has taken place. You will see data about these events without needing to take any additional steps.<\/span><\/p>\nAside from foundational web tracking events such as page_view, scroll and session_start, the only automatically collected event ecommerce sites should pay particular attention to is view_search_results.<\/span><\/p>\nEnhanced measurement ecommerce events<\/b><\/h3>\n
Enhanced measurement events can collect additional data when specific actions are triggered. For example, these events can allow you to collect additional data on page views, scrolls and more.<\/span><\/p>\nFor instance, tag configuration allows you to make the view_search_results event trigger for a wider array of URL query parameters than are available by default.<\/span><\/p>\nRecommended ecommerce events<\/b><\/h3>\n
Recommended events are commonplace events that have predefined names and parameters in GA4. This means they are relatively simple to implement in GA4.<\/span><\/p>\nFor most sites, the majority of ecommerce tracking will take place with recommended events.<\/span><\/p>\nRecommended events that are likely to be of importance to an ecommerce site include<\/span><\/p>\n[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_blurb title=”Recommended events” use_icon=”on” content_max_width=”583px” _builder_version=”4.17.3″ _module_preset=”default” header_level=”h3″ header_text_align=”left” background_color=”#D3E8E8″ max_width=”40%” hover_enabled=”0″ global_colors_info=”{}” custom_margin=”|||6px|false|false” custom_padding=”|||67px|false|false” sticky_enabled=”0″]<\/p>\n
\n- login<\/span><\/li>\n
- purchase<\/span><\/li>\n
- refund<\/span><\/li>\n
- search<\/span><\/li>\n
- sign_up<\/span><\/li>\n
- add_payment_info<\/span><\/li>\n
- add_shipping_info<\/span><\/li>\n
- add_to_cart<\/span><\/li>\n
- add_to_wishlist<\/span><\/li>\n
- begin_checkout<\/span><\/li>\n
- remove_from_cart<\/span><\/li>\n
- select_item<\/span><\/li>\n
- select_promotion<\/span><\/li>\n
- view_cart<\/span><\/li>\n
- view_item<\/span><\/li>\n
- view_item_list<\/span><\/li>\n
- view_promotion<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
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Custom ecommerce events<\/b><\/h3>\n
For highly specialised ecommerce events, you can create your custom event. Creating custom events is a far more manual process than utilising any other event type on GA4, as you need to provide custom parameters and triggers.<\/span><\/p>\nWhile custom events can be a useful way to get even more insight out of your GA4 setup, defining parameters and triggers yourself can be time-consuming and prone to user error.<\/span><\/p>\nAs such, it’s best to rely on other kinds of events where possible.<\/span><\/p>\nWhat product data can be tracked in GA4?<\/b><\/h2>\n
When setting up ecommerce event tracking in GA4, you naturally want to get information about the products customers are buying. This helps you understand not only your best-selling products, but also popular categories, and information on how customers come across particular products.<\/span><\/p>\nIn GA4, product data is collected in a type of parameter known as items array. For an items array to function, it requires one of the following 2 parameters to be set.<\/span><\/p>\n[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_blurb title=”List of Parameters” use_icon=”on” content_max_width=”750px” module_id=”s4″ _builder_version=”4.17.3″ _module_preset=”default” header_level=”h3″ header_text_align=”center” background_color=”#D3E8E8″ max_width=”87%” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n
For an items array to function, it requires one of the following 2 parameters to be set:<\/span><\/p>\n\n- item_id: <\/b>For instance, SKU_12345.<\/span><\/li>\n
- item_name: <\/b>For instance, Camo Hoodie.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Other significant item parameters that can be set include:<\/span><\/p>\n\n- coupon: <\/b>The name of a coupon associated with the item.<\/span><\/li>\n
- discount:<\/b> A monetary discount value associated with the item.<\/span><\/li>\n
- item_brand: <\/b>The brand of the item.<\/span><\/li>\n
- item_category: <\/b>Designated item categories, such as “Apparel”, “Adult”, “Hoodies”. You can have up to 5 item_category parameters in an array, organised by hierarchy.<\/span><\/li>\n
- item_list_id: <\/b>The name of the list in which the item was presented to the user, such as “related_products”.<\/span><\/li>\n
- price: <\/b>The monetary unit price of the item.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
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In addition to required and recommended parameters in the items array, you can also add up to 27 custom parameters.<\/span><\/p>\nKey ecommerce events in GA4<\/b><\/h2>\n
Let’s dive into some of the most significant recommended ecommerce events in GA4, and how you can most effectively track them.<\/span><\/p>\nview_item_list<\/b><\/h3>\n
This event tracks when a user is presented with a list of products on your site. For example, if they are on a product page, they may see a list of related items.<\/span><\/p>\nIt requires an item array to function and can be modified with item_list_id and item_list_name parameters. However, these parameters are not necessary if they are set at the item level.<\/span><\/p>\nview_item<\/b><\/h3>\n
