Google Just Launched Analytics 4 - Here's are our top 4 exciting features available right NOW!

Google Analytics 4 (formally known as App + Web) is an exciting new feature released for Google Analytics. In fact, it's not even a feature... it's an entirely new Google Analytics experience. In this article we discuss the benefits, tradeoffs, and reasons why you should start using it as soon as possible! If you want to learn more about how to get started on the new property you can reach out to us directly and we'll be happy to help.

Introduction

Google Analytics 4 is currently a new property type available right now in Google Analytics. You come across the Update button when you login to your Google Analytics account and look under your Property.

We won't be covering how to setup your Google Analytics 4 property but luckily you can get one set up in just a few clicks. If you need help just reach out to us!

Features

Let's outline the major features to give you an idea of just how awesome this new property is.

Behavior Flow Reports

If you ever used the Behavior Flow Report in Google Analytics Classic (normal Google Analytics) you might know why we included this section. In Google's new Apps and Web property the Behavior Flow Report is called Path Analysis and is currently found under the Analysis report section.

The flexibility and quickness in the new Path Analysis report is quite nice. The Breakdown ability, like what's found in other Analytics 4 reports, is quick, easy to use and powerful. For example, I wanted to quickly compare how different countries navigate the website. I did this in one click.

Here's some valuable features:

• Ability to remove specific nodes from the path or show only unique nodes
• Ability to change a single node's type from Event or Page Title/Screen Name
• Clean display allowing for easy views of complex paths
• Changeable Value types meaning nodes can display User counts or Event counts

App data and web traffic data in one place

This is truly a unique and powerful feature in comparison to Google Analytics Classic. GA360 (enterprise level Google Analytics) customers might find this feature similar to the Roll-up Reporting feature in GA360. The important difference is that you're able to combine data of your app and web users into all your reports! If you have both your app and web data in Analytics 4 you can also select to view just your web data or just your app data in a single click.

Feature summary:

• Up to 50 unique data streams (apps or websites) in a single property
• Single user identification across web and app
• One-click report segmentation to show web, app, or both

Flexible custom funnels

GA360 users might be used to having access to custom funnel reports... but now Google Analytics free users (non-enterprise) can get access to this extremely powerful reporting tool. In Google Analytics 4 there is a dedicated Funnel Analysis report. Similar to other reports found in Analytics 4 you can quickly and easily breakdown and segment the report in a matter of clicks. Adding steps is also quick and easy. Imagine, now you can easily visualize how traffic is converting or dropping off on specific steps without having to installed enhanced ecommerce! Don't forget that you can also create remarketing audiences directly from the funnel steps or drop-offs in the report.

Some features worth noting;

• View the report as funnel steps or as a trended funnel (to see how conversion rates trend over time)
• Quickly and easily add many funnel steps and reorder them as you wish
• Make the funnel an open or closed funnel - whether each step must be followed by the latter or not
• View elapsed time for each step using a single toggle... wow!

Anomaly detection? Yes please

Ever looked at your reports and wished you could know, at a glance, if the trend your seeing is statistically significant? Yeah... me too. You don't need to be a statistician and you don't even need to know what statistical significance even means in order to use this feature. Anomaly detection is available in various places within GA4 properties such as the Insights feature which can be found in the Google Analytics mobile application. In particular I wanted to take notice of the Anomaly Detection feature in the Exploration Report within Google Analytics 4.

You're able to toggle the Anomaly Detection on or off as well as control the sensitivity (to increase detection rate) and the training period (to increase accuracy). This is quite amazing, firstly because of how easy it is to use... but also because this is found on the Exploration Report. The Exploration Report is highly flexible and allows reporting on a very wide array of Dimensions and Metrics - including ecommerce data!

Conclusion

I hope this brief article on the core features and benefits of Google's new Apps and Web property has been insightful. I suggest getting started by creating a new GA4 property in your existing Google Analytics account and connecting an existing web property into it. In order to take full advantage of Google Analytics 4 we suggest implementing custom event tracking using Google Tag Manager. Don't sweat it though... you can use Google Analytics Classic and Google Analytics 4 side-by-side inside the same Google Tag Manager container with no issues.

Want to see more?

Here is an excellent walkthrough which can give you a full picture of the Google Analytics 4 User Interface.

Want to see more? Contact us to schedule a free demo: Contact Us