Loading data into Google Analytics

This guide explains how to load data into Google Analytics for further analysis.

Introduction

This guide explains how to create a destination for the Universal Analytics version of Google Analytics.

Limitations

Loading data into Google Analytics comes with the following limitations:

• You cannot load empty rows into Google Analytics.

• To load certain data types into Google Analytics, you must select the corresponding Data Set Type in your Data Set in Google Analytics. For example, to load cost data into Google Analytics, select Cost Data as a Data Set Type in your Data Set.

Prerequisites

Before you complete the procedure in this guide, perform all of the following actions:

• Create a datastream whose data you want to load into Google Analytics. For more information on creating a datastream, see Creating a datastream.

• Create a Data Set in Google Analytics. For more information, see the Google Analytics documentation.

• Before you load data into Google Analytics, make a note of the schema to configure the destination. For more information on getting the schema, see Finding the Google Analytics schema.

Procedure

To load data from a datastream into Google Analytics, follow these steps:

1. Add Google Analytics as a destination to the workspace which contains the datastream or to one of its parent workspaces.

2. Assign the Google Analytics destination to the datastream.

   You can assign as many destinations to a datastream as you want.

   Some destinations require specific Data Mapping, such as Hubspot and Facebook Offline Conversions. If these Data Mapping requirements conflict, the destinations cannot be assigned to the same datastream.

3. Find the Google Analytics schema.

4. Configure the Data Mapping of your datastream to conform with Google Analytics destination standards.

5. Configure load settings.

6. Enable data loading into the destination from the datastream.

Adding Google Analytics as a destination

To add Google Analytics as a destination to a workspace, follow these steps:

1. Go to the Destinations page.

2. Click + Create destination.

3. Search for and click Google Analytics.

4. Choose how to authorize Adverity to access Google Analytics:

   • To use your details, click Access Google Analytics using your credentials.

   • To ask someone else to use their details, click Access Google Analytics using someone else's credentials.

     If you choose this option, the person you ask to create the authorization will need to go through the following steps.

5. Click Next.

6. Click Google Analytics.

7. Log in to your Google Analytics account.

8. In the Configuration page, fill in the following fields:

   Name

   (Optional) Rename the destination.

9. Click Create.

Assigning Google Analytics as a destination

To assign the Google Analytics destination to a datastream, follow these steps:

1. Go to the Datastreams page.

2. Open the chosen datastream by clicking on its name.

3. In the Load section, click + Add destination.

4. Select the Google Analytics checkbox in the list.

5. Click Save.

6. For the automatically enabled destinations, in the pop-up window, click Yes, load data if you want to automatically load your previously collected data into the new destination. The following data extracts will be loaded:

   • All data extracts with the status collected if no other destinations are enabled for the datastream

   • All data extracts with the status loaded if the data extracts have already been sent to Adverity Data Storage or external destinations

   Alternatively, click Skip to continue configuring the destination settings or re-load the data extracts manually. For more information, see Re-loading a data extract.

Finding the Google Analytics schema

To load data into Google Analytics, you must enter the destination schema in the Destination Settings. To find the schema for Google Analytics within Adverity, follow these steps:

1. Go to the Datastreams page.

2. Open the chosen datastream by clicking on its name.

3. In the Load section, find the Google Analytics destination in the list, and click Actions on the right.

4. Click Destination settings.

5. Under the Schema field, click the Lookup schema hyperlink to go to the Google Analytics UI and get the schema.

Your input in the Schema field must conform to the following requirements:

• The target names in the schema must match the names entered in the Target columns of the Data Mapping.

• The order of the Target columns in the Data Mapping must match the order of the target columns entered into the Schema field.

• Do not enter spaces between the target columns in the Schema field. An example of a valid input in the Schema field is the following:

  ga:date,ga:medium,ga:source,ga:adCost

Configuring Data Mapping for Google Analytics

All data that you load into Google Analytics must conform with Google Analytics standards. To configure Data Mapping for the Google Analytics destination, follow these steps:

1. Go to the Datastreams page.

2. Open the chosen datastream by clicking on its name.

3. In the top navigation panel, click Data Mapping.

4. For each cell in the Target fields column, enter the value exactly as it is displayed in the Google Analytics schema. The target columns in Google Analytics are case-sensitive.

   In the Data Mapping, do not include a colon (:) in the field name in the Target fields column. Change the : to _. For example, if the schema contains the value ga:date, enter ga_date into the Target fields column.

   To find the Google Analytics schema, follow these steps:

   1. Go to the Destinations page.

   2. Click the Google Analyticsdestination for which you want to view the schema.

   3. In the Link column, click Lookup schema.

   4. In the Google Analytics UI, copy the schema from the Data Set created in Google Analytics.

Configuring settings for loading data into Google Analytics

To configure the settings for loading data into Google Analytics, follow these steps:

1. Go to the Datastreams page.

2. Open the chosen datastream by clicking on its name.

3. In the Load section, find the Google Analytics destination in the list, and click Actions on the right.

4. Click Destination settings.

5. Fill in the following fields:

   Google Analytics Datasource

   Select the Data Set into which the data is loaded in Google Analytics.

   Schema

   Enter the schema of the Data Set into which the data is loaded. For more information on finding the Data Set schema, see Finding the Google Analytics schema.

6. Click Save.

Enabling data loading into Google Analytics destination

To enable data loading into the Google Analytics destination from the datastream, follow these steps:

1. Go to the Datastreams page.

2. Open the chosen datastream by clicking on its name.

3. In the list in the Load section, find the Google Analytics destination, and enable the toggle.

4. In the pop-up window, click Yes, load data if you want to automatically load your previously collected data into the newly enabled destination. The following data extracts will be loaded:

   • All data extracts with the status collected if no other destinations are enabled for the datastream

   • All data extracts with the status loaded if the data extracts have already been sent to Adverity Data Storage or external destinations

   Alternatively, click Skip to only load data extracts collected in the future or re-load the data extracts manually. For more information, see Re-loading a data extract.