Introduction

For almost 2 decades, Google Analytics has been the web analytics platform, offering businesses across the globe insights into user behavior, traffic sources, and engagement metrics all for free. But as the landscape of digital marketing continues to evolve, so do the demands and expectations of businesses striving to stay ahead. Today, many are questioning whether Google Analytics has done enough to adapt to businesses needs, the changing privacy landscape, and increasingly more customer-centric market. Concerns over data privacy, the accuracy of analytics due to ad blockers and cookie restrictions, and the impact of analytics scripts on website performance are just the tip of the iceberg. Learn more why it’s time to dump Google Analytics.

Privacy and legal concerns

The landscape of digital privacy is becoming increasingly regulated, and Google Analytics finds itself in the middle of several significant legal challenges. With the enactment of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) several years ago, a stringent framework for data protection was established in Europe. More critically, Google Analytics has been directly impacted by decisions from data protection authorities in France and Italy, which have declared that Google Analytics violates GDPR.

These developments are crucial for businesses reliant on Google Analytics. The tool's fundamental mechanism involves collecting extensive user data—including IP addresses and detailed user interactions—which is then processed and often stored outside the user's home country. This practice conflicts with GDPR's strict data sovereignty and privacy requirements.

Meanwhile, in the United States, the push for tighter privacy controls is gaining momentum. With 15 states having enacted privacy laws and a federal privacy bill on the table, the regulatory environment is quickly evolving. These laws often emphasize transparency, user consent, and limiting the sale or transfer of data to 3rd parties — principles that challenge the core operations of Google Analytics.

The traditional business model for Google Analytics, which offers free services in exchange for access to user data used for profiling and advertising, is increasingly incompatible with these privacy-focused legal frameworks. This model not only raises compliance risks but also puts businesses at potential financial and reputational risk due to non-compliance penalties.

As a result, Google is increasingly pushing businesses to purchase Looker and other tools in the Google ecosystem and businesses are increasingly compelled to reconsider their use of Google Analytics. The need for analytics tools that ensure compliance, protect user privacy, and adapt to the shifting global regulatory landscape is becoming more apparent.

Data accuracy and reliability

Data drives our marketing decisions or we know it should drive more of our decisions, but the accuracy and reliability of the web analytics data that underpins these decisions is critical and often overlooked. Unfortunately for many users, Google Analytics is increasingly falling short in this critical area. Several factors contribute to this issue, fundamentally challenging the integrity of data collected through Google Analytics and thus the insights businesses derive from it.

Ad blockers and browser restrictions: A significant challenge to data accuracy comes from the widespread use of ad blockers and enhanced privacy settings in modern browsers. These tools block various scripts, cookies, and unfortunately Google Analytics. As privacy concerns grow, more users are adopting these tools, which means that businesses are missing data on a significant portion of their audience. This gap in data can skew analytics, leading to misinformed decisions based on an incomplete understanding of user behavior.

Cookie consent regulations: Another factor impacting data accuracy is the implementation of cookie consent regulations, especially for businesses adhering to GDPR. Users must actively agree to be tracked and a significant portion chooses to opt out. This results in Google Analytics capturing only a subset of data, which again can lead to biased data and insights that might not truly represent the entire user base. Furthermore, GA implements measures to try to track some data despite user’s declining consent which has a high likelihood of putting Google Analytics back in EU courts.

Data sampling: For larger sites or those with significant amounts of traffic, Google Analytics uses data sampling to manage and process information in its free version. Data sampling involves analyzing a subset of data instead of examining all available data. While this method helps in processing large datasets quickly, users online have often reported inaccuracies.

Given these challenges, businesses are increasingly aware that relying solely on Google Analytics could lead to strategic missteps due to faulty or incomplete data. This recognition is driving the search for more robust, accurate, and reliable options that can offer a fuller picture of user behavior without the gaps and inaccuracies present in Google Analytics.

User experience and  performance

Complexity and usability of GA4: Google Analytics has fully transitioned to its new version GA4, which, while powerful, is markedly more complex and less intuitive than its predecessor. Designed with the largest enterprise-level users in mind, GA4 features a steep learning curve and requires a deeper understanding of data analytics. This complexity alienates many SMBs that lack the resources to fully utilize these extensive capabilities. Moreover, Google seems to be pushing businesses towards their paid platforms like Google Looker to truly access and understand your data, further straining the budgets of smaller enterprises.

Inadequacies in real-time data: Contrary to expectations of modern analytics tools, the real-time data provided by Google Analytics is often neither timely nor accurate. Data is frequently sampled and aggregated, which can lead to significant delays (typically data is refreshed once a day) and inaccuracies. This delay is detrimental for businesses that rely on immediate data to make quick decisions, such as adjusting marketing campaigns or addressing website traffic surges effectively.

