GA4 Property Setup and Installation

GA4 Property Setup and Installation

Complete guide for creating Google Analytics 4 accounts, properties, data streams, and installing tracking code.

Overview

Setting up Google Analytics 4 requires creating an account hierarchy, configuring data streams, and installing tracking code. This reference provides step-by-step guidance for all GA4 setup methods from initial property creation through implementation verification.

Account Hierarchy

GA4 uses a three-level hierarchy:

Google Account (Login credentials)
└── Analytics Account (Container for properties)
    └── GA4 Property (Analytics container for website/app)
        └── Data Stream (Platform-specific: Web, iOS, Android)
            └── Events and Parameters

Level Definitions

Creating a GA4 Property

Step 1: Navigate to Analytics

1. Go to analytics.google.com
2. Sign in with Google account
3. Click Admin (bottom-left)
4. Click "Create" -> "Property"

Step 2: Configure Property Details

Property Name:

• Use descriptive name: "Main Website", "E-commerce Site"
• Include environment if needed: "Production Website"

Reporting Time Zone:

• Select primary business timezone
• Affects day boundaries in reports
• Cannot be changed retroactively

Currency:

• Select reporting currency (USD, EUR, GBP, AUD)
• All monetary values converted to this currency

Step 3: Business Information

Industry Category:

• Select relevant industry
• Influences default reports and benchmarks

Business Objectives:

• Get baseline reports (recommended for beginners)
• Examine user behaviour
• Measure customer actions
• Get insights on customers
• Improve marketing ROI

Step 4: Accept Terms

• Google Analytics Terms of Service
• Data Processing Amendment (GDPR)
• Click "Create"

Data Stream Configuration

Web Data Stream

Creating the Stream:

1. Admin -> Data Streams
2. Click "Add Stream"
3. Select "Web"
4. Enter website URL (example.com, not https://www.example.com)
5. Enter stream name ("Main Website")
6. Enable Enhanced Measurement (recommended)
7. Click "Create stream"

Enhanced Measurement Events:

Measurement ID:

• Format: G-XXXXXXXXXX
• Location: Data Streams -> Click stream -> Top section
• Copy for installation

iOS Data Stream

Prerequisites:

• Apple Developer account
• iOS app in development/published
• Firebase project (auto-created)

Setup:

1. Admin -> Data Streams -> Add Stream -> iOS app
2. Enter Bundle ID (com.company.appname)
3. Enter App Store ID (optional)
4. Click "Register app"
5. Download GoogleService-Info.plist
6. Add to Xcode project

Firebase SDK Installation:

# Podfile
pod 'Firebase/Analytics'

// AppDelegate.swift
import Firebase

func application(_ application: UIApplication,
                didFinishLaunchingWithOptions launchOptions: [UIApplication.LaunchOptionsKey: Any]?) -> Bool {
    FirebaseApp.configure()
    return true
}

Android Data Stream

Prerequisites:

• Android Studio
• Android app package name

Setup:

1. Admin -> Data Streams -> Add Stream -> Android app
2. Enter package name (com.company.appname)
3. Click "Register app"
4. Download google-services.json
5. Place in app/ directory

Firebase SDK Installation:

// Project build.gradle
buildscript {
    dependencies {
        classpath 'com.google.gms:google-services:4.3.15'
    }
}

// App build.gradle
plugins {
    id 'com.google.gms.google-services'
}

dependencies {
    implementation platform('com.google.firebase:firebase-bom:32.0.0')
    implementation 'com.google.firebase:firebase-analytics'
}

Installation Methods

Method 1: CMS Plugin (Easiest)

WordPress - Site Kit by Google:

1. Plugins -> Add New -> Search "Site Kit by Google"
2. Install and Activate
3. Site Kit -> Start Setup
4. Connect Google account
5. Select or create GA4 property
6. Activate Analytics module

Shopify:

1. Settings -> Customer events
2. Add custom pixel -> Google Analytics 4
3. Enter Measurement ID
4. Save

Wix:

1. Settings -> Marketing & SEO -> Marketing Integrations
2. Google Analytics -> Connect
3. Sign in and select GA4 property

Method 2: gtag.js Direct

Place in <head> section before other scripts:

<!-- Google tag (gtag.js) -->
<script async src="https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtag/js?id=G-XXXXXXXXXX"></script>
<script>
  window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || [];
  function gtag(){dataLayer.push(arguments);}
  gtag('js', new Date());
  gtag('config', 'G-XXXXXXXXXX');
</script>

Method 3: Google Tag Manager (Recommended)

Step 1: Install GTM Container

Head snippet (after <head>):

<!-- Google Tag Manager -->
<script>(function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':
new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],
j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src=
'https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);
})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-XXXXXXX');</script>
<!-- End Google Tag Manager -->

Body snippet (after <body>):

<!-- Google Tag Manager (noscript) -->
<noscript><iframe src="https://www.googletagmanager.com/ns.html?id=GTM-XXXXXXX"
height="0" width="0" style="display:none;visibility:hidden"></iframe></noscript>
<!-- End Google Tag Manager (noscript) -->

Step 2: Create GA4 Configuration Tag

1. GTM -> Tags -> New
2. Tag Type: Google Tag
3. Tag ID: G-XXXXXXXXXX
4. Trigger: Initialisation - All Pages
5. Save and Publish

Installation Verification

Immediate Verification (0-5 minutes)

1. Enable Debug Mode:

   • Install Google Analytics Debugger Chrome extension
   • Enable extension (icon turns blue)
   • Visit website

2. Check DebugView:

   • GA4 -> Admin -> DebugView
   • Select device from dropdown
   • Confirm events appearing

3. Expected Events:

   • session_start
   • first_visit (new users)
   • page_view

Realtime Verification (5-30 minutes)

1. Reports -> Realtime
2. Confirm active users showing
3. Verify events by name
4. Check user location on map

Standard Reports (24-48 hours)

Standard reports have processing delay:

• Reports -> Acquisition -> User acquisition
• Reports -> Engagement -> Events
• Reports -> Engagement -> Pages and screens

Post-Setup Configuration

Data Retention

Location: Admin -> Data Settings -> Data Retention

Reset on New Activity: ON (recommended) - timer resets when user returns

Internal Traffic Filter

Location: Admin -> Data Settings -> Data Filters

1. Create Filter -> Internal Traffic
2. Enter office IP addresses
3. Set to "Testing" first
4. Verify in DebugView (traffic_type = internal)
5. Set to "Active"

Google Signals

Location: Admin -> Data Settings -> Data Collection

• Enables demographics (age, gender)
• Enables cross-device tracking
• Requires user consent for personalised ads

Common Issues

No Data Appearing

• Verify Measurement ID is correct
• Check code placement in <head>
• Disable ad blockers for testing
• Wait 24-48 hours for standard reports

Data Only in DebugView

• Remove debug_mode: true from production
• Disable Google Analytics Debugger extension
• Check for internal traffic filters

Duplicate Events

• Remove duplicate tracking implementations
• Choose one method: gtag.js OR GTM OR plugin
• Check for multiple Measurement IDs

Wrong Timezone

• Cannot change retroactively
• Affects only future data
• Consider creating new property if critical

Next Steps

After completing setup:

1. Configure Enhanced Measurement events
2. Set up internal traffic filters
3. Create first custom events
4. Register custom dimensions
5. Link Google Ads (if applicable)
6. Set up BigQuery export (for advanced analysis)