Google Analytics 4 is a tool that has rethought many features of the previous analytics. At the same time, Google decided to move away from its democratic methods and simply put everyone in front of the fact: from July 1, GA4 replaces the “vanilla” analytics.

But what does this mean for marketers, designers, and developers? On this topic, a new article from the web studio BUSINESS SITE blog. Let’s get started!

What is Google Analytics 4 and how to deal with it

Google Analytics 4 is an entirely new analytics service from the tech giant Google, which you must use for several reasons. The main one among them is the fact that Universal Analytics is no longer available for use. Access to the data of Universal Analytics was retained by the company for 6 months; for paid subscription owners, the term was extended to 1 year, but, as we understand, such a prolongation will not have much effect, and you will have to get along with GA4.
chto takoe google analytics 4 i kak s nim spravitsya min Google Analytics 4: Setup and full functionality overview
It’s no secret that by offering specialists a tool with worse functionality, Google would make a gift to its competitors. That’s why the service presentation started with the main thing – in what it is better than Universal Analytics. Thus, a brief list of the service’s advantages, according to Google itself, looks like this:

  • Scalable cross-platform analytics
  • Next-generation machine learning in Google Analytics
  • Seamless integration with Google tools in GA4
  • Cross-platform user identification in GA4
As you can see, the list of improvements hardly reaches the latest technologies and breakthroughs in the field of analytics that Google representatives talk about. But is it really so?

The only way to find out if Google gurus managed to create the analytics of the future is to understand all its features, which we will do next.

Google Analytics 4 vs Universal Analytics: Differences and advantages of products

Thinking about how best to show the differences of GA4 and its advantages, I came to the conclusion that the most optimal solution would be to compare the new analytics with the old one.

It’s easy to argue this decision, because there is practically no worthy competitor on the market whose weight and importance could compete with GA.

Despite the fact that Universal Analytics is no longer available for use, we still chose it as an opponent for GA4. On its example, every specialist will be able to orientate what exactly he will have to work with right now.
google analytics 4 vs universal analytics otlichiya min Google Analytics 4: Setup and full functionality overview

If you are just starting your marketing career, I recommend first familiarizing yourself with our material about SEO website promotion in 2023, where you will be waiting for both useful tips and insiders relevant this year.

As we said, at the presentation of its new analytics, Google started with aces, namely the advantages of the new service compared to the previous one. Well, let’s go through each advantage in order, and at the end, we will look in detail at how to integrate GA4 into everyday work.

Scalable Cross-Platform Analytics

One of the key advantages of GA4 is scalable cross-platform analytics. GA4 can collect data from a wide range of sources, including websites, mobile apps, smart devices, and others. This provides a more comprehensive view of user behavior and their interaction with your products and services.
In UA, data was collected using two types of identifiers: user identifier (UA-ID) and device identifier (IDFA or Android ID). UA-ID was used to track user behavior on desktops, while IDFA and Android ID were used to track user behavior on mobile devices.
GA4 uses only one user identifier, which is called a persistent identifier. A persistent identifier is a unique identifier created for each user. It is used to track user behavior across all devices and platforms.

Using a single user identifier to track user behavior across all devices and platforms has several advantages:

  • Improved data accuracy
  • The persistent identifier allows for more accurate tracking of user behavior since it is not dependent on the type of device or platform.
  • Improved privacy
  • The persistent identifier is more private than IDFA or Android ID, as it cannot be used to track users for personal purposes.
  • Improved scalability
  • The persistent identifier allows for more efficient data scaling since it does not require creating identifiers for each device or platform.

GA4 also offers several other features that enhance scalable cross-platform analytics. These include:

  1. Support for anonymous identifiers
  2. GA4 supports anonymous identifiers that can be used to track user behavior without disclosing their personal information.
  3. Support for aggregated data
  4. GA4 allows aggregating data to make it more private and scalable. Support for machine learning.
  5. GA4 uses machine learning to improve the accuracy and scalability of analytics.

