Starting on July 1, 2023, Google Analytics 4 will be fully replaced by UA. If you are still unfamiliar with this new data analysis tool, this article will introduce the GA4 report step by step, to help you get reacquainted with it.
Outline
- Introduction of the GA4 reports structure
- Introduction of the life cycle collection: Acquisition theme/Engagement theme/Monetization theme/Retention theme
- Introduction of the user collection: Demographics theme/Technology theme
- Introduction of Real-Time reports
- Conclusion
GA4 Reports Structure
GA4 is mainly divided into 2 main report collections:
✅ Life cycle collection ✅ User collection
The collections are further divided into different themes, and the themes are further divided into different indicator reports, providing references for brands in making business decisions.
🔶Life cycle collection:
This helps brands understand the customer journey from acquiring new customers to customer retention during the web + app process and the customer journey at each stage.
- The Life cycle collection is divided into 4 main themes:
✅Acquisition ✅Engagement ✅Monetization ✅Retention
(Each theme will have corresponding reports.)
🔶User collection:
This helps brands understand user information on the web + app.
- The User collection is divided into 2 main themes:
✅Demographics ✅Technology
(Each theme will have corresponding reports.)
Report collections - Life cycle collection
Through the Life cycle collection, brands can understand how to acquire new customers and retainers in the web + app, user behavior, revenue generated, and the effectiveness of retaining users.
Theme 1: Acquisition
From the Acquisition theme, you can see where customers are coming from. At the same time, you can also find out which advertisement brings the newest users.
⚡Acquisition theme is divided into the following 3 reports:
- Acquisition Overview: Displays the number of new users, the change in the number of users in the past 30 minutes, the initial number of new users, the number of sessions brought in by each channel, the number of sessions brought in by Google Ads, and the average value of the revenue brought in by new users in the past 120 days.
Acquisition_Acquisition Overview
Reference:www.cardinalpath.com
- The User acquisition report: Allows the brand to understand how new users discover the web or app.
Acquisition_User acquisition
**
**
Reference：www.google.com
- The Traffic acquisition Report: Allows the brand owner to understand what media brought new users and return visitors back to your web or app, enabling users to start a new session.
Acquisition_Traffic acquisition
**
**
Reference：www.google.com
For example:
- A user visits your web or app through an advertisement and enters their email to subscribe to your newsletter. (This is what the user acquisition report will show as the user’s first source of acquisition.)
- The user then finds your email in their inbox and clicks on a link in the email to return to your web or app. (This is what the traffic development report will show as the source that brought the user back to your web or app.)
Theme 2: Engagement
From the Engagement theme, you can understand what customers who come to your web + app have done on it!
⚡Engagement theme is divided into 5 report contents:
- Engagement overview report: Displays average user engagement time, number of user interaction sessions per user, popular web pages viewed by users in the past 30 minutes, total number of views and events, event counts broken down by event name, number of views broken down by web page title, number of users using web+app in the past 30 days, 7 days, and 1 day, user stickiness.
Engagement_Engagement overview
Reference:www.cardinalpath.com
- Events report: Provide a consumer behavior data report for your web+app.(e.g. consumer engagement, depth of web page browsing.)
Engagement_Events
**
**
Reference：www.google.com
- Conversions report: Provides event reports that can help bring revenue results for merchants. (e.g. starting checkout, purchasing.)
Engagement_Conversions
Reference：www.google.com
- Pages and screens report: Provides the number of visitors to each page and screen.
Engagement_Pages and screens
Reference：www.google.com
Theme 3: Monetization
From the topic of monetization, you can understand the actual revenue brought by customers!
⚡Monetization theme reports are divided into 4 types of content:
- Monetization overview report: Displays total revenue, revenue changes, the total number of buyer changes, average purchase revenue per user, number of purchases, and revenue generated based on product name/coupon/promotion.
Monetization_Monetization overview
Reference:www.cardinalpath.com
- Ecommerce purchases report: Consumer purchase behavior on the brand’s website.
Monetization_Ecommerce purchases
Reference：www.google.com
- In-app purchases report: Consumer purchase behavior within the brand’s app.
Monetization_In-app purchases
Reference：www.google.com
- Publisher ads report: Revenue from various products is obtained from merchants through advertisements.
