The end of Google Universal Analytics data: what does this mean for your business?

The end of Google Universal Analytics data: what does this mean for your business?

After June 30, 2024, Google Universal Analytics will cease to function, and all data collected until then will be deleted. This means that all historical website traffic information collected over the years will be irretrievably lost if not properly secured. For many companies that have relied on this data to understand user behavior, optimize marketing campaigns and make strategic business decisions, losing access to this information could have serious consequences.

Consequences of disabling Google Universal Analytics

One of the most serious consequences is the loss of access to historical data. This data is crucial for many companies that use it to analyze trends and evaluate the effectiveness of their marketing efforts. Here’s what problems this can cause:

• Analysis of long-term trends: Without access to historical data, companies will lose the ability to track and analyze long-term trends. This will make it difficult to understand how seasonal changes, marketing campaigns or changing customer preferences have affected customer behavior over the years.
• Evaluation of campaign effectiveness: Historical data is essential for comparing the results of different marketing campaigns. Without this data, companies will not be able to assess which activities were most effective and how to improve future campaigns.
• Year-to-year comparisons: The ability to compare year-on-year performance is crucial to understanding company growth and identifying seasonal patterns. Losing this data will make it difficult for companies to assess their performance over the long term.

Lack of data is an undesirable phenomenon for any company with a website. That’s why it’s worth taking the proper steps to protect your business.

Why is backup of Google Universal Analytics data crucial?

The data collected in Google Universal Analytics is a treasure trove of knowledge about customers and their interactions with your website over the past years. This information may include such data as:

• Where visitors come from: Geographic and demographic data help you understand where your customers are located and what market segments are most important.
• How users use your site: User path analytics show what pages users visit, how long they stay on them and what actions they take (e.g., clicks, purchases, filling out forms).
• Which campaigns are most effective: Data on traffic sources and conversions helps identify which marketing channels generate the most valuable visits and which campaigns contribute to the highest profits.

Without this information, companies lose the ability to conduct deep analysis, which is essential for effective planning and optimization of marketing strategies. For example, the lack of data on the effectiveness of past advertising campaigns makes it impossible to compare them with current efforts, making it difficult to assess which strategies were most effective.

How to backup data from Universal Analytics?

First, you need to export data from Universal Analytics. This process can be done manually by generating reports for selected periods and saving them in CSV or Google Sheets format. Google offers a variety of export options that can be customized to meet your company’s specific needs.

1. Manual reports: In the Universal Analytics dashboard, you can generate custom reports that include data of interest. These reports can then be exported as CSV, Excel or Google Sheets files.
2. Universal Analytics API: For more advanced users, Google provides an API that allows you to automate the data export process. This allows you to download data directly from the server and save it in your preferred format.
3. Using external tools: There are a number of tools that can help automate data exports from Universal Analytics. These tools often offer additional features, such as scheduled exports or integrations with other systems.

Accurate backup of data from Universal Analytics to other tools

Exporting data to other analytical tools provides great opportunities regarding the maintenance of data breakdown accuracy. Maintained “granularity” of data by month or even by day is a desirable solution in cases where this type of data is essential. That’s why it’s important to store it in a secure and easily accessible location. Here are some data storage options to consider:

1. Google BigQuery: This solution from Google is ideal for storing large amounts of data. BigQuery makes it easy to store and analyze data using advanced SQL queries. Data stored in BigQuery can be quickly processed and analyzed using various analytical tools.
2. Looker Studio: Looker Studio (formerly Google Data Studio) allows easy visualization and analysis of data stored in various sources, including Google Sheets, BigQuery and other databases.
3. Google Spreadsheet: a simple but effective solution for storing smaller data sets. Google Sheets offers an easy way for small and medium-sized businesses to organize and share data.
4. Power BI and Tableau: These advanced data visualization tools can be used to analyze data from multiple sources, including BigQuery and other databases. Power BI and Tableau offer powerful analysis and visualization capabilities that can help you better understand historical data.

How to use historical data?

Historical data from Universal Analytics is a valuable resource that can be used for many purposes, including analyzing trends and evaluating the effectiveness of marketing efforts. Here are some ways you can use this data effectively:

1. Trend analysis: Comparing data from different periods can help identify long-term trends in site traffic and user behavior. This analysis can provide valuable information to help make strategic business decisions.
2. Marketing optimization: Historical data can be used to evaluate the effectiveness of marketing campaigns and identify areas for improvement. For example, you can analyze which marketing channels have attracted the most valuable users in the past.
3. Budget planning: Past data can help predict future budget needs and resource allocation. By analyzing historical data, companies can better plan their future marketing spending.
4. Reporting and visualization: Tools such as Looker Studio, Power BI and Tableau enable the creation of advanced reports and visualizations that can help better understand data and communicate results within the company.

In conclusion, the end of Google Universal Analytics is an important change that requires appropriate action on the part of companies. To avoid losing valuable historical data, steps must be taken now to secure it. Exporting the data and storing it in a secure location, such as Google BigQuery or Google Sheets, will allow you to continue using this information in the future. The future of data analytics is full of new possibilities, and proper preparation now will ensure a smooth transition to new tools and technologies.