Switch to GA4 now to build up 12 months of historical data

In October 2020, Google announced that Google Analytics 4 (GA4) will replace Google Universal Analytics (UA) and that UA will stop collecting data in July 2023.

What does this mean?

This means it is best to move from Google UA to GA4 sooner rather than later to avoid any loss of historical website analytics data.

The good news is that you can run GA4 alongside your Universal Analytics now without fully migrating. This will give you time to learn the new layout, reporting and the way in which conversions are set up and tracked. And if you do it now you will have a year’s worth of data to refer back to when UA is switched off!

What is GA4?

GA4 is a cross-platform analytics solution that has more flexibility to measure different types of data, provide valuable insights across websites and apps and deliver a stronger analytics experience.

What’s new in GA4?

Mobile app activity tracking

With GA4 users can track app activity alongside web tracking, making marketing data significantly more accurate and allowing more visibility of the consumer journey.

Less cookies

GA4 will no longer store IP address and rely on tracking cookies, supporting consumers wanting to be more in control of their personal data security and sharing.

Data-driven attribution

Google will move from Last-Click Attribution to Data-Driven Attribution which means you can assign credit to selected touch points in Google Ads. For example Search, Shopping ad clicks and Display ad clicks. This will help you get a true understanding of how your marketing activities influence conversions.

New predictive capabilities

Google Analytics helps you measure the clicks and downloads people make on your app and website. By applying Google’s machine learning models, GA4 can analyse your data and predict future actions people may take. These metrics can help you reach the people that do not return to your website, with targeted Google Ads.

Purchase probability - this metric predicts the likelihood that a visitor to your app/website will make a purchase in the next seven days
Churn probability - predicts how likely it is that active users will not visit your app/website in the next seven days

Audience building

In GA4, you can customise user groups to determine visitor behaviour. With the new pre-made audience templates, you can take audience data analysis to the next level. From demographics, technology, behaviour to language, gender and location, you can easily see where your audience is coming from and what they click on.

When should I make the switch?

Now! When UA properties stop collecting data on 1 July 2023, you will no longer be able to see any historical UA data. Therefore only by switching to GA4 now will you be able to see a minimum of 12 months of historical google analytics data.

For more information on how we can help you with your marketing strategy, content delivery or lead generation please get in touch by calling 01962 862760 or emailing info@waypointdigitalmarketing.com.