The main reason you might have multiple data layers is that you have multiple Google Tag Managers on your website that are using separate dataLayers in the GTM code. This is normally due to one of the Tag Managers attempting to set up a custom dataLayer where they have set up custom logic. This would most likely be something like a website provider who runs multiple domains for different business in the same industry.

Signs You Might Have Multiple Data Layers

If you are finding that some native GTM Triggers are not populating (like only Link Clicks populate, but regular clicks are not populating or vice-versa), you should inspect the GTMs on the website and see if any of them have renamed the dataLayer. If this is the case, you can follow the solution below to overwrite this situation.

How To Handle Multiple DataLayers

The easiest way that I’ve found to handle multiple data layers is to overwrite the .push() for the extra dataLayer, where you will map it to your regular dataLayer. This will take any events that come in to the target dataLayer, it will then pass it over to the dataLayer of your choosing.

Mapping Multiple Data Layers To The Same Data Layer

If you find there are multiple data Layers being used, and you’d like to consolidate them into a single dataLayer, you can follow the logic below:

1. Copy The Following Code

<script>
    var arguments = (arguments||[]); 
    var DataLayer = (window.DataLayer||[]); 
    Object.defineProperty(DataLayer, "push", { 
        configurable: true, 
        enumerable: false, 
        writable: true, 
        // Previous values based on Object.getOwnPropertyDescriptor(Array.prototype, "push") 
        value: function (args) { 
            var result = Array.prototype.push.apply(this, args); 
            // Original push() implementation based on https://github.com/vuejs/vue/blob/f2b476d4f4f685d84b4957e6c805740597945cde/src/core/observer/array.js and https://github.com/vuejs/vue/blob/daed1e73557d57df244ad8d46c9afff7208c9a2d/src/core/util/lang.js 
            window.dataLayer = (window.dataLayer||[]); 
            var newVals = []; 
            Object.keys(args).forEach(function(key, ind) { 
                if(key === 'event'){ 
                args[key] = args[key]; 
                } 
            }) 
            window.dataLayer.push(args); 
            return result; 
            // Original push() implementation 
        } 
    }) 
</script>

2. Create A Custom HTML With An Initialization Trigger

You will want to create a custom HTML Tag where you will paste the code above. You can also add a trigger for All Pages or Initialization

3. Update Your Target DataLayer

You will update the “var DataLayer” where your window.DataLayer will be the DataLayer you are copying from

Example, if you wanted to push events from a custom dataLayer called “companyDataLayer”, you’d update the code to say:

var DataLayer = (window.companyDataLayer||[])

4. Update Your Receiving DataLayer

If you are not pushing to the regular dataLayer, update the window.dataLayer to your dataLayer name.

Summary

Realistically, you should attempt to resolve this issue of different dataLayers by consolidating Google Tag Managers or by updating all dataLayers to use the same name. If you cannot do that for whatever reason, you can attempt the above at your own risk and any usage should be heavily tested to make sure it isn’t affecting anything it should not.

The post How To Handle Multiple dataLayers for Google Tag Manager appeared first on Ben Yehle.

In 2022, the Automotive Standards Council came together to create a set of standardized events for automotive dealers to be able to more accurately compare their performance over time. Through the efforts of many people, there became a list of over 40 events and parameters that can now be passed into your GA4.

Confirm Your ASC Events

Deciding On Conversions

One of the hardest parts is deciding what you want to include as conversions in GA4. Do you want to have each segmented form type (asc_form_submission_sales,asc_form_submission_service,etc…) or do you just want to know all form submissions (asc_form_submission)? You need to assess the merits of both, as each will have their own advantages and drawbacks.

Using Your Data

Once you’ve decided what is important to your business, its time to start analyzing. You can easily use the native reports to begin analyzing the data to view what channels drive your traffic. Note that if you have data not being properly attributed at this stage, it is not entirely effective to do this. I would highly recommend the Traffic Acquisition report on a weekly basis and confirm that conversion volume and traffic is in-line with what you were anticipating.

Advanced Reports

If you want to understand what your customers are doing, you will want to explore the funnel report. The Funnel Report is phenomenal for telling you where users drop out of your funnel. You will build the same report using the ASC events (asc_itemlist_pageview, asc_item_pageview, asc_form_submission) where you will see at what stage your users fall out of the funnel. From there, you can focus efforts on improving that stage of the funnel to ultimately drive more leads.

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What is the GA4 Funnel Report?

If you are looking to understand what the GA4 Funnel Report is, how to set it up, or how to utilize it, I explain all of it in this blog post.

Save Your Report To Your Library

You’ll find a new File button on the top right corner of your funnel reports. Once you complete these steps, your funnel report will get saved to your library, which is how you add reports to your main GA4 reports.

