Google Universal analytics has officially been retired. Have you made the switch to GA4?
If you haven’t migrated over manually, Google has now started the process of switching over Universal Analytics accounts to Google Analytics 4. Google has started this auto migration based on your UA property settings. However, you could encounter significant issues if you put the migration process into Google’s hands alone. Google itself recommends that you opt-out of auto migration and manually configure your new GA4 property yourself.
The GA4 auto migration process:
We understand that Google will begin auto migration in the following 3 circumstances.
- You have an active UA property but haven’t created a GA4 property yet.
- You created a GA4 property but haven’t connected it to your UA property.
- You created a GA4 property but haven’t gone through the setup steps.
Manual migration may be the better option for your business.
Data control: Auto-migration gives Google control over your data, and they may change your data without your knowledge or agreement. A manual GA4 migration ensures that you remain firmly in control of your data and can decide what to transfer over to your new GA4 property.
Data discrepancies: GA4 may use different data models and tracking codes which can cause inconsistencies in your data. A manual migration ensures that your data remains uniformly consistent and accurate.
Loss of data: Auto-migration can result in the loss of historical data saved in Universal Analytics due to differing data retention policies.
Lack of customisation: Auto-migration may not consider your unique business needs. It’s important that GA4 is set up to your business specifications and requirements.
Google Ads and GA4 Conversions: Auto-migration of goals may cause inaccuracies leading to Google ads inflation or deflation. Also, if you use Smart Goals, Duration Goals, or Pages/Session Goals, these cannot be imported into GA4.
Lack of testing: Google does not test if the auto migrated GA4 property is working correctly. Robust testing is required to ensure that everything is tracking correctly.
If you are interested in migrating to GA4 manually and customising GA4 to your business requirements so that you get the maximum benefit from this more powerful, flexible, and accurate tool get in contact with Sing! today and let an expert do the hard work!
