Seven common mistakes in Google Analytics 4 settings and how to avoid them.

Here are seven of the most common configuration errors in Google Analytics 4 (GA4) that are important to avoid or correct to ensure an effective and accurate implementation:

1. Do not exclude internal IPs and bots: Not filtering internal or test equipment IP addresses can distort data by including internal traffic in reports. It is crucial to configure filters to exclude internal IP addresses and known bots to obtain more accurate and useful metrics.
   

2. Omitting the creation of custom dimensions: Not using custom dimensions to capture specific parameters of interest may limit the detailed analysis capability in GA4. Defining custom dimensions for parameters such as user ID, transaction type or other relevant details allows for deeper and more personalized analysis.
   

3. Mixing pre-production and production data: Failure to separate the pre-production environment from the production environment can result in test data affecting final reports. It is advisable to set up a GA4 property exclusively for the pre-production environment to prevent test data from contaminating production data.
   

4. Split app data into a separate property: Not consolidating app data (web and mobile) into a single property can make it difficult to perform integrated analysis of user behavior across different platforms. Keeping all application data in a single property makes it easier to correlate user interactions across multiple devices.
   

5. Failure to enable and validate enhanced measurement correctly: Enhanced measurement in Google Analytics 4 (GA4) provides automation to measure important events more accurately, such as clicks on external links, file downloads, page scrolls, interactions with embedded videos, among others. However, it is important to validate that this function is correctly capturing the desired events and adjust it according to the specific needs of the website or application. In some cases, such as complex interactions with forms, it may be preferable to configure custom events more precisely using Google Tag Manager (GTM) to avoid tracking issues.
   

6. Improperly managing user consent: Failure to properly manage user consent can result in compliance issues, especially with regulations such as GDPR. Be sure to properly implement consent policies and respect users’ privacy preferences when using GA4 to avoid legal issues and maintain user trust.
   

7. Keep data retention at its default setting: The default data retention in GA4 is 2 months, but it is recommended to set it to 14 months to retain relevant historical data and facilitate long-term analysis. Leaving data retention at its default setting can result in the loss of valuable data after a relatively short period, which can be problematic for retrospective analysis or long-term trends.

Correcting these configuration errors will help you improve the accuracy and usefulness of your data in Google Analytics 4, allowing you to obtain more meaningful information to optimize your digital strategies.

Paula Domecq Digital Data Analyst MIO One