Overall, GA4 offers significant improvements in scalable cross-platform analytics compared to UA (Universal Analytics). GA4 uses a reliable and private user identifier and also offers several other features that enhance the scalability and accuracy of analytics.

Machine Learning in Google Analytics

Google Analytics uses machine learning to improve the accuracy and scalability of analytics. In UA, machine learning was used for tasks such as conversion forecasting, user segmentation, and content personalization. Unlike the previous version, Google Analytics 4 has the functionality of modern AI, which significantly enhances the effectiveness of machine learning.

If the previously used technology was only able to adapt to the provided data, using clear and somewhat primitive algorithms – AI in GA4 is capable of independently analyzing events and improving the efficiency of the entire service.
mashinnoe obuchenie v google analytics min Google Analytics 4: Setup and full functionality overview
In GA4, machine learning is used for a broader range of tasks, namely:

  • Automatic data classification
  • GA4 automatically classifies data, simplifying their analysis.
  • Automatic anomaly detection
  • GA4 automatically detects anomalies in the data, which can help identify problem areas.
  • Forecasting future behavior
  • GA4 can predict future user behavior, which can help companies make more informed decisions.
Machine learning is a powerful tool that can help companies improve the accuracy and scalability of analytics. GA4 uses machine learning for a broader range of tasks than UA, which can help companies make more informed decisions.

Seamless Integration with Google Tools in GA4

GA4 offers a broader and seamless integration with Google tools than UA.

Seamless integration means that services like Google Ads will work much more efficiently in the future thanks to a single structural model and architecture.
Google Ads is a contextual advertising platform that allows companies to show their ads to users who are looking for products or services related to their business. Google Ads appear in Google search results, on websites, in apps, and other places.

To create a Google Ads ad, companies must specify the keywords they want their ads to be displayed on. When a user searches for a keyword related to a company’s business, the company’s ad may appear in the search results. If you are not ready to spend personal time getting acquainted with all the intricacies of contextual advertising settings – seek help from Business Site specialists.
Thus, by using comprehensive website promotion from our specialists, you can receive all the information related to the effectiveness of marketing campaigns regardless of the tools we use.
Here are some of the benefits of seamless integration with Google tools in GA4:

  • Improved accuracy and scalability
  • Integration with other Google tools can help improve the accuracy and scalability of analytics.
  • Personalized results
  • Integration with other Google tools can help personalize analytics results for specific users.
  • Effective data analysis
  • Integration with other Google tools can help analyze data more effectively.
Seamless integration with Google tools is an important feature that can help companies get a complete picture of their marketing efforts and make more informed decisions. GA4 offers a range of features that simplify seamless integration with Google tools and may be a more effective tool for convergent analytics than UA.

Cross-platform User Identification in GA4

GA4 uses a persistent identifier for cross-platform user identification. A persistent identifier is a unique identifier created for each user.

mezhplatformennaya identifikatsiya polzovatele Google Analytics 4: Setup and full functionality overview
This identifier is used to track user behavior across all devices and platforms.

In simple terms, if your client visits the site first using a smartphone and then places an order using a computer – in analytics, it will be the same user, not two different ones as it might have been before.

Using a persistent identifier for cross-platform user identification has several advantages:

  • High accuracy
  • The persistent identifier allows for more accurate tracking of user behavior since it is not dependent on the type of device or platform.
  • Privacy
  • The persistent identifier is more private than IDFA or Android ID, as it cannot be used to track users for personal purposes.
  • Scalability
  • The persistent identifier allows for more efficient data collection since it does not require creating identifiers for each device or platform.
Cross-platform user identification is an important feature that can help companies get a more complete understanding of user behavior and make informed decisions.
We have covered most of the features that are of fundamental importance to specialists. At the same time, covering all the nuances of the new Google Analytics with an equal degree of detail would force us to write an entire almanac.

