When it comes to data, everything matters, from how you collect it to how you leverage it. Successful contractors rely on data to understand where their leads are coming from. It’s an invaluable asset in your marketing toolbox—and Google Analytics 4 (GA4) is the tool you need to treat your data like the goldmine that it is.
“Wait, what’s Google Analytics 4?”, you’re thinking. Back when Google Analytics—also known as Universal Analytics (UA)—was first released in 2005, it changed the game for marketers and business owners. For nearly two decades, it served an important role in everyone’s web analytics toolkit.
Starting July 1, 2023, Google is planning on sunsetting UA to pave the way for GA4. We know—it’s tempting to sit back and just let the transition to GA4 happen, but you need to be proactive.
The transition to GA4 isn’t going to be seamless. GA4 captures data differently from UA, so tagging is brand new. The fields and interfaces that hold your data are new, too. So, how can you prepare for GA4?
GA4, the latest version of Google Analytics, combines data from both apps and websites. In March 2022, Google made GA4 official with the announcement that they’ll be sunsetting Universal Analytics (UA) starting July 1, 2023.
To answer the million-dollar question, yes. You’re required to transition to GA4. But UA and GA4 come with different configurations and capabilities, and transitioning from one platform to the other isn’t going to be a quick shift.
You’re going to find significant differences in how your data is tracked and measured, and that’ll impact your existing tags, metrics, and reports. No matter what your analytics setup looks like, you’ll need to set aside time for planning for a successful move to GA4.
If you’re like most contractors, you’ve probably always referred to Universal Analytics as “Google Analytics.” So, let’s start by covering some key differences between UA and GA4.
UA is session-based. It uses hit types, such as page hits, event hits, and social interaction hits, to capture data. Meanwhile, GA4 is event-based, with the principle that any interaction can be captured as an event. As a result, all UA hit types translate to events with GA4.
Unlike UA events, GA4 events don’t display Category, Action, or Label. But what does that mean for your business? When GA4 becomes the norm, you’ll need to rethink your data collection in terms of the GA4 model instead of porting your existing event structure to GA4.
That’s the main difference between UA and GA4. You’ll also see new reporting interfaces, terminology, measurement models, and BigQuery functionality—but the updates don’t end there. GA4 comes with some significant changes to how you’re able to collect, store, and visualize data analytics:
In short, GA4 is reimagining how to track and measure website interactions. As a result, moving from UA to GA4 will require some changes to key systems, skills/training, and potentially your annual budget, to ensure a smooth transition.
The transition to GA4 is going to shake up the marketing game, and you need to start the shift now to stay ahead of the competition. Since Google won’t stop supporting older versions until July 2023, there’s no better time to familiarize yourself with GA4. Here’s how to get started.
You’ll need to start planning for major changes in data collection—and that starts with an audit of your current analytics setup. Before you can even think about switching to GA4, you need to know exactly what you’re collecting now and how you’re using UA data collection.
Start by listing any marketing metrics you’re already tracking in UA. If you have an in-house marketing team, find out where your company leverages those metrics.
You’ll also need to audit any other systems that connect to your UA account, such as Google Ads. Don’t forget to map any other customizations you’ve developed for UA over the years. You might not be able to replicate these exact customizations in GA4, but you’ll need to replicate the results.
Google provides detailed instructions for creating a new GA4 property. Once you’ve set up your GA4 property, it’s time to connect GA4 to any other systems you found in your audit.
Then, you’ll need to convert UA metrics to GA4. In most cases, you’ll just need to navigate new labeling conversions. For example, if you’re tracking Signups with UA, you’ll set up the same goal as Conversions in GA4. Sometimes, you’ll need to add custom functionality in GA4 to track metrics from UA.
GA4 is still new, so expect developments. If you’re feeling stuck, an experienced marketing agency can help you replicate customizations in GA4 and identify workarounds. And remember: If you have a complex setup, customizing GA4 might take time. We recommend starting sooner rather than later to take advantage of the overlap between UA and GA4.
After you’ve set up your new GA4 property, you’ll need to update your data layer. In a nutshell, your data layer is used to track your website conversion funnel.
GA4 offers additional data fields and expanded options for existing fields, so you can capture your customer journey from start to finish without missing a beat. If you’re converting your data layer from UA to GA4, you’ll need to update your data layer structure to take advantage of these enhanced features.
When migrating from UA to GA4, you should:
Next, it’s time to update your tagging structure. Why? Well, GA4 tags capture data in new ways, so you’ll need to rebuild tags to support GA4 data collection.
In addition to automatically collected and enhanced measurement events, GA4 event tags also let you send custom events to Analytics. For example, if you’re capturing scroll depth data, you can trigger an event tag to fire based on Google Tag Manager’s scroll depth trigger.
For every existing event within your Google Tag Manager setup, you’ll need to add a duplicate tag to the same trigger so you can send data to GA4. You’ll also need to create new data layer variables to pass into your GA4 event tags as parameters.
GA4 captures data through the Google Firebase platform, which is optimized for data collection from mobile devices and applications. GA4 also offers more customizable reporting fields than UA, but there’s a catch—these fields don’t align with the existing fields in UA. As a result, you’ll need to rebuild any existing reports powered by UA connectors or data flows.
UA to GA4 conversion isn’t a 1:1 switch, and not all UA measurements are available with GA4. Fortunately, there’s a list of equivalencies between GA4 and UA dimensions and metrics here. This way, you’ll be able to replicate reporting for GA4 data collection as much as possible.
Since you’ll need to rebuild reports with GA4 data sources, you’ll need to take action soon to save your data for 1) posterity and 2) YoY reporting.
Even if you’re a marketing pro, GA4 is going to come with a learning curve. The main reason? The new platform lacks some critical functionality. Some essential UA features, like content groups, won’t be supported after the shift to GA4.
If you’re relying on these features for key insights, you’ll need to figure out how to fill certain measurement gaps before it’s too late. Between new reporting capabilities and labeling conversions, there’s no denying that GA4 will mark a major shift in the marketing landscape.
When managed correctly, data can be your marketing MVP. But if you’re getting the wrong data or your data isn’t yielding any actionable insights, it’s worthless.
The shift to GA4 isn’t going to be easy, but it’s definitely worth the time and effort. Not only does GA4 come with enhanced measurements, but it also integrates page view, scroll, and other key tracking features into the platform by default. Love it or hate it, GA4 is the tool you need to take control of your data and navigate the cookie-less world.
Have any questions about GA4? Wondering how to prepare your business for a successful transition? We’re here to help. Reach out to our team to make data-driven decisions for your contractor business as you transition to GA4.
