Google Analytics

What is Google Analytics?

Google Analytics is a cloud-based analytics platform that collects and reports on user interactions across websites and apps. It operates on an event-based model, where interactions are recorded as events, allowing you to measure a wide range of actions beyond simple page views. Data can be captured from websites and mobile apps via data streams, providing a unified view of user activity.

Core measurements are presented in reports and analyses that help you understand how users discover your site, how they behave during their session and which activities lead to conversions. The platform supports custom definitions, audiences and configurable reporting to suit different business needs.

Key Features and Capabilities

• Event-based data model for cross-platform measurement across websites and apps
• Data streams to collect data from web and app sources
• Enhanced Measurement to automatically collect events such as page views, scrolls, outbound clicks, site search, video engagement and file downloads
• Real-time reporting and insights to monitor current activity on your properties
• Explorations for ad hoc analysis, including free-form, funnel and path analysis
• Audiences and conversions to support marketing and measurement goals
• BigQuery export for advanced analysis and data science workflows
• Integrations with Google Ads for campaign measurement and optimisation
• Looker Studio (formerly Data Studio) integration for reporting and dashboards
• Privacy controls and data retention settings to manage how data is stored and used

How Google Analytics Is Typically Used

In practice, Google Analytics is used to quantify and understand user engagement across digital properties. Typical workflows include setting up data streams for your website and, if applicable, mobile apps, then enabling Enhanced Measurement to automatically capture common interactions without extra event tagging.

Marketers use Google Analytics to assess campaign performance by comparing traffic sources, landing pages and conversion events. Product teams and analysts examine user journeys to identify bottlenecks, optimise onboarding experiences and improve feature adoption. Organisations can create audiences to tailor messaging and measure the impact of targeted experiments.

Beyond standard reporting, organisations frequently combine Google Analytics data with other tools—such as Looker Studio for dashboards or BigQuery for deeper analysis—to gain customised insights and share them with stakeholders across teams.

Who Google Analytics Is Best Suited For

• Marketing teams evaluating website or app performance and campaign impact
• Product managers seeking insights into user behaviour and feature usage
• Data analysts conducting cross-platform analytics and custom analyses
• Small to large organisations with online properties needing scalable measurement
• Agencies managing analytics for multiple clients and digital properties

Deployment, Access and Integrations

Google Analytics is a cloud-based service accessed primarily through its web interface. It supports data collection from both websites and apps via data streams, enabling unified measurement across platforms. You can view reports and perform analyses in the Google Analytics interface and extend reporting with external tools.

Key integrations include:

• Google Ads for campaign measurement and optimisation
• BigQuery export for advanced data analysis and data science workflows
• Looker Studio (formerly Data Studio) for creating dashboards and visual reports

Access is provided through the Google Analytics web interface, with reporting and analysis capabilities designed to support various roles from marketers to analysts. The platform emphasises cross-platform measurement and privacy considerations as part of its data collection and reporting processes.

Summary

Google Analytics provides a structured, cross-platform approach to measuring user interactions across websites and apps. Its event-based data model, data streams, enhanced measurement capabilities and integrated reporting tools support a range of analysis needs—from campaign assessment to product usage and user paths. The platform's core strength lies in unifying data across web and app contexts, enabling practical analyses for marketers, product teams and data professionals, with reporting options that scale through BigQuery and Looker Studio integrations.

Example workflow

A GA4 threshold alert posts to Slack and logs to your tracker. No manual work.

Frequently asked questions