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What is Google Universal Analytics?
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Universal Analytics, also known as UA, is a data collecting tool by Google. Google is known for its search engine, but it also provides a plethora of data for website owners through the most modern iteration of its Google Analytics tool, Universal Analytics.
UA has helped many e-commerce businesses and digital marketers innovate content and plan advertising campaigns. Today, the internet has become a part of every person’s life, so gathering as much data about people’s internet habits has become just as important.
While UA doesn’t magically solve the puzzle of how to gain someone’s attention on the internet, it certainly hands you the pieces to figure it out.
The data collected from each person allows businesses, journalists, and bloggers to help understand how their visitors interact with their webpage.
From this understanding, websites have evolved to attract attention and increase their quality continuously. Consumers have found easier times finding products and services that are relevant to them.
What is Universal Analytics’ primary purpose? The world of analytics can be complex and challenging to understand. Still, this article will ensure you have the information you need about UA’s past iteration and its new.
What Is Universal Analytics?
Universal Analytics is the more refined, updated, and better version of Google Analytics. While many treat Google Analytics and Universal Analytics as separate programs, in reality, they are created by the same developer and serve the same purpose.
Unlike Google Analytics, UA offers very detailed and organized information for a more streamlined user experience.
Website owners use Universal Analytics to track and identify website traffic patterns. In its simplest form, UA provides data collection to optimize content to garner more attention from the public.
Who Should Use Universal Analytics?
Every business owner who owns an online store and any content creators like journalists and bloggers who operate their website should be using Universal Analytics.
The data collected from Universal Analytics allows users a competitive edge; therefore, if you’re not using the data from UA, your competitors are.
Why Is Universal Analytics Important?
The importance of UA comes from the amount of accurate data it can provide. While having abundant information is essential, precise data is even more critical.
Previously, Google Analytics couldn’t differentiate a new user from a returning user. Google Analytics treats new and old users alike regarding web traffic, not discerning the two.
This type of data collection leads to inflated and inaccurate numbers as the same user could have visited the site multiple times throughout the day.
Fortunately, Universal Analytics can differentiate users by issuing them an ID allowing UA to identify new users over returning ones properly. It helps website owners see what is attracting new visitors and keeping concurrent visitors interested.
Why Use Universal Analytics
What is Universal Analytics’ selling point? Universal Analytics has become such a powerful tool for businesses and content creators. Therefore its competitive edge is almost mandatory for most companies that operate in the digital space.
Unlike UA’s previous version, Google Analytics, Universal Analytics can properly track users who visit websites across multiple devices. This feature means that UA can differentiate if someone is visiting your website from a tablet, desktop, or mobile device.
Website owners can adjust how they display their information to their users. If they find that most of their website traffic comes from users browsing their tablets, they can better adapt their content to fit a tablet or mobile layout.
Assuming you’re using Google Ads, changing the layout to better adjust for mobile devices will improve advertisement visibility on the webpage.
Not only can you adjust how users view your content, but you can also see what content users are interested in, allowing you to continue making content visitors are willing to consume.
Universal Analytics, also known as UA, is a data collecting tool by Google, a more refined, updated, and better version of Google Analytics.
Things To Note About Universal Analytics
The most common information people seek when typing the words “universal analytics” in the Google search engine is asking how it compares to Google Analytics 4.
Universal Analytics will retire because of a few inherent flaws. While it’s undoubtedly been time for an update, today, it’s become clear that people are consuming content and shopping differently than in 2012.
Universal Analytics collects data from desktop web browsers across multiple computers and devices that support browsers. Today, people are browsing the web across various devices, not just computers or phones, so collecting data from many devices is imperative.
Google Analytics 4 amends and improves the data collection process for its users by collecting data across more devices and mobile applications. Therefore, UA will no longer serve a purpose once businesses fully integrate into GA4.
Is Universal Analytics Still Available?
Universal Analytics will be entirely retired by July 1, 2023; currently, though, it’s still active.
During its active time, UA will continue functioning as it always has and will adequately store and collect data without any known issues. However, some problems will arise with Google shifting its focus onto Google Analytics 4.
Users will not be able to transfer the data they have into Google Analytics 4, but they will be able to archive and export their data during the active time UA is still functioning.
What Is Google Analytics 4?
Google Analytics 4 is the most modern and up-to-date web analysis tool by Google. GA4 focuses on being able to collect data across multiple devices while also addressing privacy concerns.
Universal Analytics and Google Analytics 4 essentially function similarly, but how data is collected and organized is vastly improved from Universal Analytics.
Why Is Google Sunsetting Universal Analytics?
UA has served its purpose for a long time, and from what Google learned from Universal Analytics, they’ve improved for Google Analytics 4.
Universal Analytics has limited cross-platform reports. At the same time, it’s certainly there and better than its predecessor, but it’s still minimal compared to GA4.
Google Analytics 4 has full cross-platform reporting, allowing digital markers and business owners to track how consumers engage with their content more accurately.
Difference Between UA and GA4
Google Analytics 4 is the culmination of what Google has learned from its previous iterations of Google Analytics. The way UA and GA4 collect data and organize data is fundamentally different.
The most significant difference between UA and GA4 is automation. UA has limited automation, leading to an assortment of data that needs to be manually filtered and understood.
GA4 uses machine learning. This machine learning feature allows for the simplification of data while not sacrificing its quality.
Other than how data is collected and organized, Universal Analytics and Google Analytics 4 function in the same way.
Main Takeaways
Universal Analytics helped pave the way for digital marketers and content creators. Today, the data provided by Universal Analytics has created beyond successful marketing campaigns and has given users a chance to learn more about their consumers.
It’s essential to understand the history of Universal Analytics. While UA is reaching the end of its life cycle, it’ll continue to serve its users through Google Analytics 4.
If you plan on having a website or running an e-commerce business, you’ll want to familiarize yourself with the newest version of Universal Analytics, Google Analytics 4.
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