA4 everything is recorded as an event.
On the other hand, it should be noted that the GA4 promises to provide better insights that will allow for better decision making in the future. The data aggregated in GA4 is very consumer-centric which will allow you to better understand how consumers interact with your business.
How to make the jump to GA4
In order to make the jump to GA4 we have defined for you the different ways to install GA4. You can install it on your website or your mobile application in 3 different ways.
First of all, you can configure your site with the Google Analytics 4 property. It is advised by Google to choose this option only if you feel ready to use the reports provided by GA4.
Second, you can choose to set up your site with the Universal Analytics property as well as Google Analytics 4. This will allow your Google Analytics 4 property to collect data from the Universal Analytics property in parallel. The advantage of this option is that it allows you to transfer the settings from the Universal Analytics property to the Google Analytics 4 property.
Finally, the 3rd option is to add a Google Analytics 4 property to a site that already has a Google Analytics property. To do this you can click on the GA4 Setup Wizard, so this way you create a Google Analytics 4 property that collects data alongside your existing Universal Analytics property. Your Universal Analytics property remains the same and continues to collect data.
Use the new features now!
In short, we strongly advise you to migrate to the latest GA4 technology. This migration will greatly facilitate data management and reduce the risk of data loss.
If you would like assistance with this transition, please contact us. We are experts in digital marketing. Our obsession is user behavior: how to measure and influence it!
Here are some resources from Google that will help you migrate to this new GA4 generation!
