The Top Benefits of Google Analytics 4 (GA4):
Why You Need to Make the Switch Now

Event-based tracking

GA4 adopts an event-driven tracking approach, recording each user action as an event, offering increased flexibility and control over data collection and analysis. In contrast, GA3 utilises session-based tracking, grouping user interactions into sessions and pageviews.

Consolidated data storage for apps and web

GA4 permits web and app data storage within the same property, simplifying data comparison and integration from multiple sources, while GA3 mandates separate property creation for web and app data, complicating obtaining a comprehensive view of user behaviour.

Complimentary native integration with BigQuery

GA4 extends free native BigQuery integration to all users, enabling deeper access and analysis of your data, while GA3 offers native BigQuery integration exclusively for Analytics 360 customers, a paid service.

Enhanced measurement

GA4's enhanced measurement feature automatically tracks specific event types without extra configuration or coding, saving time and resources, and providing valuable insights into user engagement with your content and site or app functionality.

Want to measure and then act? Check out our automated rules guide to see how you could improve your marketing automation.

Explorations

GA4's Explorations lets you develop custom reports and analyses using a variety of templates, empowering you to examine data more thoroughly than standard reports permit and revealing new data patterns and trends.

Scope transformations

GA4 introduces scope modifications, providing an enhanced understanding of user behaviour and facilitating improved data analysis across different levels. These transformations include user-level, session-level, and event-level scopes, compared to GA3's user, session, and hit scopes.

1. Improved cross-platform and cross-device tracking

One of the biggest challenges in digital marketing is to track and understand your users across different devices and platforms. For example, how do you know if a user who visited your website on their desktop also downloaded your app on their mobile phone? How do you measure the impact of your campaigns across both website and app?

GA4 solves this problem by providing a unified data storage for apps and web. This means that you can track and report your web and app data in the same property, using the same measurement model and reports. You can also use Google signals to identify users across devices and platforms based on their Google account. This can help you get a more accurate and holistic view of your users and their behaviour across different touchpoints and channels.

2. Enhanced audience segmentation and triggers

Another challenge in digital marketing is the ability to segment and target your users based on their characteristics and actions. For example, how do you create a list of users who viewed a specific product but did not purchase it? How do you show them relevant ads or offers to encourage them to buy?

GA4 makes this easier by providing enhanced audience segmentation and triggers. You can create audiences based on any combination of events, parameters, or user properties. You can also use audience triggers to generate events automatically when a user enters or exits an audience. For example, you can create an audience of users who viewed a product but did not purchase it, and then trigger an event when they enter this audience. You can then mark this event as a conversion and use it to optimise your campaigns.

3. Advanced funnel exploration and conversion tracking

A key goal in digital marketing is to optimise your conversion funnel and increase your conversion rate. For example, how do you know which steps in your checkout process are causing users to drop off? How do you track conversions that involve multiple steps or events?

GA4 helps you with this by providing advanced funnel exploration and conversion tracking. You can create custom funnels based on any sequence of events, such as page views, button clicks, or purchases. You can also apply them to historical data and see how they change over time. You can also use an analysis hub to create funnel reports with various types of analysis, and key metrics such as open vs closed funnels, step completion rates, or drop-off rates.

GA4 also simplifies conversion tracking by allowing you to mark any event as a conversion without any additional code or configuration. You can also create complex conversions based on multiple events or conditions. For example, you can track a conversion when a user views a product page, adds it to cart, and completes the purchase within 30 days.

4. Integration with Google Data Studio and BigQuery

A powerful feature of GA4 is its integration with other Google services: Data Studio and BigQuery. Google Data Studio is a free tool that lets you create custom dashboards and reports using data from various sources, such as GA4, Google Ads, Google Sheets, or BigQuery. BigQuery is Google’s cloud-based data warehouse that lets you store and analyse large amounts of data.

GA4 offers a free native integration with BigQuery for all customers, which means that you can export your raw GA4 data to BigQuery without any additional cost or setup. You can then use BigQuery to access and analyse your GA4 data in more depth and detail. You can also join your GA4 data with other data sources, such as CRM or email marketing, to get a more comprehensive view of your customers. You can also use Data Studio to create custom reports and dashboards using your BigQuery data.

5. Machine learning and predictive metrics

One of the most exciting benefits of GA4 is its use of machine learning and predictive metrics. Machine learning is a branch of artificial intelligence that enables computers to learn from data and make predictions or recommendations. Predictive metrics are metrics that are calculated using machine learning algorithms based on historical data.

GA4 uses machine learning and predictive metrics to provide you with more insights and value from your data. For example, GA4 can automatically alert you when there are significant changes or anomalies in your data, such as spikes or drops in traffic or conversions. GA4 can also provide you with predictive metrics, such as purchase probability or churn probability, which estimate the likelihood of a user taking a certain action in the future. You can use these metrics to segment and target your users based on their predicted behaviour.

6. Simplified tracking setup with Google Tag Manager

Google Tag Manager (GTM) is a free tool that lets you manage and deploy tags on your website or app without modifying the code. Tags are snippets of code that send data to various platforms, such as GA4, Google Ads, or Facebook Pixel. GTM can help you save time and resources by eliminating the need to involve developers or update your code every time you want to add or change a tag.

GA4 makes tracking setup with GTM much simpler and easier than GA3. You can use GTM to install GA4 on your website or app without any additional code. You can also use GTM to configure and send events to GA4 without any additional code. You can use built-in triggers and variables to track common events, such as clicks, form submissions, or scroll depth. You can also use custom triggers and variables to track custom events, such as video plays, downloads, or purchases.

7. Intelligent tracking and attribution models

Another benefit of GA4 is its intelligent tracking and attribution models. Tracking is the process of collecting and sending data about user interactions on your website or app. Attribution is the process of assigning credit or value to different touchpoints or channels that influenced a user's conversion. Tracking and attribution are essential for measuring and optimising your marketing performance and ROI.

GA4 uses intelligent tracking and attribution models to provide you with more accurate and actionable data. For example, GA4 uses enhanced measurement to automatically track certain types of events without any additional configuration or code. GA4 also uses Google signals to track users across devices and platforms based on their Google account. GA4 also uses machine learning to fill in potential data gaps due to user consent or browser restrictions.

GA4 also offers different attribution models that you can use to evaluate your marketing performance and ROI. For example, you can use the last-click model to give all credit to the last touchpoint before a conversion. You can also use the data-driven model to give credit to each touchpoint based on its contribution to a conversion. You can also compare different attribution models and see how they affect your conversion data.

Read our article for more information about how cookieless tracking works in GA4 and beyond.