If you’re unfamiliar with Google Analytics 4, haven’t installed it on your site, or have installed it but never looked at the data, then this article is for you. Even though it’s hard to believe, some websites are there that still don’t utilize Google Analytics 4 to track their visitors. Setting up Google Analytics 4 with your website can significantly help you analyze the performance and traffic of your website.
Google Analytics 4 is a Web Analytics tool provided by Google that analyses and reports website traffic. It equips you with the tools you’ll need to have a deeper understanding of your customers and make smart decisions. React is a free and open-source front-end JavaScript library for creating user interfaces or UI components. Facebook and a community of individual developers are responsible for maintaining it. React can be used to build single-page or mobile applications.
This article will guide you through the process of setting up React Google Analytics 4 Integration in 2 simple steps. It will provide you with a brief overview of Google Analytics 4 and React. You will also explore the key features of these two technologies and the benefit of setting up React Google Analytics 4 Integration in further sections. Let’s get started.
Prerequisites
Setting up React Google Analytics 4 Integration will be a lot easier if you’ve gone through the following aspects:
- An active Google Analytics account.
- Working knowledge of Web Application Frameworks like React.
- Working knowledge of Google Analytics 4 properties.
Introduction to Google Analytics 4
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Millions of organizations and websites utilize Google Analytics reporting services to measure user engagement across web domains, mobile applications, and offline APIs. Most organizations are familiar with this platform as a tool for tracking Web Traffic, monitoring Critical Marketing Channels, and measuring Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). Google Analytics 4 is a new version that is considerably different from the previous “Universal Analytics”.
The new Google Analytics 4 has several significant improvements that set it apart from the previous edition. One of the most notable distinctions is the new data modeling function, which uses Artificial Intelligence to fill in data gaps where traditional Analytics may be hindered by cookie consent regulations, restricted JavaScript, and a privacy emphasis.
Google Analytics 4 is based on the same foundation as Google’s “App + Web” solution, which was introduced in 2019. The “App + Web” edition was largely focused on cross-channel data, allowing Marketers to track customers across applications, websites, and software.
Key Features of Google Analytics 4
Some of the key features of Google Analytics 4 include:
- It aims to provide Marketers with a more comprehensive view of the consumer experience across devices. And it appears to be more concerned with monitoring the entire consumer trip, rather than simply specific metrics across devices, sites, and segments.
- Google Analytics 4 now allows you to import data from non-website sources into a single property using the Data Import feature.
- Google Analytics 4 utilizes “data streams” instead of views and segments, unlike earlier Universal Analytics features.
- In contrast to traditional Universal Analytics, which includes three layers i.e. Account, Property, and View, Google Analytics 4 includes only 2 layers: Account and Property.
- It’s built to be “future-proof”, which means it’ll operate without cookies or identifying information.
To know more about Google Analytics 4, visit this link.
Introduction to React
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React is an open-source JavaScript library that is used to create single-page apps’ user interfaces. For online and mobile apps, it is utilized to manage the view layer. You can also make reusable UI components with React. React was created by Jordan Walke, a Facebook Software Engineer. In 2011, React was introduced on Facebook’s newsfeed, followed by Instagram in 2012.
Developers may use React to build large web apps that can modify data without refreshing the page. The main objective of React is to be scalable, fast, and simple to use. It was created with the intent of creating the application’s user interfaces. It can also be used with other JavaScript libraries or frameworks, such as Angular JS in MVC (Model View Controller) applications.
Key Features of React
Here are some of the key features of React:
- React is built in a way that allows for one-way data binding or unidirectional data flow. One-way data-binding gives you more control over your application.
- Components are fundamental to ReactJS. Each component in a ReactJS application has its own logic and controls. These components may be reused, which makes it easier to keep track of the code while working on larger projects.
- React makes use of a JSX file, which makes the application easy to develop and understand.
- React is simple to understand as it mixes fundamental HTML and JavaScript ideas with some useful enhancements.