From there, you can either create a new collection or add it to an existing collection by either hitting “Create new collection” or “Edit Collection” of the report grouping you’d like to add it to.

From there, simply drag the funnel report you’d like to use from the right column into a new “Topic” or into an existing topic and hit save.

You’ll now find the Funnel report you’ve built available in your main reports!

The post How To Save A GA4 Funnel Report To Your Main Navigation appeared first on Ben Yehle.

DISCLOSURE:

All links below are referral links for platforms I have personally used for over 3 years. I may receive small monetary compensation for if you purchase from any the links below, at no cost to you.

What Does a Personal Website Consist Of?

While you might be working and visiting websites daily at your job, a personal website has a significantly different goal than a business website. You aren’t necessarily trying to sell anything, but simply help to build a brand and write your own content. You don’t expect millions of users a month, but you might be able to reach triple digits in a good month. In order to accomplish this, you are going to need a few things:

• Domain Purchasing Platform
• Hosting
• Content Management System

Domain Purchasing Platform

In order to have a website, you need to purchase a domain. There are a few options between .com, .net, and even a few crazy ones like .xyz or .top are all options. Think long and hard about what you want to name this, as you don’t want to go switching domains every year (or just use your first and last name like I do!).

When purchasing a domain, there are a few things you want to consider. How much are you paying, and how much is WHOIS privacy. What is WHOIS privacy? When a domain is purchased, the listing goes onto the WHOIS list, along with the purchasers name and contact info. While this had great intentions, in reality, it has turned into a list where you will be spam called every day. WHOIS privacy is a must-have when purchasing a domain.

I recommend NameSilo as your purchasing platform. I found them a few years ago when I was tired of paying extra for the privacy, and actually found them cheaper overall than the previous provider. Feel free to use my referral link if you are interested.

Hosting

Your hosting provider is the actual platform that connects your site to the internet. They also play a significant role in your site speed and any downtime on their end results in downtime on your website. What you are looking for in a hosting provider is a consistent, reputable brand.

I have personally used HostGator for over 4 years without any issue. For a small scale site, I’ve had no issues (although I actually host 5 websites through them, all without any issues over 4 years). HostGator also has the cheapest unlimited-domain package that I’ve found, which is why I’ve chosen to stay with them. It costs me no extra money per month to add my friend’s websites to my package, and they pass me a fraction of the money they were paying before.

The one caveat to these shared plans is that they are designed for low-traffic websites like personal brands and if you get too much traffic, you will be asked to upgrade to a more expensive plan. That being said, its a great option when starting out various websites and they have incredibly cheap starter packages.

Content Management System

You no longer have to rely on HTML & CSS to build a website. By utilizing a content management system, you can easily edit your site and build something that is visually appealing. You can even speed up your site creation by customizing pre-built themes. I personally use WordPress, as well as premium themes from GeneratePress that allows me to build high-speed websites very quickly.

Summary

If you haven’t built a website for yourself yet, now is the time to do it. For just a handful of dollars per month, you can begin investing in yourself and letting the world know your worth.

Not Sure Where To Start With Your Personal Site? Drop Me A Line!

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The GA4 Funnel Report used to be a premier report locked behind GA360 for Universal Analytics. This meant if you wanted to use the native feature, you had to shell out ~$80,000 per year to build these custom funnels, or you could build a “Conversion Flow”, but it didn’t give you the customization available in this report.

When to use a GA4 Funnel Report:

The funnel reports are great analyses for viewing your users’ journey through your website. It does require some assumptions of how users use your website, but due to the ability to split by so many dimensions, it can be a great tool for reviewing different types of users. Device Type, Acquisition Channel or even Demographic information like Interests, Age and Gender are all great segments to explore.

Report Overview:

Technique:

Where you select the type of report. Select “Funnel Exploration” to get the funnel report.

Visualization:

You have 2 options for visualization:

1. Standard Funnel:

This is your default type of funnel report where it allows you to view the events and actions in aggregate. This should be your default type of report when just reviewing on a regular basis.

2. Trended Funnel:

The trended funnel segments out your stages by day, allowing you to view the change over time. This can be the “All” tab, where you can see all stages laid over one another, or you can review a single stage. This only counts new users in the visualization, so your mandatory steps like a checkout flow cannot be reviewed:

Make Open Funnel:

The you turn this setting on, the funnel will now allow users to join mid-journey. This can be important if you are reviewing an ecommerce flow that begins with viewing a list of items, as users could always join the funnel by joining the item directly. When disabled, a user must complete every preceding step to be counted. Below is Google’s explaination of how users are counted:

Funnel 1 – (Open Funnel):

Funnel 2 – (Closed Funnel):

Segment Comparison

The segment comparison allows you to filter down your users to just those that completed certain actions. This can be useful if you’d like to filters who bought a certain item or came from a certain channel, although I find it overlaps a fair amount with filters and requires additional steps. Unless you have a specific segment you always want to use, I would recommend using the filters as your default, exploratory reporting.

