Amplifi Commerce Point of View | Google Universal Analytics Beta | January 2014
0 likes394 views
Google's Universal Analytics is set to replace the classic Google Analytics, with a full transition expected in early 2014, necessitating brands to adapt to the new user-based measurement methodology. The document outlines the importance of proper planning for a smooth upgrade, recommending the use of Google Tag Manager and a phased approach to incorporate Universal Analytics alongside existing systems. It emphasizes the need for documentation, auditing current analytics integration, and preparing for potential metric variances during the migration process.
Amplifi Commerce Point of View | Google Universal Analytics Beta | January 2014
- 1. Amplifi Commerce Point of View • Google Universal Analytics • January 2014 1 POINT OF VIEW Google Analytics Universal Analytics Published by Amplifi Commerce Performance Marketing
- 2. Amplifi Commerce Point of View • Google Universal Analytics • January 2014 2 OVERVIEW Google announced a new Analytics platform known as Universal Analytics in late 2012. Recently, Google announced that current Google Analytics (GA) ‘Classic’ properties will be automatically upgraded to Universal Analytics, their new standard property type, over the coming months. Google has already begun auto-‐transferring properties in certain segments and in early 2014 will fully transition all to Universal Analytics (UA) as soon as the dc.js JavaScript and related features (Remarketing, Google Display Network Impression Reporting, DoubleClick Campaign Manager Integration) are supported. Brands that can should begin proactively addressing the changes now, especially if your site has numerous custom variables enabled. From Google: Many current Client GA accounts have the Universal Analytics Upgrade Tool enabled, which allows site owners to upgrade properties to Universal Analytics in a 2-‐step process. For brands with a standard (non-‐customized) installation of Google Classic Analytics, the upgrade is as simple as using the upgrade tool within your current Analytics account to upgrade to UA, then retagging your property. Brands that have many custom variables will have more work to do. We do not recommend using the upgrade tool at this time. Instead, we suggest creating a new Universal property (following the approach we recommend later in this document) while continuing to run your current Classic Analytics tracking until Universal Analytics emerges from beta. The Universal Analytics Upgrade Guide can be found here: https://developers.google.com/analytics/devguides/collection/upgrade/guide KEY DIFFERENCES OF UNIVERSAL ANALYTICS Measurement Methodology Change – Universal Analytics is based on capturing discrete user activity, not site or page visits. Universal Analytics data will allow retailers to better identify a user across devices and even channels to gain better insights into user behavior overall. Offline Data -‐ By leveraging the new API, you can connect POS, CRM or even call center data to create a more holistic view of a particular user, enabling omnichannel measurement that retailers are pining for. Speed – In Classic Analytics, data was stored within the cookie itself and passed to GA for each page view. In UA, the cookie has been greatly simplified, and data is stored on Google’s servers instead of being passed with each page view. This innovation will increase speeds for sites, and with the ubiquity of Google Analytics, for the Internet as a whole. Additional features of Universal Analytics include omnichannel attribution (previously only available within Analytics Premium), the ability to import cost data from other channels (such as display, social, Yahoo, etc.), an integrated campaign manager, recency and frequency reporting, plus the ability to calculate Lifetime Customer Value (LCV). “All Google Analytics properties will soon be required to use Universal Analytics. All Google Analytics updates and new features will be built on top of the Universal Analytics infrastructure. To make sure all properties upgrade, Classic Analytics properties that don’t initiate a transfer will be auto-‐transferred to Universal Analytics in the coming months.” A key difference is that Universal Analytics is based on users, not visits. Due to this shift, brands will see a delta in metrics between Classic and Universal Analytics.
