Content marketing is an effective way to attract and retain customers. While it requires time and resources, it brings more valuable traffic and builds your authority in the long term. It is also highly targeted and allows you to reach your customers at every stage of their customer journey.
To get lucrative results from your content efforts, you need to know your customers inside out. Where are they looking for information, what search queries are they making and what devices are they using? More data means more knowledge about your customers and helps you make informed decisions that increase your sales and profits.
But where do you get all this data from?
For the past decade, most of us have gotten this data from Universal Analytics (UA), but the impending end of UA means that everyone will have to switch to Google Analytics 4 (GA4).
If you've already made the switch, you may have noticed that the Universal Analytics user interface looks quite different. Don't worry, GA4 makes analyzing your website data easier and more user-friendly than UA once you've familiarized yourself with it.
In this article, we look at the most important changes in GA4 that affect your marketing data and how you can use GA4 effectively for your content marketing success.
Why is GA4 better than Universal Analytics?
Google Analytics 4 is the next level of web analytics. Unlike Universal Analytics (formerly known simply as «Google Analytics»), GA4 offers automated insights and more accurate data.
GA4 is smarter than its predecessor and allows you to track a user's interaction with your content across multiple devices. In Universal Analytics, this was not possible and you had to download a different version of GA to consolidate the separate data streams from apps and websites.
GA4 also allows you to customize the data with a variety of useful and efficient views. Google uses improved machine learning technology that makes it easier for marketers and content creators to not only collect data, but also predict new insights.
Another important change is that GA4 is based on events. In Universal Analytics, website activity is mainly tracked based on sessions and page views. With event-based data, you get the same data with additional metrics such as dwell time and number of sessions per user.
The best part is that GA4 adds a number of excellent default events during configuration, so you can get useful data even if you don't feel confident creating your own events with Google Tag Manager. With Universal Analytics, you had to create every event you wanted to track yourself.
Now you can define events for everything from «add to cart», «click product», «scroll», «page view» to «watch video», «download», «share», «sign in» and more.
This new model also allows GA4 to track user behavior during the execution of an event, instead of waiting for a user to open a new page to calculate the metrics of the page they just left. This is risky as data can be lost when the user closes the browser or leaves the website.
Key differences between GA4 and UA
1. tracking for mobile devices
With Universal Analytics, you had to use different versions of GA to see data from users who came from mobile apps and websites. GA4 tracks data from mobile (Android and iOS) and web apps and websites and displays it all in one interface.
2. data model
Google Analytics obtains its data from various sources. In order to present and analyze the data clearly, it must be standardized.
By adding events, you can track and measure specific user interactions, regardless of what they are using: the web or the app. You can also define a series of events, such as when a user clicks on a link, loads a page or completes a purchase.
3. paths
Pathways give you a clear overview of the customer journey so that you can better understand how users interact with your website. They also show how users navigate through the pages of your website. You can easily see how users arrive on your website, which page attracts them and where they go before they convert or leave your website.
Based on this data, you can hypothesize to improve or change these steps and improve the user experience.
4. GA4 reports and drilldowns
Reports have always existed in Google Analytics. However, with GA4, they are easier to understand and it's easier to create a custom report. Unlike Universal Analytics, GA4 is configured with multiple reports that pull the data marketers are most interested in.
GA4 has a new Analysis Hub where you can further explore the data in a customizable way. There are seven «drill-down» options that make it clear which data is displayed and how.
Below you will find an example of a free-form search in which you can select the data sources.
You can carry out an analysis relatively quickly and easily in a format that meets your needs.
Using GA4 to develop your content marketing strategy
Now let's talk about how you can use the power of GA4 to achieve content marketing results.
1. define goals
Creating content without a clear goal won't do your website or business much good. Simply publishing content and hoping it will attract visitors is not a strategy.
You need to know what purpose the content you create serves and how it fits into the overall picture of your company. This means that you need to set clear goals.
Some measurable content marketing goals you should think about:
- Increasing the average length of stay or the average time a visitor spends on your website.
- Increase in organic traffic
- Increase in online conversions (registrations or sales)
- Increase brand awareness
- Increase in backlinks
- Increase in ROI
Once you have decided on a goal, you can create a content plan. Each piece of content on your website should be based on your expertise and niche and help a potential customer or client solve a problem. This should always be the basis for your topics.
For example, if you run a car repair shop, you should focus on articles that are relevant and helpful to your customers, such as how to improve your car's performance, car maintenance tips or signs of certain problems.
The Google «Helpful Content» update contains guiding questions that you can use to determine authority and focus:
- Does the content relate to the main purpose of your website? Is it consistent with your brand?
- Was the content written by someone who is an expert in the field or has first-hand experience on the subject?
2. analyze your target group.
To understand your target audience, you need to identify more than just their demographics. This type of data is useful for targeting advertising, but websites don't work the same way. A website's target audience is better defined by its problems.
You can learn more about your readers by reading the comments they leave on your website, or go further by reading reviews and comments about your competitors. You can also use Google Analytics 4 data to learn more about your readers.
A feature in GA4 called User Metric shows you the total number of users who have visited your website and the content they have engaged with. You can also see whether users accessed your website via a website or an app, so you can optimize your content strategy based on this data.
In this way, you can determine whether your existing content offers sufficient added value to keep your visitors engaged. And you can see how readers interact with the content.