Steps:

Steps are your primary grouping of actions you want to track and view. Steps can utilize any dimension and parameter available, as well as combinations with the AND or additional dimensions using the OR. You are also able to categorize if you need it to directly or indirectly followed or if you would like to make it occur within set amount of time in milliseconds, seconds, hours, and days.

Breakdown:

Breakdown allows you to segment our your steps by an additional dimension. You can answer questions like:

• What channel drives the most users to complete a step?
• How does my user journey vary by device or technology?
• What demographic is responding most positively to my current website content?

These are all easily viewable by the breakout and allows for an robust exploration through Google’s plethora of dimensions.

Show Elapsed Time

The GA4 Funnel Report has a toggle to view the elapsed time between each step. This allows you to know how long each user takes before moving to the next step, and is especially useful in determining remarketing audience length.

As an example, here is Google’s Merch Shop in April 2023:

Based on the above, we can see that users typically view and item and add to cart within ~9 hours. This step only occurs 1% of the time someone views and item. Through all steps of the process, someone typically completes a purchase after 2.5 days from originally viewing an item. If you were running a remarketing campaign, you would not want to exclude someone before the 2.5 days has passed, but you also know that the journey is shorter than 30 days, the default remarketing length in Google Ads.

Next Action

Next Action allows you to view what event or page a user goes to after completing a step. This can be useful if you are building a funnel for the first time, or you are unsure where people go after completing a certain action. From the list available, you can see what common themes these users have and can build your funnel that way. You can also use this to figure out where users go when they drop out of the funnel you prescribed.

Filters

Filters are incredibly useful as you are diving into the funnel report. By adding a dimension or metric from your imported list, you can apply logic to get rid of users you might not be interested in. This is a great way to review users who add to cart, but do not buy or review specific demographics after identifying the trend in the breakout.

Summary:

The GA4 Funnel Report is an incredibly powerful tool for identifying user trends in your data. While it will not do anything for you, it is a tool to answer questions around performance of different segments, as well as proactively identify ways to improve your customer journey through things like remarketing and conversion rate optimization.

Read Google’s Documentation of the report.

Having trouble figuring it out? Shoot me a message and I’ll see what I can do!

The post How to use the GA4 Funnel Report appeared first on Ben Yehle.

Custom channel groupings are Google’s attempt to consolidate your various utm_source’s and utm_medium’s into groupings that make a bit more sense. This allows you to view your channel performance in a much more consolidated way.

Universal Analytics allowed you to group your traffic into different sections that aligned with your marketing efforts. The general goal was you wanted to segment out any groups were too big (Ex. Branded vs Non-Branded traffic, influencer vs organic referrals, etc…), or to provide groupings for your custom marketing (Ex. DSP’s, Email blasts, etc…). This feature was not available in Google Analytics 4 until March 2023, where it required you to rely on Google’s default groupings.

How to Setup your Custom Channel Grouping

If you are new to GA4, you probably haven’t setup your Custom Channel Grouping. In order to do so, I have built a tool that will pull in the last 90 days of your data and allow you to easily begin categorization.

Steps:

1. Copy the Sheet to your account with access to the GA4 Account you would like to audit
2. Add your GA4 Property Id to Account Info, Cell B2
   • This can be found under Admin > Property Settings > Property ID
   • Paste this code into the sheet
3. Access the script under Extensions > App Scripts
4. Run the Script
   • You will probably need to accept some access from Google. This script is will pull a report of your last 90 days segmenting your sessions by Source, Medium and Campaign.
5. In “Working Sheet”, you will find a list of sources, mediums & campaign in columns H to K. By putting information in columns A to C, you can build rules to filter these combinations to channel groupings.
6. After you have removed a majority of your un-categorized channels, “Final Data To Input” sheet will assist you in building the channels in Google Analytics. Navigate to Google Analytics 4’s Admin panel, click into Data Settings and Channel Groups. You simply need to create a new channel group and you add in your changes.
7. After making the channel group, you can navigate to your reports in Google Analytics 4 and update your default dimension to use your new channel Grouping. Simply click the Pencil in the top right, click into Dimensions, and set your new channel grouping as the default.

Watch Me Do This Live With Commentary

Learn how to activate your data in GA4

Not sure where to start? Feel free to Contact Me!

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