Skip to main content

GA4 Dashboard & Reporting Guide

Learn how to create powerful dashboards and reports to understand how users interact with the 4SCH documentation.

Quick Start​

Access your analytics: Google Analytics Dashboard → Select property G-9DY20V8FQD

📊 Pre-Built Reports​

1. Real-Time Overview​

Path: Reports → Realtime

What to watch:

  • 👥 Active users right now
  • 📄 Pages being viewed currently
  • 🌍 User locations
  • ⚡ Events firing in real-time

Use cases:

  • Test new features immediately
  • Monitor traffic during launches
  • Verify event tracking
  • See immediate user response

2. Engagement Overview​

Path: Reports → Engagement → Overview

Key metrics:

  • 📈 Total users
  • ⏱️ Average engagement time
  • 📱 Engaged sessions per user
  • 🔄 Event count

Use cases:

  • Measure overall documentation health
  • