01 GA4 Basics
Google Analytics 4 (GA4) helps you understand how users find and use your website or app. It tracks events,
page views, conversions, and more so you can make better marketing and product decisions.
You’ll learn
- What GA4 is and why it replaced Universal Analytics
- Key GA4 terms you’ll see everywhere
- What data GA4 collects by default
Key GA4 terms
- Property – a container where your website/app data is stored.
- Data stream – a source of data (Web, iOS, Android).
- Event – any user interaction GA4 tracks (page_view, scroll, purchase, etc.).
- Parameter – extra info sent with an event (e.g.,
page_location).
- User – a person who interacts with your site/app.
- Session – a group of interactions during a time period.
Default data GA4 collects
- Page views, scrolls, outbound clicks
- Site search and video engagement (if enabled)
- Device, location (approximate), traffic source
Quick thought: Why do you want Analytics?
Write one goal, e.g. “Track leads from Google Ads” or “See which blog posts bring signups.”
02 Setting Up GA4
You’ll create a GA4 property, connect your website, and verify data is flowing into reports.
Step A · Create GA4 Property
- Go to Google Analytics.
- Create an account (if you don’t already have one) for your business/website.
- Click Admin → Create Property.
- Enter property name (e.g. My Site GA4) and choose your reporting time zone & currency.
- Finish the business info steps and click Create.
Step B · Add a Web Data Stream
- In GA4 Admin, under your new property, click Data streams → Web.
- Enter your website URL and stream name (e.g. mysite.com Web).
- Keep Enhanced measurement ON (recommended).
- Click Create stream.
Step C · Install GA4 Tag
Option 1: Using Google Tag Manager (recommended)
- Copy your GA4 Measurement ID (looks like
G-XXXXXXX).
- In Google Tag Manager, create a new tag:
- Tag type: Google Analytics: GA4 Configuration
- Measurement ID: paste your ID
- Trigger: All pages
- Submit and publish the container.
Option 2: Add gtag.js directly to your site
Paste this into the <head> section of all pages (replace G-XXXXXXX):
<script async src="https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtag/js?id=G-XXXXXXX"></script>
<script>
window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || [];
function gtag(){dataLayer.push(arguments);}
gtag('js', new Date());
gtag('config', 'G-XXXXXXX');
</script>
Practice task:
After installing the tag, open GA4 → Reports → Realtime. Visit your website in another tab.
You should see at least 1 user active. If not, wait a few minutes and refresh.
03 Core GA4 Concepts
GA4 is event-based. Everything a user does is an event, and you can mark important events as conversions.
Event Types
- Automatically collected – basic events like
first_visit.
- Enhanced measurement –
page_view, scroll, outbound clicks.
- Recommended events – pre-defined names like
purchase, sign_up.
- Custom events – events you define for your business needs.
Conversions
- A conversion = a key action (lead form submit, sign up, purchase).
- In GA4, conversions are events that you mark as conversion.
- You usually track: leads, purchases, and other success actions.
Rule: Every conversion is an event.
Mini quiz: Events & Conversions
Q1. A user fills your contact form. Which is correct?
✅ Best practice: Fire an event like generate_lead when the form is successfully submitted
and mark it as a conversion in GA4.
Q2. Which of these should be conversions?
- Submitting a lead form – Yes
- Viewing the homepage – No, too broad
- Completing a purchase – Yes
06 Tracking Conversions & UTM Tags
To measure marketing success, set up conversion events and use UTM tags on your campaign links.
A. Mark an event as a conversion
- Go to Configure → Events in GA4.
- Find your event (e.g.
generate_lead or purchase).
- Toggle Mark as conversion.
- Conversions will now appear in Reports → Engagement → Conversions.
B. UTM Parameters
UTMs are tags you add to URLs so GA4 knows where the traffic came from.
utm_source – where the traffic is from (e.g. google, facebook).utm_medium – the type of traffic (e.g. cpc, social, email).utm_campaign – campaign name (e.g. diwali_sale).utm_content – (optional) for A/B testing ads or links.
Example URL with UTM:
https://www.example.com/landing-page
?utm_source=google
&utm_medium=cpc
&utm_campaign=brand_search
Practice task:
- Pick one current campaign (e.g. “August Sale”).
- Create a URL with UTMs for it.
- Share only that tagged link in your ads/email and later check Acquisition → Traffic acquisition.
07 Practice Plan (7 Days)
Use this schedule to practice a little each day. Adjust as you like.
- Day 1: Create GA4 property & data stream, install tag, verify Realtime.
- Day 2: Explore Reports → Acquisition; list top 3 channels.
- Day 3: Explore Reports → Engagement → Pages & screens; list top 5 pages.
- Day 4: Set up 1 conversion event (lead form or key click).
- Day 5: Build 1 simple funnel in Explore (homepage → product page → thank you).
- Day 6: Add UTM tags to at least 1 live campaign.
- Day 7: Review conversions and write 3 insights + 1 decision.
Template: 3 Insights + 1 Decision
1️⃣ Insight: Example – “Most traffic is from Organic Search, but conversions are higher from Email.”
2️⃣ Insight: …
3️⃣ Insight: …
✅ Decision: Example – “We will send 1 more email per week and improve SEO for top pages.”
08 Helpful Resources (Optional)
Once you’re comfortable with this page, you can go deeper using official docs and tutorials.
- Google’s official Analytics Help Center
- Google Skillshop – free GA4 courses & certifications
- YouTube tutorials focused on “GA4 basics” and “GA4 explorations”
- Blog posts / case studies in your own industry (e-commerce, lead gen, SaaS, etc.)
Next level: When you’re ready, learn about:
- Linking GA4 with Google Ads
- Exporting GA4 data to BigQuery
- Building advanced funnels and path analysis