The Analytics Apocalypse: GA4 Crash Course Mega Party (w/ Brie E. Anderson)

🚀 Workshop Presented by Positional

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In this live workshop, Brie E. Anderson of Beast Analytics took the sting out of transitioning to Google Analytics 4 and helped us master the new platform. This two-hour session covers basics through to advanced features with pre-recorded walkthroughs:

PART 1: GA4 BASICS

[06:12] Moving from Universal Analytics to GA4

[01:22] GA4 Tag Setup

• Create a new GA4 property with consistent time zones
• Enhanced measurement collects events like page views, scrolls, outbound clicks, site search, video engagement, file downloads, and form interactions

[24:05] GA4 Events: Setup, Configuration, Customization

• Cross-domain tracking is important for accurate attribution data
• Events can be created and modified in the user interface

[37:05] GA4 Filters and Data Retention

• Data retention and filters are important to ensure accurate data collection
• GA4 offers options for channel grouping, attribution settings, and product linking

[44:09] GA4 Reports and Home Screen Walkthrough

• Home screen shows recent activity and suggested insights
• Report section has familiar categories like acquisition and engagement

[55:47] GA4 Collections: Building and Customizing your Report Library and Navigation

• Acquisition and engagement reports show user and traffic acquisition, active users, sessions, and engaged sessions.
• Engagement rate is the total engaged sessions divided by sessions, and is the opposite of bounce rate.

[1:01:44] GA4 Condensed Reports

• GA4 has engagement metrics replacing behavior metrics.
• Reports include acquisition, engagement, events, conversions, and monetization.

PART 2: GA4 ADVANCED

[1:18:47] GA4 Anomaly Detection

• Anomaly detection can be set up for various metrics and segments, with options to receive alerts via email or GA4 insights.
• Reports can be customized by editing dimensions, metrics, and visualizations using the report editor.

[1:31:07] Creating New GA4 Reports

• Create collections to view frequently accessed reports
• Use filters and comparisons to analyze data

[1:37:27] GA4 Dimensions and Attribution

• Use dimensions like session source medium and device category to break down revenue data
• Line charts with anomaly detection can help identify statistically significant changes in data