ga4 articles | Bettersteps

All articles tagged: ga4

Analytics news: September 2026

September brought some genuinely interesting and useful features. On the Google side there are AI-generated summaries of published versions in GTM and improved hostname-based traffic filters in GA4, and Stape released a nice new solution: AI traffic detection.

Oct 8, 2026Reading time: 3:00

Analytics news: August 2026

We're back from the summer break with a triple dose of news: June, July and August together. Google mostly made more announcements than real changes in that time, but we've summed them up. Starting with this issue, the series gets a separate section on server-side and marketing APIs.

Sep 1, 2026Reading time: 6:00

Analytics news: May 2026

Google Marketing Live took place on May 20, and as usual Google showered agencies and clients with announcements. This time the focus is on Tag Manager: official confirmation of a refreshed interface and a fundamental change in its architecture.

Rafał Piszczatowski

Jun 7, 2026Reading time: 5:00

Analytics news: April 2026

The only new GA4 feature added since early February is the task assistant. You can think of it as an automated Google Analytics setup checklist.

May 5, 2026Reading time: 1:00

Collecting analytics data without user consent? I'm testing Piwik PRO's solution

A few years ago, a standard analytics setup in a tool like Google Analytics captured roughly 85% of the actual data (comparing sales in the CRM with what the tool reported). Today, companies can face much bigger gaps in their reported results. There are various ways to narrow those gaps and send the missing data. In this article I focus on testing a solution from Piwik PRO that collects events without creating any user session or cookie.

Rafał Piszczatowski

Feb 22, 2026Reading time: 10:00

Analytics news: January 2026

January brought more announcements than actual updates. Most of the new features are either unavailable or in very early beta. GA4 is in a state of chaos because of new features that, in my view, only make the tool less trustworthy. GTM announced a simple Google Tag Gateway integration through GCP, and I'm honestly looking forward to it. Looker Studio got a few useful improvements.

Jan 30, 2026Reading time: 6:00

Case study: building a Data Layer and analytics for the Triumph B2B platform

This case study describes a project for Triumph B2B where, instead of a standard backend integration, we deployed an advanced custom script through Google Tag Manager. It works as a smart analytics layer on top of the site: it reads data precisely from the visual layer (the frontend) and from the application's internal state, and feeds key business metrics into the reports.

Rafał Piszczatowski

Jan 18, 2026Reading time: 5:00

Case study: analytics implementation across TVP's digital services

Our work on this project was recognized by Google: see the TVP case study published by Google. We are one of the few companies with a joint publication with Google on thinkwithgoogle.com. Google recognized our project for Telewizja Polska, where we implemented the entire Google Analytics 4 infrastructure and the use of BigQuery data in real time.

Rafał Piszczatowski

Jan 18, 2026Reading time: 6:00

Attribution in Google Analytics 4: close the gaps in your traffic source tracking

GA4 "models" and "guesses" more and more, so an independent verification system works as an insurance policy for your data. In some cases, such as affiliate campaigns built on discount codes, it can also fill in the customer journey.

Rafał Piszczatowski

Jan 2, 2026Reading time: 8:00

Analytics news: December 2025

November brought nothing even worth mentioning, but in December both Google Analytics and Google Tag Manager got features that could be very useful in 2026. First up is Analytics Advisor, a conversational AI agent built into GA4. GTM has its first change since August: some very handy built-in variables

Dec 30, 2025Reading time: 3:00

Analytics news: October 2025

Two Google Analytics updates caught my eye in October: new connectors for importing cost data from ad platforms (we have a dedicated blog article on them) and new metrics in competitive benchmarking. Google also expanded responsive dashboards in Looker Studio

Oct 31, 2025Reading time: 2:00

Importing ad costs into Google Analytics 4 from Meta, TikTok and Pinterest

Over the past few weeks, Google has released connectors for the ad platforms of popular social networks, including Meta Ads, TikTok Ads and Pinterest Ads. In this article you'll learn what analysis these connectors make possible in GA4, and we'll walk through setting them up step by step.

Oct 13, 2025Reading time: 4:00

Analytics news: September 2025

By now we're probably used to Google not spoiling us with updates, but here's what happened in September: new cost data imports in GA4 and new sorting options for Looker Studio tables.