- To accelerate the development of web apps, React uses Virtual DOM. Instead of updating all of the components again, as traditional web applications do, Virtual DOM analyses the components’ prior states and updates just the things in the Real DOM that have changed.
To know more about React, visit this link.
Steps to Set Up React Google Analytics 4 Integration
Google Analytics 4 has a great interface with a lot of information and reports on how customers use the apps. This data is useful for tracking performance, calculating growth, determining user geolocation, and even gaining user acquisition insights. Below are the steps you can follow to set up React Google Analytics 4 Integration with ease:
Step 1: Installing and Setting up React
Before you can start setting up the React Google Analytics 4 Integration, you’ll need to install the “react-ga” package from npm. To install the “react-ga” package, use the below command in the terminal.
npm i react-ga -S
After that, all you have to do is import and initialize the module into your app.
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Note: You must change trackingId with your real Google Analytics tracking id after writing the above code.
Step 2: Connecting React with Google Analytics 4
The first step in connecting REact with Google Analytics 4 is to create a Google Analytics account if you don’t have one. After this, you can follow the below-mentioned steps to set up your React Google Analytics 4 Integration:
- Go to the Google Analytics website and log in.
- Click Create Account in the Account column of Admin.
- Give your account a name. Control which data you want to share with Google by configuring the Data Sharing Settings.
- To add the first property to the account, click Create Property as shown below:
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- Click Tracking Info then select the Tracking Code under the Property section as shown by the below image.
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That’s it. You have successfully set up React Google Analytics 4 Integration.
Benefits of Setting Up React Google Analytics 4 Integration
React Google Analytics 4 Integration can help business to achieve new heights by making strategic decisions based on the performance and traffic of your website. Some of the benefits of setting up React Google Analytics 4 Integration include:
- React Google Analytics 4 Integration allows you to track how people engage with your app. For example, if you had a “Sign Up Now” button, you could track how many times it was clicked vs how many users joined up.
- Once the React Google Analytics 4 Integration is set up, it is incredibly simple to use, and also enables the visualization of User Navigation Paths as well as the creation of Custom User Properties to enhance the user experience.
- For campaign or app optimization, many firms use React Google Analytics 4 Integration. As a result, there are plenty of instructions and tutorials available to you whenever you need them.
- User Segmentation enables you to understand a great deal about your consumers and effectively target them. For applications based on new or recurring visitors, geographical information, or referrals, you may use React Google Analytics 4 Integration to categorize your visitors.
Conclusion
Overall, setting up React Google Analytics 4 Integration is an excellent way to analyze the behavior of the users on your websites. This article gave you a brief introduction to Google Analytics 4 and React, as well as its key features. It also included a step-by-step guide for setting up your first React Google Analytics 4 Integration. You can now use this integration to analyze the behavior of the users who visits your website.
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Share your experience of setting up React Google Analytics 4 Integration in the comments section below!
FAQ on React Google Analytics 4 Integration
Does Google Analytics work with React?
Yes, Google Analytics can work with React. You can integrate it using libraries like react-ga or react-ga4 to track user interactions and collect data within your React application.
What is the use of React GA4?
React GA4 is used to integrate Google Analytics 4 with React applications. It allows you to track user interactions, page views, and events in GA4, providing insights into user behavior and application performance.
How to install GA4 in React?
To install GA4 in React, follow these steps:
1. Install react-ga4 using npm install react-ga4.
2. Initialize GA4 in your application with ReactGA.initialize('YOUR_GA4_MEASUREMENT_ID').
3. Use ReactGA.send('pageview') to track page views and ReactGA.event() to track events.
Ayush is a Software Engineer with a strong focus on data analysis and technical writing. As a Research Analyst at Hevo Data, he authors articles on data integration and infrastructure using his proficiency in SQL, Python, and data visualization tools like Tableau and Power BI. Ayush's Bachelor's degree in Game and Interactive Media Design complements his technical expertise, enabling him to integrate cutting-edge technologies into his analytical workflows.
