erikpr1994 Analytics Integration
Overview
Analytics implementation patterns covering event tracking, privacy considerations, and dashboard setup. Focus on privacy-first approaches with actionable insights.
When to Use
- Setting up analytics for a project
- Implementing custom event tracking
- Designing metrics dashboards
- Ensuring privacy compliance
Quick Reference
| Provider | Privacy | Best For |
|---|---|---|
| Plausible | Privacy-first, no cookies | Simple traffic analytics |
| PostHog | Self-hostable, feature flags | Product analytics, A/B tests |
| Mixpanel | Event-focused | User journey tracking |
| Google Analytics | Free, comprehensive | Traffic + conversions |
| Vercel Analytics | Edge, Web Vitals | Next.js performance |
Privacy-First Setup
Plausible (Recommended)
// app/layout.tsx
import Script from 'next/script';
export default function RootLayout({ children }) {
return (
<html>
<head>
<Script
defer
data-domain="yourdomain.com"
src="https://plausible.io/js/script.js"
/>
</head>
<body>{children}</body>
</html>
);
}
Custom Events (Plausible)
// lib/analytics.ts
export function trackEvent(name: string, props?: Record<string, string>) {
if (typeof window !== 'undefined' && window.plausible) {
window.plausible(name, { props });
}
}
// Usage
trackEvent('Signup', { plan: 'pro' });
trackEvent('Feature Used', { feature: 'export' });
PostHog Setup
Installation
// lib/posthog.ts
import posthog from 'posthog-js';
export function initPostHog() {
if (typeof window !== 'undefined') {
posthog.init(process.env.NEXT_PUBLIC_POSTHOG_KEY!, {
api_host: process.env.NEXT_PUBLIC_POSTHOG_HOST,
capture_pageview: false, // Manual control
persistence: 'localStorage',
});
}
}
export { posthog };
Provider Setup
// app/providers.tsx
'use client';
import { useEffect } from 'react';
import { usePathname, useSearchParams } from 'next/navigation';
import { initPostHog, posthog } from '@/lib/posthog';
export function AnalyticsProvider({ children }: { children: React.ReactNode }) {
const pathname = usePathname();
const searchParams = useSearchParams();
useEffect(() => {
initPostHog();
}, []);
// Track page views
useEffect(() => {
if (pathname) {
posthog.capture('$pageview', {
$current_url: window.location.href,
});
}
}, [pathname, searchParams]);
return <>{children}</>;
}
Event Tracking
// Track events
posthog.capture('button_clicked', {
button_name: 'signup',
page: '/pricing',
});
// Identify users
posthog.identify(userId, {
email: user.email,
plan: user.plan,
});
// Feature flags
const showNewFeature = posthog.isFeatureEnabled('new-dashboard');
Event Tracking Patterns
Standard Events
// lib/analytics.ts
type EventName =
| 'page_view'
| 'signup_started'
| 'signup_completed'
| 'feature_used'
| 'checkout_started'
| 'purchase_completed'
| 'error_occurred';
interface EventProperties {
page_view: { path: string; referrer?: string };
signup_started: { method: 'email' | 'google' | 'github' };
signup_completed: { method: string; plan?: string };
feature_used: { feature: string; context?: string };
checkout_started: { plan: string; price: number };
purchase_completed: { plan: string; revenue: number };
error_occurred: { error: string; context: string };
}
export function track<E extends EventName>(
event: E,
properties: EventProperties[E]
) {
// Send to your analytics provider
posthog.capture(event, properties);
}
Conversion Funnel
// Track funnel steps
track('signup_started', { method: 'email' });
// ... user completes form ...
track('signup_completed', { method: 'email', plan: 'free' });
// ... user adds payment ...
track('checkout_started', { plan: 'pro', price: 29 });
// ... payment succeeds ...
