5 Advantages and Disadvantages of Google Analytics | Limitations & Benefits of Google Analytics

Google Analytics is a data measurement tool which is used to track website behavior. This tool can be used to know about the website audience, their location, bounce rate, time spent on site and various other metrics. It can be also used to get the detailed data about your webpages. 

Google Analytics is a recommended tool for ecommerce site owners for increasing their sales and improving their marketing capabilities. Even this tool is well popular among private bloggers. Al though there are numerous tools which provide insight about websites, Google Analytics tends to offer wide range of information. We cannot deny that there are lots of benefits using this tool, at the same time it is with some drawbacks too. Once you get an idea about this, you will be able to decide if Google Analytics is a good way to monitor website data.

In this article, I will be concentrating on 5 Advantages and Disadvantages of Google Analytics | Limitations & Benefits of Google Analytics. At the end of this post, you will know the pros and cons of using Google Analytics.

Let's get started,

Advantages of Google Analytics

1. Cost

Google allows you to use the universal analytics version for free. Unlike in a premium version, you are not required to pay anything. Unfortunately, there is some limit. For small services however, this is absolutely free. 

For large enterprise companies which exceed 5 million impressions per month cannot use this service for free. They are compelled to use the higher version called Google Analytics 360 which normally costs around $150000 per year. To justify this higher price range this service offers extra reporting capabilities.

2. User Friendly

Google Analytics makes information easily digestible. The user interface of Google Analytics makes it easier to grasp various information. The users can straightaway look how their website is performing. Metrics such as webpage popularity, audience, location, campaigns, all can be tracked using this single tool. To help you better understand, the data is also shown in the form of charts, tables and graphs.

3. Decision Making

Measuring performance is an important aspect in making decisions. As mentioned earlier, Google Analytics can be used to understand user behavior. Various insights provided by this Analytics tool makes it easier to make judgements. Exactly, you will know what your customers are interested on your site and what changes can be done to improve the relationship. All the data shown here are based on the real customer interaction. 

4. Availability

On default, Google Analytics is a universal tool. It provides the opportunity for anyone around the world to understand their website metrics. For large organizations, it makes it easy for them to analyze their insights while operating different businesses worldwide.

5. Device Support

Google Analytics is able to support multiple devices. It is not just available for desktop computers. Analytics is compatible with smartphones and tablets. So you can view your website metrics using these devices too. But only under the condition of having an internet connection. 

This makes Google Analytics a recommended tool for business which constantly on the move and need immediate access to their accounts.

Disadvantages of Google Analytics

1. Reliability

Google Analytics is not a reliable tool always. In some instances, bot traffic is mistakenly reported as genuine traffic in the Google Analytics dashboard. Google cannot track websites individually. Therefore, whatever the information provided should be taken as approximations. 

There is also cases where the source of traffic is reported incorrectly. Subsequently, these incorrect information will be stored inside the server forever. So you need to include this in the future reference as well.

2. Limitations

Google Analytics typically provides ample amount of information on how your website performs. However, this information is still limited. Google Analytics free version is entirely dependent upon cookies. Some country government and regulatory organizations pose restrictions on the internet cookie usage. So it is not always the best way to track using cookies. 

If your business requires more intelligent form of tracking then you may need to consider opting for Google Analytics 4. Unlike in standard Google Analytics version, Google Analytics 4 uses more advanced form of AI and machine learning.

3. Redundancy

We cannot also deny that Google Analytics reports too many metrics which is unnecessary for an average user. Sometimes, these excess data can actually create confusion. For navigating one single information users need to go through lots of options. Despite Google Analytics offering lots of information only a small percentage is actually helpful.

4. Complexity

Even though the user interface is made simpler, still it can be confusing to some rookie users. With constant new updates it may get even more complex. Unless you are a web analytic expert, you may require training in using it. 

If you are new user, you will need to spend some time learning about this tool. This requires lots of patience since it can cost your time. Even for some people installing Google Analytics is a challenging process. 

5. Technical Support

Overtime, you will understand that setting up and maintaining an analytics account is not an easy process. Google Analytics lacks on the side of technical support. There is no dedicated support to help you resolve issues. 

Once you encounter a problem, the only option available is either a community forum or an online documentation. Sometimes, the solutions provided here can be outdated or completely irrelevant. Hence, you can no longer apply these solutions for your current problem.