Successfully Migrating Your Website’s Data from Universal Analytics to Google Analytics 4 Before It Disappears
We love data. It helps us do our jobs, understand what’s working and what could be working better, what audiences respond to, how many visitors your website gets, and the list goes on! It's like having a treasure trove of insights right at our fingertips. Google Analytics reports on some of the best insights regarding your website data and traffic.
Universal Analytics is the dashboard currently operating on Google, but it’s getting a bit of a makeover. Google has announced the transition from Universal Analytics to its new analytics dashboard, Google Analytics 4. Universal Analytics will be going away on July 1st, 2023. Here’s everything you need to know about making the switch and getting the information that you need as a small business owner.
How To Switch
There are a couple of different routes to switching your dashboards, but both will result in the same outcome.
Step #1: Start on the Universal Analytics homepage. From here…
· If the top of your screen has a blue banner, click “Let’s Go”
· If the top of your screen has a yellow banner, click “Manage GA4 Migration”
· If the top of your screen doesn’t have a banner, click “Admin” in the left-hand column
Step #2: Google should have directed you to the GA4 Setup Assistant page. If it did not, click “Property,” or click on “GA4 Setup Assistant” under the Property column that appears. Once you’re there, Google will walk you through the process.
From here, revisit the Property column. This will serve as a checklist. Work through this list to ensure all your settings are accurate and up to date. Go through tabs such as Property Settings and Property Access Management. It’s best to ensure people who need access have the appropriate access, your website URL is still accurate, your Google Ad account is connected and tracking properly, and everything is running as usual.
Google Analytics 4 will be measuring some of the same metrics, along with some different metrics. This new dashboard will be more digestible for business owners and agencies as a whole. If you haven’t delved into Google Analytics before, now is the perfect time to learn what data it can provide you with!
If Google Analytics and metrics such as website traffic are completely out of your wheelhouse, we’re here to help with your marketing. Book a discovery call with us to explore your options!