Monetization_Publisher ads
Reference：www.google.com
Theme 4: Retention
Using the Retention theme, you can now understand the frequency and duration of user interaction with your web + app after their first visit. It shows the user’s attachment to your website!
⚡The Retention theme is divided into the following 6 key summary sections:
- New and returning users: You can select it to view trend changes for new or returning users.
Retention_New and returning users
Reference:www.optizent.com
- User retention by cohort: A report of the return rate within 30 days of a new user’s first visit to your web or app, with 3 lines showing the trend: the 1 day, the 7’s day, and the 30’s days after the user first visits the web or app.
Retention_User retention by cohort
Reference：www.google.com
- User engagement by cohort: The average time a new user spends on your web or app within 30 days, shown in 3 lines indicating the trend for the 1 day, the 7’s day, and the 30’s days after the user’s first visit.
Retention_User engagement by cohort
Reference：www.google.com
- User retention: A record of the percentage of new users who return to your web and app within 42 days of their first visit, showing the daily return rate.
Retention_User retention
Reference：www.google.com
- User engagement: Record the percentage of users who revisit your web+app every day within 42 days after a new user arrives.
Retention_User engagement
Reference：www.google.com
- Lifetime value: The average revenue brought in by new users within the first 120 days.
Retention_Lifetime value
Reference：www.google.com
Report collections - User collection
Through a user collection, the brand can identify users who have been using the web+app, including their location, age, gender, interests, and what technology they use. (e.g. browser version, app version)
Theme 1:Demographics
Through Demographics, the brand can understand users’ identity information. Please note that the gender, interests, and age information of users can only be seen with Google Signal enabled in the Demographics report!
⚡The Demographics are divided into 2 types of report content:
- Demographics overview report: Displays the country with the highest traffic on web+app, real-time information within the past 30 minutes (e.g. number of users on the web per minute, the country with the highest traffic), cities with the most users, traffic performance by gender, traffic performance by interest, traffic performance by age group, and traffic performance by language.
Demographics_Demographics overview
Reference：www.google.com
- Demographics details report:(Views traffic performance by country, city, language, age, gender, and interest in different ways)
- Displays traffic performance in bar chart format.
- Shows traffic performance in scatter chart format and separates existing users and new users using X and Y axes.
- Displays performance in table format for sessions, events, etc.
Demographics_Demographics details
Reference：www.google.com
Theme 2:Technology
From the technology theme, the brand can understand what platform and system the user uses to interact with web+app.
⚡ Technology theme is divided into 2 report contents:
- Technology overview report: You can learn about the distribution of users across your web+app, the types of devices, operating systems, browsers, screen resolutions, app versions they use, and their respective traffic performance.
Technology_Technology overview
Reference:www.theegg.com
- Technology details report:(Viewing traffic performance for different browsers, device types, screen resolutions, and operating systems in different ways)
- Display the performance of recent daily performance using line charts.
- Display traffic performance using bar charts.
- Display performance during work sessions and events using tables.
Technology_Technology details
Reference：www.google.com
More reports: Realtime report
In the GA4 reporting interface, you will find a dedicated real-time report that allows you to see the last 30 minutes of user activity on your web + app. You can immediately monitor website activity for any changes to traffic impact.
The Realtime report is divided into the following 6 key summary sections:
⚡ The number of users during the last 30 minutes (per minute)
⚡ Divide users by source, medium, or advertising campaigns: Learn which channel the user is coming from.
⚡ Divide users or new users by target audience: Identify the user’s identity.
⚡ Divide users by page title or screen name: Find out what content a user has browsed.
⚡ Divide event count by event name: Learn what events the user triggers.
⚡ Divide conversions by event name: Find out what conversions the user completes.
Realtime_Realtime overview
Reference:www.kristaseiden.com
Conclusion
The above is a simple introduction to the GA4 report. The GA4 report interface has added more visualization options compared to UA, allowing users to understand information more quickly and easily apply it to brand decisions. Brands that have not yet upgraded to GA4 should check back early to allow GA4 to collect more information about their users.
👉 For more details about GA4, click here to leave your contact information and our specialist will assist you as soon as possible!