Google Analytics 4 (GA4) provides free access to keep track of incoming traffic on a website or application with complete information on the interactions. Besides the traffic insights, you also get information on the demographics of a website or application regarding the most visited pages.
The GA4 technology is developed by Google in collaboration with its predecessor (UA) Universal Analytics. However, GA4 tracks data differently than UA service. The good news about this service is that it lets users monitor user behavior on media content such as videos, downloads, and affiliate links.
To give you a better overview of how the Google Analytics 4 GA4 service works, we have written this comprehensive guide on how to set up Google Analytics 4 GA4 for your website or applications.
Overview of Google Analytics GA4
Google Analytics provides the GA4 service, which is a web analytics tool that allows website owners and application producers to understand how people interact with websites and applications. This service tracks every click, purchase, scrolling, or any other sort of interaction on a website.
Unlike its predecessor service, Universal Analytics, the GA4 service introduces the event-based model. Hence, the user gets precise data collection options and capabilities that ensure enhanced privacy measures are maintained. The event-based tracking accurately tracks what the user does on a page and the website as a whole.
Moreover, the combined capabilities of AI and machine learning make predictions more accurate, especially when the data is limited. With the help of this data, site and application owners can understand user behavior and navigational patterns, as well as the customer journey. Hence, the user optimizes their websites for content development, marketing strategies, and much more to target their relevant audience.
How to Create a Google Analytics GA4 Account?
- First, you have to create a Google Analytics account by using your Google account credentials. For this purpose, you can visit https://analytics.google.com/ and log in with your Gmail account.
- Once you have logged in to your Google Analytics account, head to the sidebar and select the ‘Admin’ options.
- Then open the Administrator dashboard and proceed to Create > Account to create your Google Analytics account.
- Choose a name for your Analytics account based on the name of your website.
- Access the “Account Data Sharing Settings” to select the purpose of developing the Google Analytics account.
- Click ‘Next’ when you have completed the process of selecting the account creation.
- To create the GA4 account, provide a name for your property that contains at least four characters.
- Select your preferred time zone in which you operate to analyze the data, and then click ‘Next.’
- Provide the business details, fill out the category of your industry, and define the scope of your business. Then click ‘next’ to proceed.
- Next, you have to select the business objectives that will appear on the screen to help the GA4 customized reports that meet your requirements.
- Once you have selected the business objectives, click ‘create’ to create your account.
- Make sure to carefully read and agree with the terms and services of Google Analytics to complete your account creation.
- Next, you have to create the data stream for your website with the GA4 service, which is the final step in this process. Click on ‘Web’ to create the data stream for a website.
- Type your domain in the field where it says ‘Website URL’ and provide a Stream Name for your data stream.
- Then select ‘Create Stream,’ and a window will pop up showing your data stream’s ID and the rest of the details.
- Once you have created the data stream, the next step is installing the data stream code on your website.
- After clicking “View tag instructions” in the previous step, you’ll see detailed instructions for the installation process.
- These instructions are designed to help you smoothly integrate the GA4 code, whether using a standard web platform or a CMS like WordPress or Shopify.
- Click “Install manually” to access the JavaScript code.
- Then, copy the code.
- This code must be added to the ”<head>” element of every page on your site.
- The method varies based on the CMS or website platform you’re using.
For example:
- In WordPress, you can add the code using a plugin like “Insert Headers and Footers” or by editing the theme’s header template.
- In Shopify, you can add the code directly into the Google Analytics section within the Shopify admin dashboard.
Reasons to Install Google Analytics GA4 to Your Website
- Helps to develop a detailed and guided SEO strategy for your website.
- Enhances the performance of the marketing campaigns for websites and mobile applications.
- Provides data on the targeted audience that can be turned into potential customers by taking the right approach.
- Develops a graph to help the website owners understand more about the user’s persona.
- Useful for the E-commerce platforms to monitor and analyze the data regarding the incoming and outgoing traffic on a website.
- Provides insights on enhancing the user experience by showing which areas visitors interact with the most on a website or mobile application.
Read also: How to Monetize Your Website with Microsoft? Comprehensive Guide
Conclusion
Google Analytics GA4 service is a one-of-a-kind option for those who want to excel in the traffic of their website to a broader extent. Keep in mind that this service only provides you with predictive data and current data insights that allow you to monitor user behavior from a single dashboard. By using this data, you can develop a strategy for SEO, marketing, and content that will lead to grabbing a more relevant audience on your platform. Hopefully, this guide has helped you set up the Google Analytics GA4 account from scratch.
