Data is the buzzword right now, how to collect it, manage it, store it, and leverage it. Data Stacks, Data Lakes, First Party Data, Etcetera. 

  • Without data, you are just another person with an opinion
  • Without an opinion, you’re just another person with data

That’s because data doesn’t have any intrinsic value on its own. It is useful only when it is interpreted correctly and used to create positive changes within your company. 

Google has announced that Universal Analytics will be officially replaced on July 1st, 2023. GA4, the latest version of Google’s analytics platform and the eventual replacement for Universal Analytics has been available since October 2020 but has not been widely adopted. This new analytics platform is largely focused on visitor engagement and event tracking.

When Should You Start with GA4? 

The short answer is now. 

There’s a lot of lingo out there when it comes to digital marketing, especially in the automotive space. 

At sMedia, we’ve run into a few scenarios where a vendor may be using a term like lead or conversion and it’s not totally clear as to what they’re referring to. We encourage our dealers and our team to clarify when they’re having conversations exactly what they mean, asking questions like “what are you counting as a lead?” and “what is a conversion in this report?” 

Vendor reports sometimes only measure those things that the vendor requires for their product or service to perform well. We, therefore, think it’s essential for dealers to have a solid understanding of terms like conversions, leads and attribution mean so that you can have better conversations with your vendors and your sMedia Customer Success Manager. 

Ready to learn? Read on.

We know that shoppers don’t make decisions in a straight line. They’re researching their purchase all over the internet, it’s likely that they’ll visit your website multiple times in addition to seeing your ads, reading reviews, doing multiple google searches as well as visiting 3rd party sites…

So how do you know which of your marketing influenced their purchase decision?