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What is the Difference Between GA4 and UA to sell online?
Through Google's entire suite of tools, we frequently see minor changes that only marginally alter the functionality or features offered by the platform. However, this transition between Universal Analytics to Google Analytics 4 is a top-to-bottom service change. The two platforms are fundamentally different--most notably with regards to their data model.
- The Universal Analytics: UA data is triggered by certain "hit kinds." When a user "hits" your site (such such as a page view, social media click or e-commerce transactions), Google Analytics collects the relevant data from the interaction and categorizes it by the kind of interaction.
- Google Analytics 4: GA4 data is event-driven. If an event occurs in GA4 it will gather, store, and process the data regardless of labels, categories, or any other action.
The new GA4 data model is also an alternative to the conventional data funnel. Universal Analytics was designed to track and measure e-commerce success through the number of new customers or conversions you acquire. However, up to 65percent of a business's earnings come from former customers, according to statistics of Review 42.
Thanks to the method of collecting data in Google Analytics 4, e-commerce businesses can better understand a customers' journey through stream of data. In addition to your work to attract new customers, this platform will help measure your success in getting repeat customers to join your business and increase your revenue overall.
Pros of GA4 for E-Commerce
Data Privacy and Accurate Tracking
The new laws, social media regulationsand the tech industry are taking steps to safeguard privacy and data security. With Universal Analytics, accurate tracking was at the cost of user privacy (and in reverse). But, GA4 is the best of both worlds--providing more accurate and granular information, with enhanced privacy protection for users.
Monetization in comparison to. Conversions
Enhances Quality of User Experience as well as Data Accuracy
Naturally, it will take some time to figure out the ropes and warm up to GA4 (especially during this early stages of development). Yet, GA4 is expected to outperform Universal Analytics long term. GA4 is designed to make it easier for companies to utilize, easier for consumers (with an added privacy protection and security) as well as more precise & granular in the data it offers.
Pros and Cons of GA4 for E-Commerce
A little groundwork is Required
The data model fundamentally differs in GA4, users must manually migrate their data collection to the new system. For users who are just getting the hang of Universal Analytics or have already done the groundwork on their UA property, adjusting to the new system may seem like a daunting task. It's good news that Google offers a wealth of information to assist you on your process.
At present, Google encourages e-commerce sites to incorporate both UA as well as GA4 tracking in place. As you build and implement the Google Analytics 4 property, it is recommended to not change the Universal Analytics property and implementation on hold (for the moment).
To get started, log into your account (analytics.google.com) and follow Google's on-screen guidance to create a GA4 property. In order to track sales using GA4 it is necessary to design and set up duplicate events using the new GA4 event names and parameters. You can find Google's guide for migrating data collected from e-commerce in GA4 right here.
The Unpredictable Future of E-Commerce Tracking Options
The tracking capabilities for e-commerce in Universal Analytics have been continuously growing over the past 10 years. This latest version of enhanced tracking gathers more data than ever previously and lets customers look at this information through different lenses using multi-faceted report options.
While UA4's tracking capabilities and features remain in the research phase. There are a number of unanswered issues for online business owners, such as:
- Which features of e-commerce will be part of GA4?
- When will the GA4 E-commerce functions be implemented?
- How challenging will it be to learn and implement these brand new tracking features for e-commerce?
The likelihood is that Google may offer features similar to the ones of UA completely implemented before the cut-off date or extend the cut-off time. However, there is no possibility of knowing with any confidence how the process will unfold. The experts at monitoring Google's roll-out of GA4 e-commerce features and update our members on the latest developments.