Before vs after with GA4
Measure a release with the history Google Analytics already has: up to a year back, results right away, nothing to publish.
Your release went out months ago, and Needlr wasn't counting that KPI yet. Google Analytics probably was. Connect GA4 and use its history for a before versus after impact check.
If you use Google Analytics (GA4), it has been keeping your numbers for months. Needlr can use that history to measure a change you already released to everyone, even one from before you started using Needlr.
Think of a bank statement
You start a budget today, and want to know if you spent less since you moved house in March. You never wrote anything down.
But your bank did. Every payment is on your statements, month by month. You can compare before and after the move, today.
Google Analytics is your website's bank statement. Needlr reads it to compare the weeks before a release with the weeks after.
When to use it
- A change that's already live for everyone, measured before vs after.
- A release from months ago, when Needlr wasn't counting that KPI yet.
- A KPI you already track in GA4, like a lead or a purchase.
- Split tests: GA4 doesn't know which visitor saw which version.
- Adoption checks: they count people one by one, and GA4 gives daily totals.
Before you start
Connect Google Analytics on your project's Settings tab, in the Google Analytics card (how). Needlr can only read your numbers. It can't change anything.
How to measure a release with GA4
- 1On your project page, press + New impact check. Give it a short name and pick Before vs after.
- 2Set the Release date: the day it went live for everyone. With GA4 it can be up to a year back.
- 3Which needle should it move? Your GA4 key events show up with a small GA4 tag. Click one. Or press + New KPI and pick Reach a page: it's counted by Google Analytics too, unless you press Change to count it with Needlr.
- 4Under the KPI, a line says Counted by Google Analytics · history available, results right away.
- 5How should we test it? Choose How sure do you want to be?.
- 6Press Start measuring. No Tag Manager publish and no authenticator code are needed.
Picked a KPI Needlr counts itself, and it has no history from before the release? Step 3 says so, and offers GA4 events that do: Google Analytics has history from before the release. Count one of these with it instead. Each one shows how many times it happened in the last 28 days.
How it's different from Needlr's own counting
- Up to a year back, on every account. Needlr's own history only starts the day it starts counting a KPI (more). GA4 already has yours.
- Results right away. For a release more than 4 weeks ago, the verdict usually comes within the hour.
- Nothing on your site changes. That's why there's no Tag Manager publish and no authenticator code, to start or to stop it.
- Day by day. Needlr reads, for each day, how many users were active and how many did your event. It compares 4 weeks before the release with 4 weeks after. If one person is active on three days, GA4 counts them on each of those days.
- Refreshed every hour. GA4 keeps adjusting the last two days, so Needlr reads them again every hour.
- No unusual traffic filter. GA4 sends daily totals, so Needlr can't spot and leave out a strange burst of visitors (more).
What you'll see on the check page
- What counts as success has a Google Analytics badge, and says it's counted from users who did the event, out of all active users each day.
- Just after you start: Waiting for the numbers from Google Analytics. They arrive within an hour.
- Then the usual before vs after result, with the same warnings (before vs after).
Common mistakes
- The wrong GA4 property. Pick the property of the same website as this project.
- An event that isn't really your goal. Events GA4 records by itself, like page_view or scroll, aren't offered in step 3. Pick a real action, like a lead.
- Disconnecting Google Analytics. Impact checks that use it stop getting new numbers, and a new one can't start until you connect again.
- Looking for GA4 KPIs in a split test. They only appear for Before vs after.
What the video says
Your release went out months ago, and Needlr wasn't counting that KPI yet. Google Analytics probably was. Connect GA4 and use its history for a before versus after impact check.
On your project's Settings tab, connect Google Analytics and pick the property. Access is read only: Needlr can see the numbers and can't change a thing.
Create a before versus after impact check. In step 2, your GA4 key events show up with a small GA4 tag. Pick one, like a lead or a purchase, as the needle.
Press Start measuring. No Tag Manager publish and no authenticator code, because nothing on your site changes. For a past release, the verdict usually arrives within the hour.
Needlr reads the daily numbers from GA4: active users, and how many did your event. It compares four weeks before with four weeks after, and refreshes every hour as GA4 settles.
Up to a year back, on every plan. Split tests still need Needlr's own counting, because GA4 can't see who got which version. For everything already shipped, your history is the evidence.