Why Use Google Analytics 4 For Your Business?

In today’s digital landscape, data is king. Seer found that small to medium-sized businesses (SMBs) that actively monitor and analyse their website and social media analytics are more likely to achieve higher marketing ROI and improve overall business performance. Essentially, businesses that track their performance generally end up making more money. This is why it is important to use tracking and analytics tools. They allow you to gain insights and make informed marketing decisions which can lead to higher profits. 

SMBs face unique challenges when it comes to understanding their online presence and optimising their marketing efforts. This is where Google Analytics comes in. 

By leveraging the power of this robust analytics tool, you can gain valuable insights into SMBs’ website performance, customer behaviour, and marketing campaigns.  

In this blog post, we will explore the reasons why SMBs and marketing managers should embrace Google Analytics 4 (GA4) as a vital asset for their business growth. 

Understanding Your Website Performance

Using GA4 provides a wealth of data that can shed light on how your website is performing. From the number of visitors and their demographics to the pages they visit and the time they spend on your site, this tool offers valuable metrics that help you assess the effectiveness of your online presence. 

You need to know how your website is performing to help you make informed decisions on important matters like paying for online ads (which generally send customers to pages on your website) or marketing campaigns.  

For instance, you wouldn’t want to run (and be paying for) a Google Ads campaign sending customers to your website if you know the pages and content on your website are not up to standard and do not convert very well. You would rather first optimise and upgrade your website to make sure its content turns website visitors into buying and paying customers.  

Google Analytics 4 is what collects data on your website landing pages and traffic sources. It tracks what users are doing on your websites and apps. This is what gives you the information and knowledge you need to make data-driven decisions, which allow you to enhance user experience, optimise conversion rates, and improve overall website performance. 

Top Tip: When setting up Google Analytics, prioritise tracking your website’s conversion metrics, such as the number of completed purchases, sign-ups, or form submissions. Understanding these key performance indicators will enable you to identify areas for improvement and optimise your website’s content and design to better convert visitors into loyal customers, ensuring that your marketing efforts and online ads lead to tangible results. 

Unveiling Customer Behaviour

As an SMB owner or marketing manager, understanding your customers’ behaviour is crucial for tailoring your strategies and maximising conversions. You need to know what your customers do and expect on your website in order to convince them your business is the best option to choose compared to competitors. 

Google Analytics 4 offers insights into your customers. It can track how your customers find your website, where they are based, the pages with the most page views, where they converted and much more. It can also tell you your website’s engagement rate (instead of the bounce rate as in Universal Analytics) and which pages are least viewed.  

It even provides customisation reports, meaning you can edit reports to show you only what you need, which helps you not be overwhelmed by irrelevant data. It can also show you the path visitors to your site took, showing you which pages they visited and what links they clicked in what order (HotJar is another tool that is excellent for this and works with GA4). 

GA4 also offers multiple properties, which means you can track your websites, apps and more all in one place. 

By tracking user behaviour, you can identify areas of your website that need improvement, refine your content, and optimise your user’s journeys. This will help to enhance customer satisfaction and get more people to buy your products or services. 

Top Tip: Utilise Google Analytics 4 to its full potential by closely monitoring user behavior on your website. Pay special attention to the pages with the most views, conversion paths, and engagement rates. Use this valuable data to optimise your website’s content and user experience, making informed decisions that enhance customer satisfaction and increase conversions.  

Tracking Marketing Campaigns 

Efficient marketing campaigns are the lifeblood of SMBs. GA4 allows you to track the performance of your marketing efforts in real time, providing valuable data on the effectiveness of various channels and campaigns.  

For example, you can see which of your marketing channels receives the most visitors and which is converting and earning you the most money. This can help you decide which platform to run ads on. You can also see things like where your website or campaigns receive the most traffic from.  

So, if for instance, you receive a lot of your paying customers through Instagram and not as many from YouTube. This helps you know that you need to focus more effort on Instagram content and marketing than on YouTube as this is more profitable. 

By integrating GA4 with your advertising platforms, you can measure the ROI of your campaigns, identify high-performing channels, and allocate resources strategically to maximise your marketing budget.  

The key is, if you know what is working and what is not, then you have the ability to adjust and produce more of what is working. This will help to convert more visitors into paying customers. 

Top Tip: Leverage Google Analytics 4 to track the performance of your marketing campaigns in real time. Analyse data on visitor traffic, conversions, and revenue generated from different channels to identify high-performing platforms. Focus your efforts and marketing budget on the most profitable channels to drive maximum ROI. 

Setting and Tracking Goals 

GA4 lets you set specific goals for your website and track their achievement. Whether it’s lead generation, online sales, or newsletter sign-ups, you can define goals and monitor their progress over time. This feature can help you stay focused, measure success, and make informed decisions to optimise your digital strategies.  

This is crucial as it allows you to see how your business is improving and helps identify areas that need to be worked on. There is also nothing more motivating (or pushing) than having goals to achieve (or set deadlines you need to meet). The reporting features of GA4 mean that you can track your progress and compare the performance of one month or campaign to another. 

Cost-effective Data Analysis

One of the most significant advantages of using Google Analytics 4 is that it provides powerful insights at a minimal cost. SMBs often operate on limited budgets and GA4 offers a range of comprehensive features for free. This means you can access valuable data without breaking the bank, empowering you to compete on a level playing field with larger enterprises. 

Top Tip: Start by setting specific and measurable goals in Google Analytics 4 that align with your business objectives. Regularly review and track the progress of these goals to identify areas for improvement and optimise your digital strategies accordingly. 

In the digital age, data-driven decision-making is essential for businesses aiming to thrive in competitive markets. Google Analytics 4 offers you a treasure trove of insights that allow you to unlock the true potential of your business’s online presence. By understanding website performance, customer behavior, and marketing campaigns, you can refine your strategies, maximise conversions, and fuel business growth. So, switch to Google Analytics 4 today! 

To get started with GA4, create your Google Analytics account . 

For more information on useful tools that work with Google Analytics 4 like Google Search Console, Search Engine Optimisation, Google Marketing Platform and more, get in touch.