What is a Conversion? 

A conversion is the completion of a desired business goal. There are two types of conversions: macro conversions and micro conversions. Macro conversions are key actions that tie back to a business objective that your marketing strategy needs.

Key analytics techniques

Segmentation allows you to isolate and analyze subsets of data within Google Analytics. All Google Analytics reports show segmentation of data, but some of the common segments are:

• Date and time
• Device (desktop, mobile or tablet)
• Marketing channel
• Geography
• Customer characteristics (repeat vs. first time visitor)

Context helps you understand if your website performance is good or bad. Instead of just taking an educated guess, there are two ways to set context: internally and externally. Externally means context can come from industry benchmark data, meaning how is your business doing compared to other similar businesses. Internally helps you set expectations based on your own historical performance. You can look at upticks in traffic on mobile devices through a segment and compare that to a similar competitor’s historical data through external context.

There are four components of tracking in Google Analytics:

1. Data collection collects user interaction data from any digitally-connected device like websites, mobile applications, or any device in a digital environment.

• When you’re tracking a website you insert javascript code in every page of the website. This code allows you to collect user engagement data like the URL of the pages the user is viewing, information on the user’s browser like language and device operating system, and the referring source. Hit, or any user interaction, is tracked through data collection as well.

• Tracking data on mobile and in applications requires a different implementation based on the operating system than what is used with websites. Apps do not use javascript, instead, they use SDKs for either Android or IOS operating systems. On mobile devices, “activities” are tracked instead of “page views.” Mobile “hits” from offline devices can be stored and dispatched to GA when the device reconnects, meaning that data on apps is not real-time because apps are not always online. Essentially mobile data is transmitted in chunks when online.
• Implementing GA on neither mobile nor on desktop requires you to identify what you would consider a “hit.” An in-store purchase could send a “hit” when a sale occurs with information about the sale.

2) Data Processing categorizes user devices as either mobile or nonmobile. You can add filters to data including or excluding specific groups. For example, internal users can be filtered and will not pass through GA in the processing level. Data is stored in a database during data processing and once data is in this database it cannot be changed!

3) Data Configuration happens after the data collection is processed. You can configure how the data is illustrated in graphs and charts.

4) Reporting is where you can find the web interface to access your data. Reporting can also be retrieved using your own custom application code on Google Analytics.

Two types of data: Metrics vs. Dimensions

There are two types of data in Google Analytics that are contained within every report: dimensions and metrics. Dimensions describe characteristics of users, sessions, and actions and is located in the first column of the reporting interface. A user dimension would be their geographic location, a session dimension is the traffic source that brought the user to the site, and an interaction dimension is the title of the page the user viewed.

Metrics are quantitative metrics of users and their sessions’ actions and are located in the columns to the right of the dimensions in GA. Metrics basically count how often things happen. Audience metrics is the number of visitors or users, behavior metrics is the pages per visit or general engagement, and conversion metrics is the conversion rate.

In short, dimensions are descriptive and metrics are numerical.

Visitors can be segmented into either new users or returning users. This would be an example of a dimension. A visit (or session) is defined as a period of consecutive activity with a 30-minute session timeout length.

Some visit (or session) metrics include:

• Visit duration: time of user’s last interaction minus time of user first interaction
• Time on page: time of next page view minus time visitor landed on page
• Bounce rate: percentage of sessions with only one user interaction

PDM Pro Tip: Applying a secondary dimension of device type on top of landing page can allow you to see which type of user device type performs best and what types of user device type can be better optimized. For example, if we want to see which type of device is causing a low conversion rate on our PR services page, we can apply this to see if the low conversion rate is contributed by mobile, desktop or tablet. Based off this we can see which device to prioritize optimizing and create a more impactful strategy for that device.

Activity: which of the following are NOT a metric and why?

1. New Sessions
2. New Users
3. New Visitors

Answer: (C) New Visitors is not a metric, it’s a dimension! It’s a characteristic, while new users and new sessions are metrics that can be applied across any other dimension.

Draft Version 2 – 08/20/2021

Installing Google Analytics (GA4) and Tag Manager on WordPress.

If you don’t have a Google Analytics account, you would want to go here.

 http://analytics.google.com/

You will likely find a simple registration process, and you’ll get

a snippet of code that would place on website pages.

For these tools to become what is a conversion calculator you should set up the following.

