10 Reasons You Need At Least 12 Months of Historical Data before UA360 Sunset

It's been over two months since Google announced the retirement of its Universal Analytics product, UA360. This news came as a shock to many businesses that use Google Analytics tracking code on their websites. 

If you're one of those businesses, you may be wondering if you're ready to transition to Google Analytics 4 (GA4). 

The answer is yes.

Thankfully, you have a little over a year to make the switch and get the hang of the new platform. But you must start now – and one of the things you should be worried about is your UA data. 

What Will Happen to Your UA Data?

The processing of all UA properties will halt on July 1, 2023. This means that you can gather and use data in UA until June 30, 2023. For paid users, it's September 30, 2023. 

After this, you'll be able to access historical data reports for up to six months only and lose the rest forever. 

As the time to say goodbye to UA properties nears, you must prepare to export historical data to prevent disruptions in your reporting processes. You can combine this exported data with GA4 data in a data visualization tool like Data Studio. Moving UA data directly to GA4 isn't possible. 

Why You Need 12 Months of Historical Data 

Here are ten reasons why you need that much data before making the switch:

• It'll Help You Understand Your Website Performance

Historical data from UA will help you understand how your website has performed over time. This includes understanding traffic patterns, engagement rates, and conversion rates.

Once you start collecting new data in GA4, you can compare the historical data to assess your website performance and the effectiveness of your marketing campaigns. 

• It'll Help You Identify Trends

Another reason to export 12 months' worth of UA data is that it'll help you stay on top of trends. This is important for understanding what time of year is best for launching a new product or promotion. 

• It'll Help You Create Performance Benchmarks

Historical data will also help you benchmark your performance for setting challenging goals and measuring progress over time with the new GA4. 

• It'll Help Troubleshoot Performance Issues

If you see a sudden drop in traffic or conversions after transitioning to GA4, looking at historical data from UA can help you identify the cause. You can compare the two data sets to see what you're doing wrong and how you can integrate precise reporting requirements for the best results.

• It'll Help You Track Website Changes

If you decide to redesign your website after switching to GA4 or employ new marketing campaigns, historical data can help you track these changes. You'll be able to monitor the impact of the redesign and track the effectiveness of your advertising campaigns. 

• It'll Help You Make Sense of Customer Journey 

Historical data from UA can help you understand your customer's journey. By telling you how users used to interact with your website in the past, you can better understand the current customer experience. 

• It'll Help You Make the Most of Seasonal Trends

One of the most important reasons to have at least 12 months of historical data is to help you leverage seasonal trends after you transition to GA4. This will help plan inventory levels and staffing needs. 

• It'll Teach You the Lifetime Value of a Customer 

Historical data from UA can also make budgeting and forecasting easy after you transition to GA4 by helping you understand the lifetime value of a customer. 

• It'll Open the Doors to New Possibilities

By exporting UA data and comparing it to the new GA4 data, you can assess the performance of your website, identify areas of improvement, and spot potential issues with marketing campaigns. 

• It'll Pave the Way for Better Marketing Decisions

Finally, historical data from UA can help you make better decisions about your marketing and the future of your business. This is important for things like planning for growth or expansion with GA4.

Export Your UA Data Reports in 4 Easy Steps

Step 1

Open the report you wish to export. Make sure the date range and report settings are correct.

Step 2

Click on the "Export" button.

Step 3

Choose your desired format for the exported report: 

• TSV
• TSV for Excel
• PDF
• CSV
• Excel (XLSX)
• Google Sheets

Step 4

Check the download directory on your computer. Your file must have been generated automatically. 

The Right Time to Export UA Data for Your GA4Transition is Now!

The transition to GA4 is bound to happen, whether you like it or not. If your organization isn't ready for the switch, you will be left behind.

With Google's new GA4 platform comes some exciting new additions (and changes) that you should start preparing for now.

At the very least, you should start exporting your historical data from UA. Without these data reports, you will not be able to make informed decisions about your marketing campaigns and may see a decrease in performance once UA360 is no longer available. 

You must export at least 12 months of data reports to make the GA4 transition seamless and fruitful. It's a fool-proof way to stay ahead of the curve and minimize reporting disruptions.

For more information, feel free to contact our analytic consultants. We'll happily assist you in exporting historical data and streamlining the switch from UA to GA4.