6 Steps to Help You Switch to Google Analytics 4 (GA4)
Ready to make the big move to Google Analytics 4?
Let’s walk through the steps that will help you transition from Universal Analytics (UA) smoothly and ensure you’re not overwhelmed, but instead, set up for ultimate success.
Migrating your business to GA4 isn’t as simple as just connecting and calling it a day (I wish!) - the underlying measurement framework of GA4 is totally different when compared to UA, which makes it super important to be aware of how these differences impact your data and the decisions you make with it for your business.
To make things easier I’ve broken down the transition into a 6 step process!
The complexity of your business and how much you use your data within your business will determine how long each step takes you to complete.
These steps are set up to be done in sequence and I definitely recommend not skipping any of those listed as it could impact you in the future!
Quick Tip: Be sure to take your time going through each step and know that though there’s no rush to transition to Google Analytics 4 right now (if you’re reading this in 2021), the sooner you get started the more time you’ll have to understand any major differences in numbers.
Here are the 6 steps to transition successfully to GA4:
Create your GA4 account
Compare high-level metrics
Data clean up
Create Business Reports needed
Run Parallel reports
Pick a date to fully switch over
It’s important to note that as of the writing of this post there are still many functionalities not available in GA4 so you’ll need to determine for your business when to begin the process of transitioning.
I recommend at a minimum you perform the first step - creating your GA4 account and start collecting data.
In some cases, you may also be able to tackle the second step - Comparing high-level metrics, but only if the missing functionalities don’t impact your Visits and Users!
Step 1 - Create your GA4 account
Head over to your Google Analytics account and under your Profile follow the guided instructions to set up your new GA4 profile. Depending on when you’re doing this the actual steps will be different and it’s best to follow the most recent instructions from Google.
(If you’re having any problems, I would recommend Googling it as there will be many resources available to help you.)
Once you’ve created your new profile and it’s been properly connected to your web property, go ahead and connect to any other data sources such as your Google Ads account, Google Search Console and any others that are unique to your business.
You’ll also want to ensure you’ve set up and are familiarizing yourself with your Enhanced Ecommerce and the Enhanced Measurement Events.
Want more details on how Enhanced Measurement Events work? Check out the below articles for more info:
Don’t forget - all the functionalities you have set up in your Universal Account need to also be set up in your GA4 account.
Step 2 - Compare High-Level Metrics
Now that you’ve set up your new GA4 account and you’re getting data, it’s time to start comparing your numbers.
I recommend waiting at least 1 month after you’ve started to collect data in your GA4 account before starting this step. Independent of your traffic volume, you need enough time to have passed to see trends in the data between your two accounts.
Due to the major contrast between the two systems and how data is collected (and even what metrics are the same), there’s a limit to how many metrics we can compare and you should expect to see differences. The goal here is to be aware of the differences, figure out if they can be explained, and ensure any tracking issues are identified.
A handy list of metrics you can compare(for the most part) between UA and GA4 are:
Sessions
Users
Pageviews of specific key pages
Visits by main traffic sources
Visits by device type
I would recommend comparing the numbers for the metrics above by day and seeing what pops up for each one to understand if there is a large discrepancy.
The amount of data you’ve got makes a difference in this step because you’re going to want to check if the trend in the numbers is consistent and if the trend in performance between the two is the same or varies greatly.
Differences in how data is measured between GA4 and UA is a big deal and depending on your specific traffic makeup (i.e. you have a high percentage of paid traffic sources or the distribution of new vs returning traffic) will impact your Sessions and Users numbers and any other calculated numbers that include either of these two (ex. Conversion rate).
If this is the case for your business, it just means this will become your new normal and you’ll have to move forward with your new metrics and make any necessary adjustments.
You won’t be able to compare the performance of an action you took using data from both (it’s like comparing apples to oranges) - they aren’t the same and should not be compared if you want accurate information.
As you compare your high-level metrics and notice differences, you can check with this list for more information on where the issue stems from:
Is it from a certain day? What happened on that day? Did you launch a paid campaign?
A certain traffic source? Do you see an increase in one traffic source and a similar decrease in another and so traffic is being distributed differently?
A certain location? Could it be bot traffic that was not being removed in UA but is being blocked in GA4?
A certain browser? Browser cookies can impact Session and User count if there has been an update and the cookie time periods changed. The browser cookie is how GA identifies you and so if it resets you’ll be considered a new person in GA
A certain device type? Similar to browsers, you’ll want to see which device is being impacted. If it’s desktop, then take a look at browsers, if it’s mobile, take a look at the version that is causing it and also the browser.