Sep 30, 2025Reading time: 1:00

Analytics news: July/August 2025

After the summer break, we're back with our monthly roundups of what's new in web analytics across Google's tools. Here's a summary of what changed in July and August.

Sep 5, 2025Reading time: 2:00

Analytics news: June 2025

Not much happened in GA4 in June that deserves a longer comment. The GA4 roadmap is getting more and more disappointing. Still, here's a summary of the main updates.

Jul 3, 2025Reading time: 2:00

Analytics news: May 2025

May brought no updates to Google Analytics 4 itself, but there is an interesting change in how data gets collected: new ways to set up Google Tag Gateway, previously known as first-party mode. Looker Studio also has a new UI/UX, and it's a genuine improvement.

Jun 10, 2025Reading time: 3:00

Analytics news: April 2025

April brought another round of mostly cosmetic changes to Google Analytics 4 and GTM, and most of the new features are the kind few of us will ever use. There is one gem, though: new item-level filtering options. It's something everyone has probably been waiting for, and it's hard to understand why Google's engineers are only adding such a simple, fundamental feature now.

May 6, 2025Reading time: 2:00

Piwik PRO vs Google Analytics 4

Piwik PRO is an advanced analytics platform. It grew out of Piwik (now Matomo), an open-source project started in 2007 as an alternative to Google Analytics. Piwik PRO and Matomo (formerly Piwik) share the same roots, but they differ in many ways, especially in features, intended use and user support.

Rafał Piszczatowski

Apr 30, 2025Reading time: 9:00

Analytics news: March 2025

Our monthly roundup of what's new in web analytics. In March, the things to watch are annotations in GA4 and the announcement that GTM will load the Google tag automatically.

Apr 3, 2025Reading time: 2:00

What should a cookie banner look like? The legal and analytics perspective

We take a closer look at the cookie banner as a way to inform users about a site's cookie policy and at what the law expects it to look like. We also check how different banner versions affect consent rates.

Rafał Piszczatowski

Mar 18, 2025Reading time: 7:00

Analytics news: February 2025

February was another month in a row without many updates. As always, we've summed up everything that happened in this article.

Mar 1, 2025Reading time: 1:00

Analytics news: January 2025

January didn't bring many updates to Google's analytics tools. We've still rounded up the most important ones, and the highlight is a long-overdue feature: copying exploration configurations between properties. More details in the article, as usual.

Jan 31, 2025Reading time: 2:00

Mapping a custom subdomain to your tagging server in Google Cloud Platform (Cloud Run)

Mapping a subdomain to your tagging server takes server-side tagging a step further. You get a first-party context, which means more secure and, above all, longer-lasting cookies. As a result, your data is more accurate and your ads target users more precisely, which should translate into lower ad spend. This article walks you through the setup step by step.

Jan 28, 2025Reading time: 5:00

Data Layer step by step: a beginner's guide

The Data Layer is a JavaScript object (stored in an array) used to pass information from your website in a consistent, structured way.

Jan 8, 2025Reading time: 8:00

Analytics news: November 2024

Not much happened in web analytics in November, but a few features are worth mentioning, including Customer Match in Google Analytics, which helps you maximize your audience lists, and showing applied filters to people viewing Looker Studio reports.

Dec 4, 2024Reading time: 2:00

DV360/CM360 traffic attributed to google/cpc in GA4

Google Analytics 4 currently misattributes traffic and conversions from Display & Video 360 (DV360) and Campaign Manager 360 (CM360) when auto-tagging is enabled.

Rafał Piszczatowski

Nov 20, 2024Reading time: 6:00

Analytics news: October 2024

A roundup of the web analytics updates from October, including benchmarking in GA4, saving and sharing segments, and a new realtime report.

Nov 5, 2024Reading time: 2:00

GA4 traffic sources in Google BigQuery

Can you report traffic sources correctly in BQ? Is the GA4 sessions metric reliable at all? Why is there so much (not set) in my data? This article answers all of these questions.

Oct 26, 2024Reading time: 4:00

Analytics news: September 2024

Here's what interesting releases came out over the summer in web analytics, including traffic sources finally available in BigQuery, improvements to GA4 reports and an Excel connector for Looker Studio.

Sep 30, 2024Reading time: 3:00

UTM tags in links: what UTMs are and how to use them to get accurate data in Google Analytics

UTM (Urchin Tracking Module) parameters are tags you add to a link to measure how well your activity on external sources that send traffic to your site performs. They tell Google Analytics where a user came from. With a proper Google Analytics implementation, you can also judge the quality of that traffic.