Impact on site performance: The Google Analytics tracking script, necessary for data collection, adds a lot of extra load to websites, impacting page load times and overall site performance. This bloated script is primarily to help Google collect more data. This is not just a technical concern but a business one, as slower sites lead to poor user experiences, higher bounce rates, and ultimately lost revenue. The heavier data overhead from Google Analytics can be especially burdensome for SMBs, which are often less equipped to mitigate such impacts compared to larger companies.

Cost and scalability

The allure of Google Analytics has always been its no-cost entry point, making it a go-to choice for countless businesses. However, the notion of 'free' is not without its hidden costs, particularly as organizational needs evolve and grow.

The hidden costs of 'free': Google Analytics offers its services at no monetary cost, but the platform demands significant investments in terms of training, compliance, and data management. Businesses often find themselves needing additional training for staff or even hiring specialists to effectively utilize its full potential. This complexity not only increases operational costs but also extends the time needed to gain actionable insights. Furthermore, businesses spend considerable resources building Looker dashboards, adjusting workflows or simply going without analytical data, all detracting from potential investments.

Steep pricing of Google Analytics 360: For businesses that outgrow the capabilities of the free version, upgrading to Google Analytics 360 seems like the next logical step. However, this premium option comes with a starting annual price tag of around $150,000, which can quickly escalate as additional features and data capacity are required. This price point is prohibitive for many small to medium-sized enterprises and even for larger organizations, the cost can be difficult to justify, given the total return on investment.

Ownership, ethical analytics and public perception issues

The use of Google Analytics raises significant concerns about data ownership, ethical analytics practices, and public perception, particularly in light of stringent global privacy standards and recent legal challenges.

Data ownership and control: A significant concern with using Google Analytics is the control—or lack thereof—that businesses have over their data. With the recent transition from UA to GA4, many businesses were taken aback by Google's decision to delete all historical UA data without providing a seamless way to migrate this data to GA4. This move highlighted a critical issue: data collected via Google Analytics ultimately resides within Google’s ecosystem, leaving businesses with limited control and forcing them to rely on Google's terms. For businesses looking to maintain autonomy over their data, this raises serious concerns about data sovereignty and long-term accessibility.

Legal and ethical concerns: Recent rulings in Italy, France, and other EU regions have declared Google Analytics illegal under GDPR due to concerns over data transfer practices. Such legal precedents emphasize the risks businesses face when using tools that may not comply with international privacy laws. In the U.S., the introduction of privacy laws in 15 states further complicates the regulatory landscape, making compliance a moving target that requires constant vigilance and adaptability.

Impact on Public Trust and Brand Image: Public sensitivity to data privacy is at an all-time high. The perception that a business does not prioritize customer privacy or engages in ethically dubious data practices can lead to significant brand damage. Google Analytics’ challenges in various jurisdictions serve as a cautionary tale for businesses about the importance of maintaining transparent, ethical data practices to bolster consumer trust and loyalty.

Conclusion

1. If you do business in the EU, you likely have a legal obligation to not use GA. Which makes sense because the GDPR law was passed to curb practices from products like Google Analytics.
2. GA data is inaccurate and becoming increasingly more inaccurate as users implement ad blockers or simply decline cookie banners.
3. For large websites, GA will sample data which has been reported by many users to lead to inaccuracies.
4. GA4 is simply a difficult product to understand and use.
5. Google is pushing businesses to purchase Looker or other Google ecosystem products increasing their reliance on a tool that is decreasing in value.
6. Real-time data is often quite inaccurate. GA4 still utilizes some clunky 20 year old technology. Even with GA360, it can often take until the next day to get true representative data.
7. Google Analytics requires users upload a massive bloated script that tracks everything under the sun by default to provide Google with better insight into users. This comes at a cost to site owners and businesses, the increased load time directly increases bounce rates and reduces conversion rates.
8. Training and employee costs are high with Google Analytics, again it’s not built for SMBs, it’s built for enterprise data analysts. Google Analytics’ paying customers.
9. When using a ‘free’ product like Google Analytics you are bound to their terms, as we all recently learned with the UA to GA4 migration.
10. Your customers are increasingly becoming more concerned with their privacy. Evident in the increased lobbying to various governments, the greater use of ad blockers, and reduced acceptance of optional cookies.

Alternatives

Navigating the evolving landscape of digital analytics demands tools that not only meet current needs but also anticipate future challenges. With increasing legal, ethical, and operational pressures, it’s time to reconsider your reliance on Google Analytics. Ziplytics is here to guide you through this transition with our secure, compliant, and precise analytics platform. Start a free 30 day trial, no credit card necessary.