How to set up Google Analytics 4

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In July 2023 Google will “sunset” Google Universal Analytics, the application that most of us have been using for many years, and users will need to start using Google Analytics 4. So, what does this mean for users of Google Universal Analytics? Well for starters it means that your reporting will automatically cease, unless you are using Google 360. Google has said that users will be able to download the data until the end of 2023 and this may well be extended. It also means that your data comparisons will only be available until June 2023 – any comparisons you make afterwards won’t be available. When you think about this perhaps you can see the importance of setting up GA4 NOW!

If you haven’t made the transition over to GA4, here’s what you need to know.

Editor Permissions

I have lost count of the number of times that I’ve run a Google analytics course and students are unable to access certain features – like filters and conversions – due to the fact that the powers that be, very often the IT department, have disabled this functionality. So, before you begin, you should make sure that you have editor level permission (or higher) before you proceed on to the next phase.

Setup Assistant

Probably the simplest and quickest way to set up Google Analytics 4 is via the Setup assistant. The assumption here is that you want to add GA4 to a site that already has Universal Analytics. In Admin go to your Universal Analytics property (middle column) and click on the Universal property you want and then click the Setup Assistant option.

Once you click Get Started, you will quickly be notified that Setup has been completed. You can the click Go to your GA4 property to view your new property.

Approach 2 – Create from Scratch/Tag Manager

1. Create a new property

The first thing to do is to ensure that you have the right account selected (this isn’t difficult as most businesses will have only one account) and in the property column click “create property”.

2. Add property details

Add the name of the property and make sure date and currency settings are set up correctly.

And then complete the next section.

3. Select the platform to collect data from

The next part is to set up data streams and you have to select between three options here, we will be looking at the web option. However, you might want to bear in mind that Google Analytics properties can have up to 50 data streams connected. So, what is a data stream? According to Google, “a data stream is a flow of data from a customer touchpoint (such as an app or website) to Analytics. When you create a data stream, Analytics generates a snippet of code that you add to your app or site to collect that data”.

The next part of setting up your data stream is to let Google know what your website URL is and to give the stream a name. In this section you also see one of the first indicators of event data that Google will automatically track for your website. You can either stick with this or, with the use of Google Tag Manager, you can modify events. You can even turn some off but we don’t need to look at this now.

And finally Google will generate a Stream ID and a Measurement ID. You should now copy the Measurement ID and head over to Google Tag Manager.

4. Head over to Google Tag Manager

Before beginning I assume that you have Tag Manager set up. If not, set up is fairly straightforward – you set up an account, create the container and place <head> and <body> tags on your site. Once that is done you are good to go.

The first thing you will need to do is create a new tag. Go ahead and click the “New” button.

5. Add a new tag and trigger

It probably makes sense to give your tag a logical name, such as GA4 Tag Configuration. So, do this in the top corner.

The next thing to do is to click the tag icon under tag configuration and select Google Analytics: GA4 Configuration. On the next screen paste the Measurement ID that you copied in GA4.

Having done this you can now set up your trigger which indicates when the tag should fire. Click the trigger and select “All Pages”.Your tag configuration should look like this:

6. Test your tags

Back in Workspace (check your menu if unsure) you will see the word Preview. Click on this and you will now be connected to Tag Assistant where you simply type in the URL of your site and you will be prsented with your site (in 1 browser window) and Tag Assistant (in another). As soon as Tag Assistant starts it will fire the Google Analtyics GA4 Configuration to show that the tag has fired correctly. As you add other tags to Tag Manager, you will use Tag Assistant to make sure that the configuration waas correct and that they do indeed fire.

And that is pretty much it. The Google Analytics 4 Configuration has changed quite a lot over the last year or so and there’s a good chance that some of the above may well change over time.