Analytics Checklist for (Re)Launching a Website — 11 Activities to Consider — PART 3

Introduction

Finally we arrived at PART 3 of the articles on the topic of activities to take into account consideration when (re)launching a website. In PART 1 — Activities Checklist consider when (re)launching this same website. And in PART 2 — Checklist of SEO Activities for (Re)Launching a Website — 13 Activities to Consider, we saw the activities in the SEO area that we should consider when (re)launching that same website.

In this PART 3, the objective is to list, in a non-exhaustive way, the analytics activities, focusing on Google Analytics, which we must not forget when we are (re)launching a website.

Obviously, at the outset I am considering that the Measurement Objectives are stipulated and assimilated by the areas, as well as there is already a knowledge of what which are the KPIs to monitor and, consequently, there is a Measurement Plan in place its most basic version, since everything I will describe later will have to be detailed in the new Measurement Plan.

1 — GTM Tags — Google Tag Manager

• What it is: It’s a JavaScript container that allows us to implement and embed various measurement tags of what happens on the website.
• What is it used for: Using the implementation of tags via GTM will allow us not to having the recurring need to ask a developer to do it directly in source code of the website and therefore we will also not overload the website with javascript code slowing down your page loading speed.
• What are its components: nd. Still, when we are creating the different measurement tags, such as the Google Analytics tag, it is necessary totake into account that the tag itself always requires the creation of a trigger that indicates when and where this tag is intended to emerge. In more complex tags, it can be.

You also need to create some variables.

• Who should be involved: Analytics teams and, if necessary, development.
• Environments where it is implemented: New website in environments of quality and production.
• Deliverables: Document indicating all elements/events that intend to implement on the website; the description of these events; the priority that this event has in relation to the others; whether there is a need to implement of a pixel; and if there is a need to resort to a developer.

2 — Re-implementation of GTM events in GA3 to GA4 and reinterpretation of UA GA goals to GA4 conversions

• What it is: Events play a crucial role in AU and GA4. but the way what they call themselves in UA is completely different in GA4. For this reason, we cannot simply recreate the same events in the new version.

Events in UA had a hierarchical structure consisting of category — action — label. In GA4, events are distinguished by name and can have multiple attached parameters. Need to map and translate the old structure to the new structure to ensure that future reports are meaningful.

Still within this section, we may have to reinterpret the GA3 goals to GA4 conversions. A big change in GA4 is that all conversions are measured through events. In UA-GA, the most important conversions would likely be based on pageviews. This means that the goals we configured in UA-GA need to be reconfigured.

Once again, together with the developers, we need to ensure that the conversions are tracked correctly and track any identified changes in the measurement plane.

What it’s for: By doing these steps, we’ll make sure we don’t lose everything or the vast majority of information we collect on the UA-GA

• What are its components: We must pay attention to events, conversions, e-commerce structures and audiences
• Who should be involved: Analytics teams and development teams.
• Environments where it is implemented: New website in environments of quality and production.
• Deliverables: Document with the mapping of what were the events in the UA-GA, and

what is your name now on GA4; with the UA-GA conversions and what will be the same in the current GA4.

3 — Definition of Recommended Events and Custom Events

• What it is: In the current GA4 the types of events that exist are the following:

Automatic Events — Events collected by default when GA4 is configured in Web site. For example: file_download; first_visit; scroll…

Enhanced Events — events collected when GA4 is configured on the website and the enhanced events are enabled. For example: pageviews; scrolls, sitesearch; outbound links…

Then we have a second big category of events which are the events that the Google Analytics 4 suggests that we implement:

Recommended Events — Events that we implement but that have names and predefined parameters. These events unlock existing and future reporting capabilities. For example: sign_up; Login; purchase; refund…

Custom Events — Events that we define that are “custom” to what which is the Company’s business. For example: add_registration

• What is it for: If we don’t have the recommended and customized events defined and implemented, it will become more difficult to do more granular analysis.
• What are its components: nd.
• Who should be involved: Analytics teams and development teams.
• Environments where it is implemented: New website in environments of quality and production.
• Deliverables: Document indicating the type of events, the names of events, where we want to implement the events, additional parameters to embed in events, namely in custom events and notes/observations on implementation.