track('purchase_completed', { plan: 'pro', revenue: 29 });
User Properties
// Set user properties once identified
posthog.identify(user.id, {
email: user.email,
name: user.name,
created_at: user.createdAt,
plan: user.plan,
company: user.company,
});
// Update properties when they change
posthog.people.set({
plan: 'pro',
last_login: new Date().toISOString(),
});
Privacy Considerations
Cookie Consent
// components/CookieConsent.tsx
'use client';
import { useState, useEffect } from 'react';
export function CookieConsent() {
const [consent, setConsent] = useState<boolean | null>(null);
useEffect(() => {
const stored = localStorage.getItem('analytics_consent');
if (stored !== null) {
setConsent(stored === 'true');
}
}, []);
const handleConsent = (accepted: boolean) => {
localStorage.setItem('analytics_consent', String(accepted));
setConsent(accepted);
if (accepted) {
initAnalytics();
}
};
if (consent !== null) return null;
return (
<div className="fixed bottom-4 right-4 bg-white p-4 rounded-lg shadow-lg">
<p>We use analytics to improve your experience.</p>
<div className="flex gap-2 mt-2">
<button => handleConsent(true)}>Accept</button>
<button => handleConsent(false)}>Decline</button>
</div>
</div>
);
}
Data Retention
// Configure data retention
posthog.init(key, {
persistence: 'localStorage', // or 'cookie', 'memory'
persistence_name: 'ph_', // Custom prefix
property_blacklist: ['email', 'phone'], // Never track
});
GDPR Compliance
// Right to deletion
async function handleDeleteRequest(userId: string) {
// Delete from PostHog
await fetch('https://app.posthog.com/api/person/', {
method: 'DELETE',
headers: { Authorization: `Bearer ${POSTHOG_API_KEY}` },
body: JSON.stringify({ distinct_id: userId }),
});
// Delete from your database
await db.user.delete({ where: { id: userId } });
}
Dashboard Setup
Key Metrics
| Metric | Description | Target |
|---|---|---|
| DAU/MAU | Daily/Monthly active users | Growth trend |
| Conversion Rate | Signups to paid | > 2-5% |
| Retention | Users returning after X days | D1 > 40%, D7 > 20% |
| ARPU | Average revenue per user | Depends on model |
| Churn | Users leaving per month | < 5% |
Custom Dashboard Query (PostHog)
-- Active users by day
SELECT
toDate(timestamp) as date,
count(DISTINCT distinct_id) as users
FROM events
WHERE event = '$pageview'
AND timestamp > now() - interval 30 day
GROUP BY date
ORDER BY date
Vercel Analytics (Next.js)
// app/layout.tsx
import { Analytics } from '@vercel/analytics/react';
import { SpeedInsights } from '@vercel/speed-insights/next';
export default function RootLayout({ children }) {
return (
<html>
<body>
{children}
<Analytics />
<SpeedInsights />
</body>
</html>
);
}
Common Patterns
A/B Testing (PostHog)
// Get variant
const variant = posthog.getFeatureFlag('pricing-page-test');
// Track exposure
posthog.capture('$feature_flag_called', {
$feature_flag: 'pricing-page-test',
$feature_flag_response: variant,
});
// Render based on variant
return variant === 'control' ? <PricingA /> : <PricingB />;
Error Tracking
// Track errors with context
window.addEventListener('error', (event) => {
track('error_occurred', {
error: event.message,
context: event.filename + ':' + event.lineno,
});
});
// Track unhandled rejections
window.addEventListener('unhandledrejection', (event) => {
track('error_occurred', {
error: event.reason?.message || 'Unknown',
context: 'unhandled_promise',
});
});
Red Flags - STOP
Never:
- Track PII without consent
- Send passwords or tokens to analytics
- Track on localhost in production code
- Ignore GDPR/CCPA requirements
Always:
- Implement cookie consent for EU users
- Anonymize IPs when possible
- Document what you track
- Provide opt-out mechanism
- Test tracking in development mode
Integration
Related skills: frontend-design, payment-processing Tools: PostHog, Plausible, Mixpanel, Google Analytics