- 3. Amplifi Commerce Point of View • Google Universal Analytics • January 2014 3 WHY NOT UPGRADE IMMEDIATELY? Universal Analytics is currently in beta and does not support all features of Google Analytics Classic. However, now is a good time to being testing Universal Analytics by deploying it alongside your existing implementation in a separate Web Property. Universal Analytics will not interfere with previous versions of Google Analytics. Features currently unsupported by the Universal Analytics beta include: ! Doubleclick Campaign Manager Integration (this includes DFA and Bid Manager) ! Google Content Experiments ! Google Display Advertising Integration ! Google Remarketing Integration ! Google Analytics Demographics & Interests Reporting ! Adsense If you currently utilize any of the features above, we recommend waiting until Google announces support for these elements before fully upgrading to UA. If you are not using these features, then you can migrate to Universal Analytics as soon as the migration is available following the approach we recommend later in this document. OTHER OPPORTUNITIES Timing is never ideal for tackling a project such as this. But you can make the most of your analytics upgrade by getting your analytics house in order: ! Audit your current analytics integration. Make sure your data is accurate and that no measurement gaps exist. First, perform a full site pixel audit to inventory current and necessary pixels; identify outdated or unused vendor pixels and remove them from the site. Next, determine if all metrics are being tracked appropriately. Does each business unit have the data they need? Now is the time to capture this information and build it into your analytics and reporting infrastructure. Trust in your data and confirming that all activity is tracked (and tracked properly) is critical to ecommerce success. ! Document your implementation. Documenting what you are tracking, why you are tracking it that way and how things were set up (especially custom variables and dimensions) gives you a guide to reference in case you add or lose a team member close to the integration. Clear documentation also helps eliminate internal heartburn when business units need to understand what data is available, how it is measured and how to access it. ! Consider tag management. Google Tag Manager and other popular 3 rd party tag management solutions can give your marketing teams increased agility, allowing them add and remove tags without involving IT, which encourages more active testing of vendors and opportunities. Additional benefits include improving site speed, stability and compliance. Given Google’s new focus on tightly integrating Analytics, Tag Manager and Doubleclick Campaign Manager (which contains both their paid search bid management tools as well as DFA for tracking and ad serving), we recommend Google Tag Manager as a viable and powerful solution for managing the proliferation of pixels required on a growing ecommerce property.
- 4. Amplifi Commerce Point of View • Google Universal Analytics • January 2014 4 RECOMMENDED APPROACH For brands contemplating a proactive upgrade to Universal Analytics, we recommend the following approach: ! Do not use the Universal Analytics Upgrade Tool to transfer your current Classic Analytics account to Universal. Leave your current Classic Analytics integration in place. ! Deploy Google Tag Manager (GTM) across the site to manage tags, including the new Universal Analytics tags you will create. Using Google Tag Manager will simplify future analytics upgrades. ! Create a new Tag Manager container for your property within Tag Manager. ! Create a new Universal Analytics property within your Google Analytics account. ! Create and deploy a new tag for Universal Analytics within Tag Manager to begin tracking using Universal Analytics and GTM. Note that Universal Analytics will not conflict with your current Classic Analytics integration, so running Classic and Universal Analytics side-‐by-‐side will not cause issues with tracking or site speed. ! Confirm that Universal Analytics is working by reviewing Real-‐Time reports within your Google Analytics dashboard. ! Document current customizations within your Classic Analytics property and rebuild these within Universal Analytics as Dimensions. ! Baseline variations in metrics between Classic and Universal Analytics. Confirm that customizations have been recreated as Dimensions within the new Universal property and an acceptable delta between each analytics property exists. ! Once Universal Analytics exits beta and you are confident that your property is tracking correctly, update the Universal Analytics beta tag in GTM with your legacy tracking account ID to transfer historical data to Universal Analytics. You can then remove all instances of Classic Analytics from your site and begin using Universal Analytics as your primary account going forward. CONCLUSION CONTACT Brock Marion Director of Performance Marketing Amplifi Commerce E: brock.marion@amplifcommerce.com P: (972) 861-‐5437 M: (214) 334-‐1787 Google Universal Analytics offers compelling improvements over the current, asynchronous (and legacy synchronous) versions of Classic Google Analytics and is the way forward. We recommend that properties begin the upgrade process as soon as is feasible to avoid the potential downtime, tracking issues and missing data triggered by the automatic transfer of a property to Universal Analytics by Google. We believe that integrating Google Tag Manager on your site, creating a new Universal property and running the new instance side-‐by–side with your current Classic Analytics integration is the path that offers the least risk and gives site owners an opportunity to recreate customizations while setting baselines to understand variations between the two Analytics types. This will prepare your teams and properties for a full migration to Universal Analytics when it exits beta and all features are supported.