Install Google Analytics
Posted: Sun Dec 15, 2024 6:58 am
Before you can start using Google Analytics, you'll need to set up a Google account . This means you need a registered Google account email address and password.
Creating a Google account does not automatically give you access to GA; rather, you must sign up for Analytics and then set up GA using a valid Google account.
Additionally, to set up GA correctly, you'll want to understand the various layers of the tool, specifically, the hierarchy.
Google Analytics Hierarchy
Here's a look at the GA hierarchy:
Let's dive into each of the sections within the hierarchy.
hierarchy-analytics
Organization
An organization is at the highest level. It represents a company. For example, our organization is HubSpot, Inc. An organization can span multiple GA accounts.
Organizations are recommended for larger companies, but are not required.
Account(s)
Accounts are not optional. Using Google Analytics requires at least one (sometimes multiple) accounts.
An account does not mean a user account. I can log into HubSpot Google Analytics accounts with my Google email ID. On the other hand, HubSpot SEO Manager or Optimization Specialist will also be able to log into the same account with their own Google email ID.
Important details:
You can assign one property to each account or multiple properties to an account. Each account can contain up to 50 properties.
You can grant user permissions for an entire Analytics account, a property in an account, or a view in a property.
You may be wondering, "What is better: creating a new account for each property or adding all accounts to the same property?"
It depends on the case, use and objectives.
For example, suppose you have one website, the Stark Industries corporate site, and five subdirectories that include the Stark Industries blog, careers section, media resources, case studies, and investor relations information.
You want to create separate properties for each subdirectory, so that people on each country b2b b2c email list team can see how their part of the site is performing, as well as the larger site.
But, maybe you have another site that discusses Tony Stark's work with Shield. In this case, you want the Shield team to see the data in this subdirectory, but not the data on the rest of the website. Here, you create a new account and property for the Shield site.
Property
A property is a website or application. Each property can support up to 25 views.
View
At a minimum, you need two views per property:
One with zero configuration, essentially the "raw" version of the view.
One with filters set up to exclude any traffic within the company (i.e. a filter for your IP address), as well as bots and spam traffic.
A view only captures information after filters have been applied and settings have been configured. When you delete a view, that data is gone forever. That's why it's critical to maintain an unfiltered view of your data.
Creating a Google account does not automatically give you access to GA; rather, you must sign up for Analytics and then set up GA using a valid Google account.
Additionally, to set up GA correctly, you'll want to understand the various layers of the tool, specifically, the hierarchy.
Google Analytics Hierarchy
Here's a look at the GA hierarchy:
Let's dive into each of the sections within the hierarchy.
hierarchy-analytics
Organization
An organization is at the highest level. It represents a company. For example, our organization is HubSpot, Inc. An organization can span multiple GA accounts.
Organizations are recommended for larger companies, but are not required.
Account(s)
Accounts are not optional. Using Google Analytics requires at least one (sometimes multiple) accounts.
An account does not mean a user account. I can log into HubSpot Google Analytics accounts with my Google email ID. On the other hand, HubSpot SEO Manager or Optimization Specialist will also be able to log into the same account with their own Google email ID.
Important details:
You can assign one property to each account or multiple properties to an account. Each account can contain up to 50 properties.
You can grant user permissions for an entire Analytics account, a property in an account, or a view in a property.
You may be wondering, "What is better: creating a new account for each property or adding all accounts to the same property?"
It depends on the case, use and objectives.
For example, suppose you have one website, the Stark Industries corporate site, and five subdirectories that include the Stark Industries blog, careers section, media resources, case studies, and investor relations information.
You want to create separate properties for each subdirectory, so that people on each country b2b b2c email list team can see how their part of the site is performing, as well as the larger site.
But, maybe you have another site that discusses Tony Stark's work with Shield. In this case, you want the Shield team to see the data in this subdirectory, but not the data on the rest of the website. Here, you create a new account and property for the Shield site.
Property
A property is a website or application. Each property can support up to 25 views.
View
At a minimum, you need two views per property:
One with zero configuration, essentially the "raw" version of the view.
One with filters set up to exclude any traffic within the company (i.e. a filter for your IP address), as well as bots and spam traffic.
A view only captures information after filters have been applied and settings have been configured. When you delete a view, that data is gone forever. That's why it's critical to maintain an unfiltered view of your data.