That’s right, on the 1st July 2023 the current Universal Analytics will no longer process any new data. If you don’t want to risk losing your data and rely on Universal Analytics, it’s important that you start to prepare for this change now by migrating across to the new Google Analytics 4 property. We’re here to help you understand what’s going to happen and how, why and when you should complete your next steps.
What is GA4?
Google Analytics 4, also known as GA4, is a new and improved version of Universal Analytics. It’s been introduced to effectively collect and analyse data – using everything that worked well in Universal Analytics and adding additional, advanced features that aim to improve the data collecting service.
The main difference between GA4 and Universal Analytics is that where Universal was built to collect a series of page views, GA4 has been built around the concept of events. Events can be anything from page views to clicks, form submissions and even custom events that you can choose yourself.
GA4 can:
- Collect a lot more data than Universal Analytics
- Give you a lot more insight into what people are doing on your site or app
- Be used to track just about anything – not just web traffic
Why should I move to GA4?
This is probably something that you’ve been wondering since moving was mentioned. Well to put it plainly GA4 is more powerful, flexible and more accurate.
If you care about being able to analyse data like never before then you should move to GA4 – you’ll get the chance to access all the new features and capabilities, but you’ll also be able to take advantage of GA4’s continued learning and improvement.
Also if you don’t want to risk losing your data you should make the move as Google will be discontinuing Universal Analytics in July 2023, so you’ll have to upgrade anyway.
Think about it this way, if you move your tracking now it means you’ll have a year’s worth of data in a new platform, rather than having to put up with a blackout period during your transition as you can use both at the same time until you transition fully. It also gives you a chance to get used to the new system and see how you like it.
How do I migrate to GA4?
Migrating to GA4 will involve a lot of documentation and information, which can be quite overwhelming if you’re not a Google Analytics whizz. Which is why Rawww is here to take the load off of you and help you do this.
When should I move to GA4?
Now!
If you want to save future you a lot of stress and headaches then implementing GA4 now is your best bet. We can help you migrate to GA4 properly and make the move a lot easier for you. Once it’s properly set up we can help you set your own custom events and more.
Mikko Piippo, analytics expert and co-founder at Hopkins Oy said: “Now migration to GA4 provides us with an opportunity to rethink the data collection and remove all legacy tracking that was never used for anything.”
If you don’t want to risk losing your data, and need help with the migration process, contact Alison today to discuss the next steps on your GA4 migration on +44 (0) 2477 714 660.