This event can be used to show that a customer has seen some content relating to an item. For example, if they have seen an item’s detail page, this event should fire.<\/span><\/p>\nIt requires an item array to function. Setting a value parameter (i.e. 25.00) is generally required for useful reporting. If you set a parameter for value, it is required to set a parameter for currency (i.e. AUD).<\/span><\/p>\nbegin_checkout<\/b><\/h3>\n
begin_checkouts events fire when users begin the checkout process by pressing the appropriate button on your site. Similarly to view_item, this event requires value and currency parameters in addition to the items array.<\/span><\/p>\nYou can also set a coupon parameter. Note that item-level and event-level coupon parameters are separate.<\/span><\/p>\nadd_shipping_info<\/b><\/h3>\n
This event indicates a user has added their shipping information in the checkout process. It requires value and currency parameters and an items array. Coupon parameters can also be set.<\/span><\/p>\nAnother parameter that can be set for this event is the shipping tier. This refers to the selected form of shipping, such as air or next-day.<\/span><\/p>\npurchase and refund<\/b><\/h3>\n
The purchase and refund events are exactly what their names indicate. They indicate that a purchase or a refund has taken place.<\/span><\/p>\n[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_blurb title=”Events in GA4″ use_icon=”on” content_max_width=”672px” _builder_version=”4.17.3″ _module_preset=”default” header_level=”h3″ header_text_align=”center” background_color=”#D3E8E8″ width=”100%” max_width=”69%” module_alignment=”left” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n
These 2 events rely on the same parameters:<\/span><\/p>\n\n- items array<\/b><\/li>\n
- currency<\/b><\/li>\n
- value<\/b><\/li>\n
- coupon<\/b><\/li>\n
- transaction_id:<\/b> A unique string of numbers which identifies each transaction, i.e. T_12345.<\/span><\/li>\n
- shipping: <\/b>Not to be confused with shipping_tier, shipping is the monetary value associated with the transaction, i.e. 4.45.<\/span><\/li>\n
- tax: <\/b>The monetary value associated with the transaction, i.e. 3.00.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
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What is the GA4 ecommerce purchases report?<\/b><\/h2>\n
Once you have completed the initial GA4 setup, you can access a premade<\/span> ecommerce purchases report<\/span><\/a>. This report is an ideal starting point for GA4 ecommerce setup.<\/span><\/p>\n[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_blurb title=”Dimensions and Metrics” use_icon=”on” module_id=”s5″ _builder_version=”4.17.3″ _module_preset=”default” header_level=”h3″ header_text_align=”center” background_color=”#D3E8E8″ max_width=”85%” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n
This report includes the following dimensions:<\/span><\/p>\n\n- Item brand: <\/b>Populated from the item-level item_brand parameter in an event.<\/span><\/li>\n
- Item category: <\/b>This is the first hierarchical item in which items are classified. For example, in Tech\/Phones\/iPhones, Tech is the first category. It is populated from the item-level item_category parameter.<\/span><\/li>\n
- Item category 2-5: <\/b>You can have up to 5 item categories in this report, each with a number corresponding to its place in the hierarchy. Item category 2 is populated by the item_category2 parameter, item category 3 by the item_category 3 parameter, and so on.<\/span><\/li>\n
- Item ID: <\/b>The specified ID for an item, populated by the item_id parameter.<\/span><\/li>\n
- Item name: <\/b>The name of the item, populated by the item_name parameter.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
This report also includes the following metrics:<\/span><\/p>\n\n- Item revenue: <\/b>The total revenue from items only, excluding tax and shipping.<\/span><\/li>\n
- Items added to cart: <\/b>The number of items added to the cart, populated by the items array in an add_to_cart event.<\/span><\/li>\n
- Items purchased: <\/b>The number of items purchased, populated by the items array in a purchase event.<\/span><\/li>\n
- Items viewed: <\/b>The number of items viewed, populated by the items array in a view_items event.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
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Complying with the GDPR and CCPA while tracking ecommerce events in GA4<\/b><\/h2>\n
While data can be exceptionally valuable for your business, it’s important to remember the risks it can pose. Data privacy regulations are in place around the globe to ensure data is safely and responsibly handled by corporations.<\/span><\/p>\nYou must comply with data privacy regulations that are in place in any jurisdiction from which your website can be accessed. 2 key regulations are the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation and the California Consumer Privacy Act.<\/span><\/p>\nWhen tracking ecommerce events in GA4, and in the process of operating an ecommerce site generally, personally identifiable information your business may find itself collecting includes:<\/span><\/p>\n\n- Name<\/span><\/li>\n
- Email addresses<\/span><\/li>\n
- Location information<\/span><\/li>\n