Another metric you should keep an eye on is the number of page views. This metric shows you which of your pages have the most visitors and views. Use this data to find out what content your audience finds most interesting and useful, and try to replicate that success.
For example, if the top-rated article on your auto repair shop's website is about car care, your users probably want to learn more about how to keep their vehicle in good condition. They're probably also interested in more tips on how to save money and avoid unexpected expenses.
The data from GA4 not only tells you which information is well received by your users, but also provides you with ideas for future topics.
3. list your target keywords.
Keywords are important when creating content as they help your content reach the target audience. Choosing the right keywords also helps search engines to understand what the page is about so that they can categorize it correctly.
With the right keywords, you can publish more targeted content or content that matches the search intent of your target users.
This is why keyword research is so important for content marketing. Keyword research is an important part of the process. There are various ways to find keywords yourself if you don't want to hire a content marketing agency.
- Use Google's Keyword Planner: Although this is intended for paid Google ads, it can also be used for general keyword research. It is a free tool for which you only need a Google Ads account.
- Use a free or trial version of an SEO tool such as SEMRush, Ahrefs or Moz.
- Connect the Google Search Console with GA4 and use the keyword data directly in your analysis interface.
Google Search Console is not a keyword research tool, but it can be useful if you already have content on your website.
Once you are connected to GA4, you can easily check which search queries you rank best for and which page ranks best for that keyword.
You can then try to write content that will improve your ranking for keywords that you already rank for, or write content that will improve your ranking for relevant search queries that you don't yet rank for.
After the keyword research, it is time to categorize the search queries and classify them according to search intent. The search intent describes why the user is searching for this keyword; it is about precisely determining the purpose of the search.
Another way to find keywords is to use Google Trends. This allows you to find topics that are currently trending and see how the search volume or popularity of a keyword in your region has changed over time.
4. choose the right content
A company blog is a very effective way to engage potential customers, but blogs are not always suitable for every stage of the conversion funnel. Creating different types of content is ideal for different conversion stages.
There is long, evergreen content (content that will be relevant for years to come) that can play a pioneering role. These can be guides or comprehensive articles that serve as a reference for users. There are also case studies, e-books, whitepapers, infographics, checklists, videos and templates.
With GA4, you can find out what type of content works best and even determine the ideal length of content to create.
For example, are long bulleted lists, short instructions or detailed «what» articles accessed most frequently?
To find out what content is performing well, go to the Pages and Screens report. Then analyze the reports on the most popular pages and the most frequently viewed content.
GA4 can also help you analyze video views, video playback time and downloads. For example, if you offer e-books on your website, you can see the number of downloads by activating PDF tracking.
Go to your admin dashboard and select Data stream (under Properties).
Then click on the gear icon under Advanced measurements. If you activate it, you can collect data from links or videos on your website.
It is obvious how useful this function is for content marketers.
GA4 is pre-configured with a number of common events to track actions on your website when users engage with your content, but you can also create your own events. To create an event, go to Reports, click Engagement and then click Events.
5. create your content calendar
Content marketing is a continuous process whose success depends on many factors. Research, strategy, content creation, monitoring and optimization are all the more rewarding the more consistently and correctly they are carried out.
A content schedule helps you maximize your efforts, which is especially important for marketers in small businesses who have other tasks to complete. Here's a content calendar template to get you started.
Consistency is the key. Once you find something that works for you, use it consistently. If a certain type of content attracts your ideal visitors, keep publishing content that provides the same value.
Likewise, you give your readers a reason to return to your website regularly if you publish your content regularly and on the same schedule. More visitors means more data to help you plan future content.
Setting up Google Analytics 4
If you haven't set up GA4 yet, Google is constantly adding new features that allow you to easily migrate your UA settings.
1. log in to Google and go to https://analytics.google.com/.
2. click on Start measurement.
3. enter the account details. The account name is usually the name of the company.
4. click Next and create a property name. A property is the name of the data you want to enter. You can create several properties.
Select the time zone and click Next.
5. enter the required information. Select your industry, the size of your company and how you would like to use Google Analytics.
Click on Create. A pop-up window appears. Accept the conditions to continue.
Once you have created a property, you can start collecting data streams.
6. select a data stream.
Data streams are resources in which your data is collected. You can choose between the web, the Android app and the iOS app.
In this example, we choose the web.
A pop-up window will appear asking you to enter the URL of the website and then the name of the stream.
Enable advanced measurement to measure metrics such as page views, scrolling, outbound links, website searches, video participation and file downloads. You can change this setting by clicking on the settings icon.
When you are finished, click on Create stream.
If you now click on your data streams, you will see that the GA4 property has been created.
You have successfully created a Google Analytics 4 account and activated a property.
Data-driven content strategy shows effect
From July 1, 2023, the standard Universal Analytics product will no longer record web traffic. You will need GA4 to continue to gain insights from your website data.
A new system is always daunting, but Google Analytics 4 is user-friendly, versatile and customizable. What's more, you still have some time before UA is discontinued and can get used to the new analytics tool during this time.
With the tightening of data protection laws and the introduction of stronger privacy features in web browsers, data collection is being restricted. With UA, there were issues with data accuracy and attribution. GA4 was developed to solve these problems through granular data and flexible tracking.
With GA4, you can make more informed decisions when developing an effective content marketing strategy.