4 — Definition of the Product Group Name

• What it is: Conversions are nothing more than the events that appear in the website and that the Company/Business Area considers to be the most important, or said in another way, they are those events that generate income. Obviously, they can there may be events considered important and that do not generate revenue, for example the submission of a form, but as a rule and considering, for example, navigation of a user in a closed funnel, the most important event will be, for example, the purchase involving revenue.
• What it’s for: By configuring the conversions, we can:

See the most important actions for the business using the reports of Acquisition, Engagement and Advertising.

• Import conversions into Google Ads to feed manual decisions or Smart bidding tools to help optimize your campaigns.
• Combine business data with data from other advertising channels to understand the touchpoints along the customer journey to conversion.
• Use conversion data to create audiences that didn’t convert and import those audiences into Google Ads for remarketing.
• What are its components: nd.
• Who should be involved: Analytics teams and development teams.
• Environments where it is implemented: New website in environments of quality and production.
• Deliverables: In the document indicating all the elements/events to be intend to implement on the website there must also be a column to identify which of those events should be considered conversions.

5 — Definition of Customer Segments

• What it is: Customer segments are variables that must be implemented in data layer of the website if it serves or contains information for different audiences.

For example, we may have websites for Children and Adults. we can have websites for Final Consumers and for Businesses. And we may even have websites that it has content for all types of audiences, but it has a section for the Group.

• What is it for: The implementation of Customer Segments, via data layer preferably, it should happen for when we have a website has different content/information groups, content that is intended for different audiences.

In other words, imagining that we have a website for a pulp production company paper, where there is a section related to the Group, another large section related to Companies and one for Investors and one for Media. We can implement 3 Customer Segments: Group, Media and Investors and so we will be able to “segment” these variables in GA4 and carry out more detailed granular analyses.

What are its components: nd.

• Who should be involved: Analytics teams and development teams.
• Environments where it is implemented: New website in environments of quality and production.
• Deliverables: Document indicating all customer segments that

we intend to implement on the website and if it makes sense, on which pages they must be implemented.

6 — Definition of Host Owners

• What it is: The Host Owner is the identification of the domain of the website or of each part/ application from a website. Conversions are nothing more than the events that appear on the website and that the Company/Business Area considers to be the most important, or put another way, are those events that generate revenue.

Obviously, there may be events considered important that do not generate prescription, for example sending a form, but as a rule and considering, for example, a user’s navigation in a closed funnel, the most important event it will be, for example, the purchase that involves income.

• What is it for: The implementation of a host owner, via data layer preferably, it should happen for when we have a website that is not composed only and only by applications of the Company that owns the website. I.e, imagining that we have an e-commerce website for men’s clothing made by measure and in it there is a section/application that belongs to a shirt supplier man who allows them to define the exact measurements of the length shirt sleeves, shirt length, collar radius… being able to carry out analysis, for example, on the use of this application, if we have the host owner implemented, we will be able to “segment” by this variable in GA4.
• What are its components: nd.
• Who should be involved: Analytics teams and development teams.
• Environments where it is implemented: New website in environments of quality and production.

Deliverables: Document indicating all sections/applications of the website which are managed by partners.

7 — Definition of PageTypes / Content Grouping

• What it is: The PageTypes or Content Grouping are groups of pages that have the same type of template and therefore can be classified in terms of content, as being identical and unique to each other. For example, if we are talking of an e-commerce website, there will be a specific page template for what the product category pages are, another template for the product pages, and yet another template for the shopping cart related pages.
• What is it for: Content Grouping allows us to visualize and compare metrics aggregated by content type, as well as being able to drill down to individual URL, page title or screen name. For example, we can see the aggregate number of pageviews for all pages classified as Women/Pants, then drill down to see each URL or page title. Analytics evaluates the rules in order.
• What are its components: nd.
• Who should be involved: Analytics teams and development teams.
• Environments where it is implemented: New website in environments of quality and production.
• Deliverables: Discriminating document of all page types / content groupings created.