That’s why we have formed the important but not so significant differences between GA4 and UA in the form of a table –

Parameter Google Analytics 4 Universal Analytics
Data Orientation GA4 is data-oriented, meaning it uses machine learning to extract information from data and provide deeper and more useful insights. UA was report-oriented, meaning it provided a set of standard reports that could be used to analyze data.
Convergent Analytics GA4 is based on the concept of convergent analytics, which combines data from different sources to provide a more complete view of marketing efforts. UA did not support convergent analytics.
Personalization GA4 offers a range of features for personalization, such as behavior-based segmentation and content personalization. UA offered limited personalization capabilities.
Openness and Transparency GA4 is more open and transparent than UA. It provides more detailed information about how it works and allows users to control their data. UA was less open and transparent. It provided limited information about how it works and did not allow users to control their data.
Language Support GA4 supports a wider range of languages than UA. UA supported a limited range of languages.
In conclusion, comparing and focusing on the changes, it can be said that Google has decided to move away from the previous update experience and implement something truly massive.
Unlike the previous transition to new analytics, where most changes were cosmetic, GA4 has changed the very principle of the service and its tools. Since Universal Analytics is no longer available to users, all that remains is to figure out how to integrate GA4 into your web resource.

How to Integrate Google Analytics 4 into Your Website

kak integrirovat google analytics 4 na sushchestvuyushchiy sayt min Google Analytics 4: Setup and full functionality overview

As we have mentioned several times, Google has made the previous version of analytics unavailable to users. This means that you will have to use GA4, whether you like it or not.

The procedure for setting up and integrating GA4 has been simplified compared to previous versions of analytics. The list of steps you will need to take to start collecting data for subsequent analysis looks like this:

  1. Step: Create a Google Analytics 4 account
    First, you need to create a Google Analytics 4 account. To do this, go to the Google Analytics website and click the “Create Account” button.
  2. Step: Create a Google Analytics 4 property
    After creating a Google Analytics 4 account, you need to create a Google Analytics 4 property. To do this, go to the “Properties” section and click the “Create Property” button.
  3. Step: Choose the type of property
    Select the “Website” property type.
  4. Step: Add a name and description for the property
    Specify the name and description of the property.
  5. Step: Add the website URL
    Specify the URL of the website where you want to add Google Analytics 4.
  6. Step: Create Google Analytics 4 tags
    Google Analytics 4 uses tags to collect data from your website. To create Google Analytics 4 tags, go to the “Tags” section and click the “Create Tag” button.
  7. Step: Choose the tag type
    Select the “Google Analytics” tag type.
  8. Step: Select the property
    Select the Google Analytics 4 property you created in step 3.
  9. Step: Choose the tracking type
    Select the “Standard” tracking type.
  10. Step: Add the website URL
    Specify the URL of the website where you want to add Google Analytics 4.
  11. Step: Save the tag
    Click the “Save” button.
  12. Step: Integrate Google Analytics 4 tags into your website
    Google Analytics 4 tags need to be integrated into your website. For this, you can use the Google Analytics plugin or add the tags manually to your website’s code.
  13. Step: Confirm the integration
    After integrating the Google Analytics 4 tags into your website, you need to confirm the integration. To do this, go to the “Properties” section and click the “Confirm” button.
  14. Step: Start analyzing the data
    After confirming the integration, you can start analyzing the Google Analytics 4 data. To do this, go to the “Reports” section.
After you go through all the stages of integrating the new analytics tool, GA4 will start collecting data for further analysis. But what do we have in the end?

Conclusions

Google Analytics 4 is the latest version of analytics from the tech giant Google. In GA4, the company tried not only to correct past mistakes but also to implement an entirely new perspective on the analytics of the future. As a result, we got an ultimate service, the effectiveness of which can only be measured over time.
Despite the fact that Google has moved away from its democratic principles and put professionals in front of the fact of the need to transition to GA4, we believe that this decision is justified. Universal Analytics, in the context of new ranking factor changes, would hardly have been able to offer results as effective as GA4, considering that the new analytics is literally designed for the new realities of the search system.

So if you are interested in developing your website or attracting more users to your personal blog, you cannot do without the new features and approaches to analysis in Google Analytics 4.