Linking accounts in GA4
Posted: Wed Dec 11, 2024 6:57 am
If we have a Google Search Console tool, Google Merchant or we run Google Ads ads, it is worth connecting them with GA4. When we connect Google Ads to GA4, we will be able to connect data from the Google Ads panel and import created conversions in the Google Ads panel. Connecting Google Merchant will give us the ability to display data for transitions from organic search results. To connect accounts, all tools must be on the same email and we must have sufficient permissions to connect accounts.
We connect accounts in the Administration > Service Connections section
Linking accounts
Linking accounts
Creating Custom Events in GA4
In GA4, you can create custom events in two ways, using only the GA4 panel or using GTM. Using the GA4 panel, you can only create simple events from existing ones, but using GTM, we have almost unlimited possibilities.
In the GA4 panel, we can, for example, create an event for displaying a specific subpage or clicking on an email address or phone number.
To create a custom event in GA4, go to Admin > View Data > Events and click the Create Event button
Creating Custom Events in GA4
Creating Custom Events in GA4
Then click Create . To create a phone number click event, we need to fill in the fields as follows:
Conditions for the phone_click event
Conditions for the phone_click event
We need to set the event name according to certain Google guidelines, then we provide the conditions. In this example, we use the click event , which tracks outbound clicks (clicks on links that lead to another site) and a filter that specifies that the clicked link must start with tel: . Similarly, we can create an email address click event by simply changing tel: to mailto:
More advanced events need to be created using GTM. For example, we want to measure form submission, which the standard event measures incorrectly.
To do this, we first need to check what happens after ig database the form is submitted, if a thank you message is displayed, then you need to set the trigger for the event to the element's visibility and provide the appropriate CSS selector for the displayed element. For example.
Element visibility rule in GTM
Element visibility rule in GTM
<>We need to indicate the identifier (parameter "id") or selector (parameter "class") of the displayed element and check the option Watch DOM changes (if we do not do this and the element is displayed dynamically, GTM will not see it). In the above example, the selector is the class name.
Next, we need to create a GA4 event tag and indicate the GA4 measurement ID to which the event is to be sent, provide the event name and select the previously created rule. The event created in this way should be tested in preview mode and if it fires correctly, the changes should be published to the GTM container.
GA4 Event in GTM
GA4 Event in GTM
Most common configuration problems
One of the most common problems is the lack of verification whether the tools are implemented on the website. It often happens that different agencies have carried out different activities on the website. This can result in us having access to completely different tool identifiers on our email than those operating on the website. For example, the website has GTM number GTM-XXX, and we have access to GTM number GTM-YYY on our email, and attempts to implement new tags end in failure.
Another problem is event duplication. This can happen when, for example, we create a phone number click event in both the Google Analytics panel and GTM. Then, such an event will be counted twice.
Missing some variables or double counting transactions are typical problems related to e-commerce events. This happens when, for example, the data layer has been incorrectly implemented on the site. In turn, transactions are double counted when we have 2 Google Analytics plugins installed and we are not aware of it.
Another common problem is the lack of measurement for Google Ads campaigns. This happens when, after entering a page, the parameters from the link are removed and Google Analytics "does not see" that this is an entry from an ad.
Summary
As you can see, in order to properly measure website traffic and draw accurate conclusions from data, you first need to spend a lot of time implementing tools and configuring them correctly. If we don't do this properly, we may end up making bad decisions based on incomplete or even false data.
We connect accounts in the Administration > Service Connections section
Linking accounts
Linking accounts
Creating Custom Events in GA4
In GA4, you can create custom events in two ways, using only the GA4 panel or using GTM. Using the GA4 panel, you can only create simple events from existing ones, but using GTM, we have almost unlimited possibilities.
In the GA4 panel, we can, for example, create an event for displaying a specific subpage or clicking on an email address or phone number.
To create a custom event in GA4, go to Admin > View Data > Events and click the Create Event button
Creating Custom Events in GA4
Creating Custom Events in GA4
Then click Create . To create a phone number click event, we need to fill in the fields as follows:
Conditions for the phone_click event
Conditions for the phone_click event
We need to set the event name according to certain Google guidelines, then we provide the conditions. In this example, we use the click event , which tracks outbound clicks (clicks on links that lead to another site) and a filter that specifies that the clicked link must start with tel: . Similarly, we can create an email address click event by simply changing tel: to mailto:
More advanced events need to be created using GTM. For example, we want to measure form submission, which the standard event measures incorrectly.
To do this, we first need to check what happens after ig database the form is submitted, if a thank you message is displayed, then you need to set the trigger for the event to the element's visibility and provide the appropriate CSS selector for the displayed element. For example.
Element visibility rule in GTM
Element visibility rule in GTM
<>We need to indicate the identifier (parameter "id") or selector (parameter "class") of the displayed element and check the option Watch DOM changes (if we do not do this and the element is displayed dynamically, GTM will not see it). In the above example, the selector is the class name.
Next, we need to create a GA4 event tag and indicate the GA4 measurement ID to which the event is to be sent, provide the event name and select the previously created rule. The event created in this way should be tested in preview mode and if it fires correctly, the changes should be published to the GTM container.
GA4 Event in GTM
GA4 Event in GTM
Most common configuration problems
One of the most common problems is the lack of verification whether the tools are implemented on the website. It often happens that different agencies have carried out different activities on the website. This can result in us having access to completely different tool identifiers on our email than those operating on the website. For example, the website has GTM number GTM-XXX, and we have access to GTM number GTM-YYY on our email, and attempts to implement new tags end in failure.
Another problem is event duplication. This can happen when, for example, we create a phone number click event in both the Google Analytics panel and GTM. Then, such an event will be counted twice.
Missing some variables or double counting transactions are typical problems related to e-commerce events. This happens when, for example, the data layer has been incorrectly implemented on the site. In turn, transactions are double counted when we have 2 Google Analytics plugins installed and we are not aware of it.
Another common problem is the lack of measurement for Google Ads campaigns. This happens when, after entering a page, the parameters from the link are removed and Google Analytics "does not see" that this is an entry from an ad.
Summary
As you can see, in order to properly measure website traffic and draw accurate conclusions from data, you first need to spend a lot of time implementing tools and configuring them correctly. If we don't do this properly, we may end up making bad decisions based on incomplete or even false data.