• Goals and events
• Set up your Ecommerce module

Note: Accounts likely contain different properties depending on how many websites or applications you want to track for example.

Create Your Properties: a property is a website, mobile application, or device. In the older version of Google Analytics (Universal), properties could only collect data from websites.

The new Google Analytics 4 can collect data from websites and mobile applications.

Create Your Data Stream (GA4 only): a data stream is a data source and each property can contain different data sources.

For instance, you can connect a website and an app (two data streams) within the same property.

Install Google Analytics: once the steps above are completed, you’ll need to add a bit of code to your website to complete the installation.

Next we will select the GA4 Setup Assistant which is located under Property.

Note that the “Google Analytics 4 Property Setup Assistant

Not Connected

We now will select “Get Started”

We now will need to create a property. Select Yes

Note: Enable data collection using your existing tags

Now we are connected.  Verify that the Google Analytics 4 Property Setup Assistant shows green. “Connected”

Now we need to select See you GA4 Property and complete the configuration

Now we want to complete the Tag Installation.  Click on Tag Installation.

Now we need to validate the datastream.  S

Next, we will see a screen similar to this. Select “Use existing on-page tag”

We now need to copy the Measurement ID since we will need to enter in Tag Manager.

Now go to Google Tag Manager and Add a new Tag if you have setup a container for your site.  If not continue on.

WordPress Installation for GTM Code

If your using WordPress, you may want to use a plugin for headers and footers if you’re not use the “Site Kit by Google”.   

For example, I installed the WPBeginner version. “There are numerous ones available, but as always check the reviews and last updates.”

After you install the Header and Footers we now want to go to the Header and Footer page.  Select Settings > Insert Headers and Footers.

Next, we need to go to Google Tag Manager to copy the code to insert into the header and the body

Select the “Create Account” button on the top right.

We know need to setup a GA4 Container.  Note that we are only creating a container right now.

You want to collect the Account Name – Basically Customer or Yoursite, Container is you web address and what type of platform.

 Below is an example of an affiliate web site setup

  Next will be some disclosures

Select Yes and accept if terms are acceptable.

Now we can copy and paste out code. You will receive a pop up with code.

Now go back to Wordpress Headers and Footers and paste the code in the specific header and body.

Make sure you save the code by selecting the Save button which is below the Footer. 

Now go back to all account in Tag Manager and you will see you have your container.

The next thing we want to do is create a Tag..  Lets go back into the container we created and create a global tag for the website.

We would want to select under the New Tag panel “Add a new tag”.

When we select create a new tag it will bring up the following box. Select the “Tag Configuration” to get started.

When we select the Tag Configuration it should bring up a tag type similar to this.  In the case of GA4 we will select the Google Analytics:GA4 Event

Before going to the next step, we need to grab out “Measurement ID” from Google Analytics.

This would be under Property > Data Streams in GA Admin Panel.

After going to the Admin Panel and then proceeding to Data Streams you will need to select the data stream that you will use.

This will bring to the following menu.  Select the “Existing on page tag” and then select Google Tag Manager.

Copy the Measurement ID. This is what you will paste into the tag configuration.

Now leave the GA page open, we will need to enter the Tag information shortly.

Now go back to Tag Manager

Next select the Event Name by selecting the icon that looks like a block with a plus sign and add the MeasurementID. (Measurement ID is under

The Tag Configuration is complete but we need to now configure the “Triggering”.   Select the

Triggering Box.

After selecting the Triggering box, select the “All Pages” trigger.

Now we have both the Tag Configuration and Triggering done.  We just need to enter a name up in the top left corner and then select “Save”

After submitting the Tag, we can now go back and check in the Workspace. It shows there is 1 Workspace change.   .

We know need to submit the change in the Workspace.  To do this select the “Submit”. (You may want to preview before) 

Next enter the Version name and select “Publish”

After submitting you should see the following version summary

Lets Verify is Google Tag Manager can actually connect to the website.   Select the Preview button in the container workspace as shown.

You will now be prompted to enter the website name.

If it works, Great news . You installed the code correctly and configured your tag/container properly!  GTM will go the webpage and at the bottom popup a Tag Assistant Connected.

After completing these steps you now should go back to Google Analytics and validate in the GA4

Go to the Reports Snapshot in GA4. Then open up a browser and connect to the webpage.  You should see a User pop up in the Real Time block

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