Late last year, Google unveiled the limited release beta of Universal Analytics. This was a new Google attempt to provide new features, such as cross platform and mobile app analytics, and also the ability to bring in data from offline sources to Google Analytics. Now, Universal Analytics is being opened to every Google Analytics customer.
Google, which recently launched new profile layouts for Google Plus, noted last October that measurement is evolving. It no longer is enough to just count website traffic. We now need to measure effectiveness in sales, advertising, product usage, support and retention. Universal analytics helps website owners to have a better understanding of the changing journey of the customer with multiple devices.
Universal Analytics has a different collection method and will require the set up of a new code snippet on websites. The new program focuses on giving a website a better grasp of how a customer is interacting with the site on several devices. The new JavaScript code snippet has more flexibility than the previous one. It gives users more options to customize data. Businesses also will need to set up a new web property in their Analytics account.
The new tracking system is not merely easier to use, but it also gets rid of the standard Google Analytics cookies and just uses universal tracking IDs. This means that a business can follow a customer from the first time they go to the website through the first purchase and beyond.
With the new Measurement Protocol, users of Analytics also can send their own data about their customers to Analytics. This will help them to see how users interact with their brand from phones, laptops and tablets, all in one single place. This set up is very customizable, so this can be used to incorporate offline transactions, too. The new protocol will allow you to sync your data across many marketing channels. You can discover the relationships between channels that help to create sales conversions.
These new Analytics features should be very welcome, more welcome than Google Glass is in some corners of the country.