Google Analytics 4 what is it and how does it differ from Universal Analytics

Google Analytics 4 (GA4) is an updated version of Google's popular analytics tool designed to collect data on web resource visits and analyze user behavior. This tool is an evolution of the previous version of Google Analytics, known as Universal Analytics. GA4 offers advanced data collection capabilities, including analysis of events and user interactions on the site, as well as integration with other Google products for a deeper understanding of the user experience and the effectiveness of marketing campaigns. It is also focused on mobile app analytics and multiplatform scenarios.

Google Analytics 4 is designed to collect data on resource visits, analyze user behavior, and export data for further processing. This tool has a number of significant features that set it apart from Google Universal:

Cross-platform tracking: GA4 allows you to collect data on both websites and mobile apps for Android and iOS, and then bring them together to create a unified reporting. This provides a more complete picture of user behavior on various platforms and devices.

Cross-platform user identification: GA4 uses three levels of user identification - User_id, Google Signals and Device_id. This allows the analytics system to more accurately track and count users, regardless of which device or browser they access the site or application from. This approach improves the accuracy of statistics and allows for more accurate analysis of user behavior.

Detailed statistics: GA4 collects not only data on page views, but also on other important user actions, such as page scrolling depth, outgoing clicks and search queries on the site. This allows for a deeper analysis of user interaction with the content and functionality of the site.

Data Privacy: Unlike the previous version, where user data was collected using cookies, GA4 uses the gtag library.js, which works without the use of cookies. In addition, IP anonymization is enabled by default in GA4, which helps protect user privacy. This setting cannot be changed, which underlines the importance of protecting the privacy of user data. In the future, Google plans to completely eliminate cookies, which underscores its commitment to improving data privacy and compliance with personal information protection requirements.

Differences between Google Analytics 4 and Universal Analytics

Google Analytics 4 (GA4) is fundamentally different from previous versions of the service, such as Universal Analytics, primarily in that it is based on an event model, rather than sessions and pages. This means that in GA4, each user interaction with a site or application is treated as a separate event, which allows for a more detailed analysis of user behavior.

Some key differences between GA4 and Universal Analytics:

The ability to link data about the web version of the site and the mobile application: GA4 allows you to combine data about user behavior on the web version of the site and in the mobile application into a single analytics system. This is especially useful for companies that have both versions of the product, as it allows you to get a better understanding of user behavior on all platforms.

Changing the tabular view of reports to visualization: In GA4, the tabular view of reports has been replaced with visualization, similar to the principle of operation of the Data Studio tool. This makes the data more understandable and visual for analysts and marketers, simplifying the process of analyzing information.

The main focus is on users and their actions on different devices: GA4 focuses on user behavior on different devices, instead of focusing on individual sessions. This allows companies to better understand how users interact with their products and services across platforms.

Google Signals Implementation: This is a new feature in GA4 that allows you to identify a user even without a user ID. Google Signals uses data about authenticated Google users to more accurately analyze their behavior on the site or in the application.

Simplified interface: The GA4 interface has become simpler and more intuitive, allowing users to create reports directly in the system without the need for additional tools or programs.

Abandonment of Bounce rate: GA4 is revising its approach to bounce metrics, focusing more on tracking user retention, reflecting changes in understanding and evaluating the effectiveness of user interaction with a site or application.

Lack of views: Currently GA4 does not support the views feature, which allows you to filter traffic from different sources. However, it is possible that this feature will be introduced in future versions of GA4.

The ability to create audiences based on predicted user behavior: GA4 allows you to create audiences based on predicted user behavior, which helps companies set up marketing campaigns more effectively and personalize customer interactions.

In general, although GA4 is still in beta testing and has some disadvantages, it can already be successfully used thanks to the features presented.

Conclusion

In conclusion, Google Analytics 4 (GA4) represents a significant update and evolution relative to previous versions of Google's analytics tool. It is moving from a session-based and page-based model to an event-oriented model, which allows for a more in-depth and accurate analysis of user behavior on various platforms.

The advantages of GA4 include the ability to integrate data about the web version of the site and mobile applications, improved data visualization, an emphasis on user behavior across devices, as well as new features such as Google Signals and the ability to create audiences based on predicted behavior.

Although GA4 is still under development and has some limitations, it can already be successfully used to analyze and optimize websites and mobile applications. It is expected that with the development and further updates, GA4 will become an even more powerful and convenient tool for analytics and marketing in the digital environment.