What are the Different Types of Events in GA4? - Deftsoft

Imagine you are a proud owner of an e-commerce store, and you have launched a killer marketing campaign.

But how do you know what is actually working?

Little do you know that every click, swipe, and interaction of your users is being meticulously tracked as an "event" in GA4. These events give you more flexibility and control over the data about the audience and their actions.

What is an Event in Google Analytics 4? 

Events are critical analytics tools for measuring specific user interaction and behavior on the website and mobile applications. They allow you to track when a certain action occurs, such as button clicks, page loads, form submissions, and or e-commerce purchases.

These events give you granular data on important conversions or triggers. For example, an e-commerce site could have custom events to track when users add a product to their cart, initiate checkout, select a shipping option, or complete an order purchase.

Do you want to learn more about Google Analytics 4? Learn how to set up events in GA4 and unlock valuable insights into user behavior.

What are the Different Types of Events in GA4?

Events are your primary point data point in Google Analytics 4. It helps you track a wider range of interactions and customize them to your specific needs. Here are the major types of events, which can be categorized based on how they are collected.

• Automatically collected events

• Enhanced measurement events

• Recommended events

• Custom events

1. Automatically Collected Events:  

As the name suggests, these types of events are automatically captured without additional configuration. These events provide valuable insights into user behavior and engagement on the website and application.

Some of the common examples of automatically collected events include:

• pageviews

• screen views

• session start

• session end

• user engagement events

2. Enhanced Measurement Events in GA4:

The key difference between automatically collected events and enhanced events in GA4 is that the event is automatically collected while you can turn the enhanced measurement event on and off.

Ultimately, enhanced measurement events offer a powerful way to delve deeper into user behavior without extensive setup.

To locate enhanced measurement events, navigate to Admin, then Data Streams, and select the web data stream. A window will appear, and you should see 'Enhanced Measurement.'

Here are some of the enhanced events in Google Analytics 4:

• Scroll: See how far users delve into product pages, revealing sections that grab attention and areas needing improvement.

• video_start, video_progress, video_complete: Gain insights into video engagement, identifying popular content and potential drop-off points.

• file_download: Understand what content users value enough to download, informing your content creation strategy.

• purchase: Track purchase events seamlessly, providing crucial data for conversion optimization and revenue analysis.

It does not end here; enhanced measurements go beyond simply capturing actions. They help you analyze data like product category for video completion or file type for downloads. This granularity helps you give insight reports and targeted strategies.

3. Recommended Events: 

When you start to track a particular event and send it to GA4, the first thing you should do is the event name and parameters. Recommended events are events that are recommended by Google for specific types of businesses.

So, double-check before you start with event tracking that Google is tracking the events automatically and followed by enhanced measurement events. But if you don’t see them there, then you should go with the recommended events.

These vents provide key information about how users interact with your website and app to improve marketing efforts. It helps Google better understand what kind of data you are sending to it, such as a purchase, product impression, or maybe a login.

Here's how recommended events can supercharge your GA4:

1. Streamlined Data Collection: No need to create complex custom events – simply implement the recommended event code and enjoy pre-formatted data ready for analysis.
2. Unlock Advanced Reports: Gain access to reports specifically designed for these events, revealing deeper insights into user acquisition, engagement, and monetization.
3. Benchmarking: Compare your performance against industry standards using pre-defined metrics associated with recommended events.
4. Consistency: Ensure consistency across your data with standardized event names and parameters, making it easier to compare data across different properties or teams.

Some popular recommended events include:

• sign_up: Track user registrations with details like sign-up method and referral source.
• search: Capture internal site searches to understand what users are looking for.
• level_up: Measure user progress in games or apps, revealing engagement levels and potential roadblocks.
• add_to_cart, purchase: Gain a clear picture of your e-commerce funnel, by analyzing conversion rates and abandoned carts. 

Remember that before you opt for the recommended events, you must analyze the specific needs and your business goals.

4. Custom Events: 

If your event requirements fall outside predefined categories, you need to consider c custom events.

Custom events let you track anything specific to your business that the other events don't cover. Maybe you want to know how many users complete a specific challenge in your app or what button they click on a certain page.

 

Custom events empower you to:

1. Track unique interactions: Go beyond the standard and capture interactions specific to your business or app, gaining insights into user behavior you wouldn't have otherwise.

1. Measure campaign effectiveness: Track interactions with specific marketing campaigns using custom events, understand their impact, and optimize future efforts.

Personalize the user journey: Analyze custom events alongside user attributes to understand individual user behavior and tailor your offerings accordingly.

Check out this video to learn more about how custom events work in GA4.

However, with great power comes great responsibility:

1. Define clearly: Use descriptive names and parameters for your custom events, ensuring clarity and consistency for analysis.
2. Avoid data overload: Only track events that provide real value, as excessive events can slow down processing and complicate analysis.
3. Prioritize privacy: Respect user privacy by informing them about data collection and using it responsibly.

Just remember to name them clearly and only use them for things that really matter; otherwise, you'll end up with a messy data cake!

Conclusion: 

Google Analytics is a perfect tool that allows you to track user behavior and interactions. It is a great marketing tool and the best tool to capture conversion events.

GA4 gives your marketing team an accurate picture of the effectiveness of the efforts and allows you to optimize for maximum value.