For all of the places I mention above, it’s important to see how things change over time. If it’s just one day and things go on to stabilize I would get clear on that day only.
If you’re seeing a consistent difference, this could be due to the measurement changes between the two systems. Remember, all of the above are interconnected and the impact of one could have a domino effect on the rest.
The goal here is to be aware and work at understanding what is causing differences in your data. With this information, you can look into whether it’s a tracking issue or something in the data methodology that may be out of your control.
Step 3 - Data Clean Up
Think about cleaning up data the way you’d remodel a home. Everything feels like it’s done but by the end of the project, you still have a bunch of small details to clean up in order to complete the room.
When it comes to your data, you’ll want to make sure you have all your Events tracking properly (i.e. you’re capturing the user actions you need to).
This is also the time when you’re going to want to set up any actions you identified as GA Goals in UA into GA4 as Conversions.
For example, if you had a Goal that tracked completion of Signups in UA, you’re going to want to set up the same action as a Conversion in GA4. This way you’ll be able to easily access these numbers just like you did in the older version.
Get this done as soon as possible - like everything in Google Analytics, you only start getting data as of when you enable or set something up.
By the end of this step, you should have all the metrics or data points you’ve set in UA in GA4 in order to make the decisions most important for your business. (Note: This is all dependent on whether the same functionality is available in both versions).
Step 4 - Create Business Reports
You’ve cleaned up your data and you’re getting the metrics and data points in your GA4 account, now is the time to create your business reports.
In this step, you want to clarify how you’ll be getting your data from GA4 when you make the switch permanently.
If you’ve got dashboards or auto reports created to get information from UA, you’ll need to make changes to get that data from Google Analytics 4.
You may also have to make tweaks to certain metrics you were previously using in your business when you used the older version of Analytics (i.e. Bounce Rate) which are calculated differently in GA4.
Do you know what they’ll be replaced with? Are there any that are no longer available at all, and if so what’s the impact to you and how you make decisions?
Finalize the creation of these reports to match those that use UA data and start collecting data in them in parallel. You can then look at the data you get from both reports and start using it to help you make more informed decisions.
What story do they tell?
Is it the same?
Is it different?
If different, by how much?
If you’ve identified the differences in data are for things that are out of your control (ex. Measurement differences between the UA and GA4), take note and start understanding your new normal. If not, this will give you an opportunity to do more investigations.
At the end of the day, GA4 will be your new source of truth.
For a short period of time, you won't have enough data to compare and understand trends based on your new source of truth, but this will be eliminated after a full period of gathering data has been completed.
Step 5 - Run Parallel Reports
Once your account has been completely set up and you have created the reports that you use in your business using GA4 numbers, it’s time to run things in parallel.
I would recommend a minimum of 3 months to run things in parallel, but if your traffic volume is less than 50 visits/day it’s best to run parallel reports for longer to ensure you have compared enough data points. The purpose of running parallel reports is to compare your specific data trends over time.
It’s very important to understand that you will see differences between the numbers in your Universal GA account and GA4. As discussed in Step 2, you will have different numbers for certain metrics like Users and Visits. Your conversion metrics though if set up properly should be the same or very close. If you see large differences between the two systems for your key metrics, go back to Step 2 and ask yourself the questions provided to help you identify the cause of the difference.
It’s important to also compare data over time and not focus too much on day to day metrics as these may experience more fluctuations. Once you are comfortable with the data you see between the two systems, you can move to step 6.
Step 6 - Pick a Date to Switch
Once you come to the end of the first five steps you should feel confident about the information you’re getting and feel more than ready to set your date for the big switch.
I recommend doing a full quarter of running reports in parallel (see Step 5) before setting the date so there’s enough time to see the trends between the two platforms.
I also recommend starting either at the beginning of a month (as opposed to a date mid-month) or at the end of a quarter for a clean break.
If you’re reading this in 2021, switch over at the start of 2022 to give yourself time to make the transition slowly and to get comfortable with the new version.
No matter what date you choose, just be sure to document it somewhere so that in the future anyone who needs to look at historical data for an analysis knows the day your business switched from UA to GA4.
What happens to the data in Universal Analytics once you make the transition? Nothing!
You can wait until Google decides to turn off the code but even at that point, you’ll still have access to that data in your GA account.
Switching over to GA4 does not have to be a rushed experience and I would recommend that before you start making decisions for your business based on data from GA4 that you feel confident that it’s correct and complete.
Want support switching to Google Analytics 4 and getting your account/reports fully set up? Book a consultation call with me and let’s talk about how I can help make it easier!
Hi, I’m Karla
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