Overview: Metric Builder for Google Analytics 4

With the Metric Builder for Google Analytics 4, you can create Custom Google Analytics 4 Metrics using a combination of Metrics, Dimensions, and Filters.

Some popular use cases for the Metric Builder for Google Analytics 4 include creating content-specific Metrics, reporting on Events, etc.

HOW TO

Access Custom Metrics and Metric Builder for Google Analytics 4
Use the Metric Builder for Google Analytics 4
Create a Custom Google Analytics 4 Metric [Example]
Add a Custom Google Analytics 4 Metric to a Databoard
Additional Information

How to access Custom Metrics and Metric Builder for Google Analytics 4

Navigate to Metrics > Custom Metrics to access the Metric Builder. Click the green + New Custom Metric button and select your connected Google Analytics 4 Account from the Data Source drop-down list.

Metric Builder is available on the Professional and higher plans. Request a trial of Metric Builder by following these steps.

How to use the Metric Builder for Google Analytics 4

A) Data Source: This is the Google Analytics 4 Data Source that the Custom Metric is syncing data from.

B) Metric: Select a Metric from your connected Google Analytics 4 Data Source, such as Sessions, Active Users, Event Counts.

C) Dimension (Optional): The Dimensions parameter re-categorizes the returned Metric value based on common criteria. Examples of Dimensions are Campaign, Age, and Page Path. If no Dimension is selected, the Custom Metric will store 1 aggregated Metric value for each Date Range.

Pro Tip: Add the word "by" in between the Metric and Dimension in order to determine an appropriate Custom Metric Name. From the Metric and Dimension examples outlined above, we could create the Custom Metrics "Sessions by Campaign," "Active Users by Age," or "Event Counts by Page Path."

Most tables in Google Analytics organize Dimensions into rows and Metrics into columns. To replicate the Google Analytics table below in Databox, you would need to create 6 Custom Metrics: "Users by User Type," "New Users by User Type," "Sessions by User Type," "Bounce Rate by User Type," "Pages / Session by User Type," and "Avg Session Duration by User Type."

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D) Invert Metric (Optional): By default, the percentage change value displayed on Datablocks is green when the Metric value has increased and red when the Metric value has decreased. If the Custom Metric you created has opposite trends, select this option. Learn more here.

E) Filter by (Optional): Filters restrict the data that gets included in the Custom Metric. All data that is returned is tested against the Filter(s). Multiple Filters can be combined using AND /OR boolean logic.

If the data synced from the Metric and Dimension fields meet the Filter specifications, the data is retained and included in the Custom Metric value. If the data synced from the Metric and Dimension fields don't meet the Filter specifications, the data is excluded from the Custom Metric value.

Pro Tip: If you don't know which Filters to put in place for your use case, use the Dimension + Data Preview to troubleshoot and get more insight into the data that is returned from your Google Analytics Account for each field. Learn more here .

F) Preview data: After clicking Preview data, a Data Preview of the Custom Metric will be displayed. Daily Metric values are displayed in this section, along with the total Metric values for the Date Range in bold at the bottom. You can view the Data Preview for different Date Ranges by clicking on the drop-down list at the top of the Data Preview.

G) Custom Metric Name: Enter a name for your Custom Metric. This Custom Metric name will be available in the Designer after saving.

H) Save: Save your Custom Metric.

How to create a Custom Google Analytics 4 Metric [Example]

In this example, we'll create a Custom Metric to report on Active Users tracked in the Google Analytics Account split up based on the Day of week, since we want to see on which days users are most active.

Navigate to Metrics > Custom Metrics
Click the green + New Custom Metric button
Select the appropriate Google Analytics 4 Data Source
Select Active Users from the Metric drop-down list
Next, we'll select Day of week from the Dimensions drop-down list so that the Active Users values returned are split up based on the Day of week when users are active.
We don't need to filter the data further, so we will leave the Filter section blank as well.
To accurately explain what this Custom Metric is reporting on, we'll name the Custom Metric "Active Users by Day of week"
Click Preview Data to generate a Data Preview of the Custom Metric.
Once we confirm that these are the results we're looking for, we'll click Save to save the Custom Metric.

How to add a Custom Google Analytics 4 Metric to a Databoard

Learn how to add a Custom Metric to a Databoard here.

Additional Information

(not set) is a placeholder name that Google Analytics uses when it hasn't received any information for the Dimension you have selected.

Google's API displays (not-set) for campaigns syncing with Google Analytics through an external integration with Google Ads, Google Search Console, etc. For Google Analytics Campaigns, the actual name of the Campaign is displayed.

Learn more about the (not set) behavior in Google here.

To clean up your reports in Databox, you can exclude or rename the (not set) Dimension for Custom Metrics by following these steps.

When a Metric contains "Age," "Gender," or "Interests" as a Dimension, a threshold may be applied in Google Analytics, and some data may be withheld from the report.

This happens when your website has low traffic. As a result, thresholds are applied to your report by Google Analytics to prevent anyone viewing a report from inferring the demographics or interests of individual users. This is a limitation set by Google Analytics.

In Google Analytics, when a threshold is applied to a report, a yellow icon is displayed at the top of the report, along with a notice below the report title. If no threshold is applied, a green icon is displayed.