8 — Definition of Virtual Pages Views — Events

• What it is: Conversions are nothing more than the events that appear in the website and that the Company/Business Area considers to be the most important, or said in another way, they are those events that generate income. Obviously, they can there are events considered important and that do not generate revenue, for example the submitting a form, but as a rule and considering, for example, a user’s navigation in a closed funnel, the most important event will be, for example, the purchase involving revenue.

What is it for: Virtual page views serve to overcome the “problem” that some pages, and even entire websites, have that is the fact that they presentthe same URL, regardless of whether the user moves forward on the website/application.

They are called Single Page Applications and usually involve the development in Ajax or similar programming languages. For example, and once again imagining an e- commerce website that from entry to checkout (begin_checkout) until the purchase (purchase), the website URL does not change, but the screen change. With the implementation of virtual page views we will be able to perceive the different pages through which the user browsed and with that implement a funnel in the GA4 Explorer and carry out the necessary analyses.

• What are its components: nd.
• Who should be involved: Analytics teams and development teams.
• Environments where it is implemented: New website in environments of quality and production.
• Deliverables: Document with the mapping of all user flows by applications/website that have the same URL, indication of that same URL and indication of the proposed name for the “new” URL that will serve as the virtual page view.

9 — Definition of the Marketing Structure of Products (if it does not exist)

• What it is: The marketing structure is the identification and/or grouping of different types of products by their family. In a way, the marketing structures of products are related to what the information architecture of a website is. For example, imagine a website for a hypermarket brand. If we are thinking of a Flemish Terra Nostra cheese, the same can be classified into the following market structure:
• dairy products (1)
• Cheese (2)
• Solid/Father Cheeses (3)
• Portuguese cheeses (4)
• Flemish cheeses (5)

What it’s for: The main advantage of having a product marketing structure implemented in the data layer of a website is the ability to carry out more granular analyzes at the product level, using, for example, the GA4 Explorer.

• What are its components: nd.
• Who should be involved: Analytics teams and development teams.
• Environments where it is implemented: New website in environments of quality and production.
• Deliverables: Document with the mapping for each of the products on the website of all its marketing structure up to 5 groups.

10 — Definition of Conversions

• What it is: Conversions are nothing more than the events that appear in the website and that the Company/Business Area considers to be the most important, or in other words, are those events that generate revenue. Obviously, there may be events that are considered important and that do not generate revenue, for example the submitting a form, but as a rule and considering, for example, navigation of a user in a closed funnel, the most important event will be, for example, the purchase involving revenue.
• What it’s for: By configuring the conversions, we can:
• See the most important actions for the business using the reports of Acquisition, Engagement and Advertising.
• Import conversions into Google Ads to feed manual decisions or Smart bidding tools to help optimize your campaigns.
• Combine business data with data from other advertising channels to understand the touchpoints along the customer journey to conversion.
• Use conversion data to create audiences that didn’t convert and import those audiences into Google Ads for remarketing.
• What are its components: nd.
• Who should be involved: Analytics teams and, if necessary, development.

Environments where it is implemented: New website in environments of quality and production.

• Deliverables: In the document indicating all the elements/events to be intend to implement on the website there must also be a column to identify which of those events should be considered conversions.

11 — Definition and Implementation of the Measurement Protocol

• What it is: The measurement protocol is a protocol that will allow us to measure with stricter if the transactions that were made, for example, offline effectively if effected.
• What is it used for: For example, it may be the case that the user has paid something with the credit card, but later returned the product. With the implementation from the measurement protocol we will be able to measure these behaviors in some way form.
• What are its components: nd.
• Who should be involved: Analytics teams and development teams.
• Environments where it is implemented: New website in environments of quality and production.
• Deliverables: Document indicating all events that require implementation of the measurement protocol and what are the situations/rules for it be triggered.

Conclusion

Launching a website is not an easy thing to do overnight. It requires a lot care, immense work and involvement of different teams at different times

different. For everything to go well, it is necessary to take into account, but not only, all these issues I mentioned in this “collection” of 3 articles

I hope the articles have been useful and will be consulted whenever they have than launching or re-launching a website.