Rafał Piszczatowski

Jul 28, 2024Reading time: 8:00

GA4, Google Tag Manager and Consent Mode audit: a full Google Analytics 4 review

A Google Analytics 4 (GA4) audit is what lets a company use the tool effectively and trust its data. After a careful audit, you can rely on that data across your organization with full confidence and turn it into higher revenue.

Rafał Piszczatowski

May 15, 2024Reading time: 6:00

Clever Analytics: collect more of your data

Clever Analytics lets you recover data hidden by ad blockers and privacy-focused browsers (such as Firefox and Brave), which GA4 usually misses.

Rafał Piszczatowski

Apr 15, 2024Reading time: 2:00

How to get around ad blockers and collect more data in Google Analytics 4

Learn how server-side tagging affects your Google Analytics 4 data compared with traditional client-side tagging.

Mar 19, 2024Reading time: 3:00

Find out what actually works on your website

How do you find out which on-site actions actually work? This article shows how to approach it end to end, from implementation to data analysis.

Mar 18, 2024Reading time: 4:00

GA4 with Google Consent Mode vs. without Google Consent Mode

Google Consent Mode lets GA4 and Google Ads scripts run even when users don't consent to data collection. In that case no cookies are stored, but cookieless pings are still sent to Google Analytics.

Rafał Piszczatowski

Mar 11, 2024Reading time: 6:00

A practical guide to GTM server-side tagging for Google Analytics 4

This guide shows you how to set up server-side tracking with a server-side GTM container, from start to finish.

Feb 21, 2024Reading time: 7:00

How to use Google Consent Mode data in BigQuery

In this article we look at how to use Google Consent Mode (GCM) data in BigQuery. You'll learn what data is available in BigQuery for sessions where analytics_storage consent was denied, and how to approach working with it.

Feb 11, 2024Reading time: 5:00

A practical guide to Google Consent Mode v2

Everything you need to know about Consent Mode v2 and a complete approach to cookie management, collected in one place as a straightforward guide.

Jan 22, 2024Reading time: 15:00

Should you always enable Google signals in Google Analytics 4?

Google signals lets GA4 merge several different cookies into one user (e.g. when one person uses several devices or browsers). It does this using our sign-ins to Google services and Google partners' services. It requires user consent, which people can grant or refuse, among other places, when creating a Google account.

Rafał Piszczatowski

Dec 15, 2023Reading time: 5:00

Analytics news: September 2023

The latest news from the world of Google analytics tools: September 2023

Oct 4, 2023Reading time: 2:00

Google tag replaces the Google Analytics 4 Configuration tag

In this article you'll learn what the Google tag is, whether you need it, what you can use it for and how to set it up yourself

Sep 15, 2023Reading time: 3:00

Analytics news: July 2023

The latest news from the Google analytics tools: July 2023

Jul 27, 2023Reading time: 2:00

Google Analytics 4: setting up enhanced ecommerce tags

This article shows how to set up the main tags in Google Tag Manager for an enhanced ecommerce implementation in Google Analytics 4. It's especially useful if your store runs on WordPress.

Rafał Piszczatowski

Jul 1, 2023Reading time: 4:00

Analytics news: May 2023

The latest news from the world of Google analytics: May 2023

May 24, 2023Reading time: 2:00

Analytics news: April 2023

The latest news from the world of Google analytics: April 2023

Apr 13, 2023Reading time: 2:00

Analytics news: March 2023

The latest news from the world of Google analytics: March 2023

Mar 16, 2023Reading time: 3:00

Google Analytics 4: everything you need to know about GA4

Google Analytics 4 launched in 2020. It was first called "App + Web" before getting its final name, GA4. Its core idea, and the main difference from its predecessor, is a single data structure for both websites and mobile apps.

Rafał Piszczatowski

Oct 24, 2021Reading time: 13:00

Setting up Enhanced Ecommerce with a WordPress plugin

I tested a plugin that automatically builds a dataLayer for an Enhanced Ecommerce implementation in Google Analytics. If your store already pushes Data Layer events, you can skip the first sections and go straight to setting up the tags in Google Tag Manager.

Rafał Piszczatowski

Aug 29, 2021Reading time: 6:00