Google has announced that it will remove Universal Analytics next year. The company in recent years has made several quite important changes to promote data protection. This would be a new step in your strategy.
Universal Analytics has been the version on which its data measurement system was based until now, but as of July 1, 2023 will stop processing visits. will be replaced by Google Analytics 4, a new version designed to adapt to a digital ecosystem that is more respectful of user privacy. Data previously processed in Universal Analytics will be stored for at least six months after the obsolescence dates mentioned above.
«Universal Analytics was built for desktop web-anchored online measurement generation, independent sessions, and more easily observable data from cookies.“, said Russell Ketchum, director of product management at Google, in the ad. «This measurement methodology is rapidly becoming obsolete«.
Google Analytics 4 brings big improvements
Google Analytics 4 (GA4) was introduced in 2020. The big difference from its predecessor is that it works on all platforms, does not depend on cookies and uses an event-driven data model. Another advantage is that it does not store IP addresses, which helps brands not break the law.
In the statement they explain Google Analytics 4 in the following way: «it has the flexibility to measure many different types of data, providing a robust analytics experience designed for the future. It enables businesses to view unified user journeys across their websites and apps, use Google’s machine learning technology to display and predict new insights, and most importantly, is designed to keep up with a changing ecosystem.«.
Some of the advantages of Google Analitycs 4 are:
- Know your customers at all touchpoints
- Improve ROI with attribution based on data
- Measure engagement and conversions with business and compliance needs in mind.
- Get more value from your data with machine learning
- Easily activate your knowledge
Universal Analytics is still over a year away, but you can start moving your data now.
How to implement Google Analitycs 4?
If you already use Universal Analytics, add a Google Analytics 4 property to your configuration. Clicking GA4 Setup Wizard will create a Google Analytics 4 property that will collect data along with your Universal Analytics tool.
The Universal Analytics property will not be changed and will continue to collect data. You can still access it using the property picker or from the Manage screen.