Google Analytics 4 (GA4) has been the victim of an onslaught of rants on Twitter from the search marketing community in recent weeks – so, what’s the deal?
GA4 was released back in October last year, and it’s now the default analytics interface when you sign up to use Google Analytics. It can be used not just for websites, but for apps too, which made it a promising prospect for search marketers. However, many of those very people that should now be singing its praises are far from impressed.
While GA4 has received some praising comments over on Twitter, these are far and few between compared to the negative reactions from search marketers.
One of the most common complaints about GA4 is concerning it being difficult to use, with users complaining about their struggles to access important data:
Dear Google.
GA4 sucks.
I'm not sure who there thought, "Let's make a lot of the important data hard to access, and unintuitive to SEOs let alone regular business owners." but please fire them and put it away with authorship and Google+ and let's move on.— Dave Davies (@beanstalkim) June 23, 2021
Website owners, is it just me or is the new GA4 @googleanalytics just HORRIBLE? It's like it's designed only for retail sites or something, very hard to get the basic info that I used to rely on… Think I'll switch back! Awful!
— Trevor Long (@trevorlong) June 23, 2021
Others have gone further still, complaining that it’s hard for even search engine optimisation (SEO) experts to use, let alone a small business owner, and that Google is shutting out these people:
I usually can find my way round any piece of software quickly. But Google Analytics 4 is making me cry…
I've never seen a tool upgrade that made simple things sooo complicated 🤦 Non-tech business owners were already struggling to use it. But now they have NO chance. pic.twitter.com/anfwvxM7Bc
— Gill Andrews (@StoriesWithGill) June 22, 2021
I wonder if this move means that GA decided to simply ditch small business owners and cater only to big websites & companies. I was also thinking if they stop supporting Universal tag, I'll be looking for a different solution.
— Gill Andrews (@StoriesWithGill) June 22, 2021
Whether Google will address the issues outlined by Twitter users is unknown, but the good news is that if you’ve tried GA4 and just can’t get on with it, you are able to switch back to the older, easier-to-use Universal Analytics. If you don’t want to set up your website using GA4 at all, and your website is built using WordPress, our Tech Team has found a workaround – use the Site Kit by Google plugin, which creates the property for your website on Analytics for you.
The backlash to GA4 highlights the importance of having a user-friendly, easy-to-navigate interface – and this is especially the case for your website. Whether you need help navigating analytics and would like to place your SEO strategy in the expert hands of digital marketers, or you’re in need of a user-friendly site, we’d be happy to help here at Engage Web, so talk to us today.
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