Google Analytics (GA4) Pocket Book

Posted on by uplatzblog

Google Analytics 4 Pocket Book — Uplatz

50 Expanded Cards • Events • Conversions • Reports • Segments • Debugging • GTM • BigQuery • Attribution • Interview Q&A

1) What is GA4?

Google Analytics 4 is the latest analytics platform from Google, focused on event-based tracking, cross-platform reporting, and privacy-centric measurement.

Key shift: From "Pageviews & Sessions" in UA → "Events & Parameters" in GA4.

2) Setting Up GA4

Create a new GA4 property, link it to your site/app, and add the Measurement ID via GTM, CMS plugin, or directly in code.

<script async src="https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtag/js?id=G-XXXX"></script>
<script>
  window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || [];
  function gtag(){dataLayer.push(arguments);}
  gtag('js', new Date());
  gtag('config', 'G-XXXX');
</script>

3) Data Streams

GA4 supports Web, iOS, and Android streams. Each stream sends events to the same property for unified reporting.

Example: Web stream (site) + iOS app stream + Android app stream = unified user journey.

4) Default Events

GA4 automatically tracks key events like page_view, scroll, click, file_download, and video_start.

Enable "Enhanced Measurement" in Data Stream settings to auto-capture defaults.

5) Custom Events

Create your own events for business-specific interactions, like button clicks, form submissions, or app feature usage.

gtag('event', 'signup_submit', { method: 'Google', plan: 'pro' });

6) Event Parameters

Each event can carry parameters for context. For example, purchase events include transaction_id, value, currency.

gtag('event', 'add_to_cart', { item_name: 'Red Shoes', price: 49.99 });

7) Recommended Events

Google provides a list of recommended event names for ecommerce, games, and other industries to improve report compatibility.

Example: 'login', 'purchase', 'level_start', 'search' (match parameter naming too).

8) Conversions

Mark critical events (e.g., purchase, signup) as conversions in GA4 to track business goals.

Admin → Events → Mark 'signup_submit' as Conversion → appears in Conversion reports.

9) User Properties

Set attributes about the user (plan type, role, customer ID) for segmentation.

gtag('set', 'user_properties', { plan_type: 'Premium', country: 'UK' });

10) Debug Mode

Use GA4’s DebugView to validate events in real time when developing.

GTM → GA4 config tag → Fields to set: debug_mode=true → View in Configure → DebugView

11) Realtime Report

See active users in last 30 minutes, pages they’re viewing, and triggered events. Useful for campaign launches.

Use: Test event firing immediately after deploying tracking.

12) Engagement Reports

Includes Events, Pages & Screens, and Conversions. Focus on high-engagement content.

Metric: Engagement time > Bounce rate; use "Engaged sessions" for quality traffic.

13) Acquisition Reports

View user acquisition (first touch) vs traffic acquisition (session start source). Split organic vs paid.

Compare: Organic Search vs Paid Search → Engagement rate differences.

14) Monetization Reports

Track ecommerce purchases, in-app purchases, and ads revenue.

Requires sending 'purchase' events with value & currency parameters.

15) Retention Reports

Measure how many users return after day/week/month. Useful for cohort analysis.

Example: Cohort = "Users acquired in Jan" → Retention at 30 days = 18%.

16) User Explorer

Drill into anonymized user journeys using device ID or user ID (if set).

Shows: Sequence of events, session count, and lifetime value.

17) Path Exploration

Visualize navigation flows from a starting point (e.g., homepage) or ending point (e.g., checkout).

Use: Start with 'session_start' → see drop-offs before purchase.

18) Funnel Exploration

Create custom funnels, open or closed, to measure conversion between steps.

Example: Product View → Add to Cart → Checkout → Purchase

19) Segment Overlap

Compare intersection of multiple audience segments (e.g., Paid traffic + Mobile users).

Overlap shows if campaigns reach desired persona.

20) Attribution

GA4 uses data-driven attribution by default; compare with last-click to see differences.

Model comparison: Data-driven vs Last click → Paid social’s role in assist conversions.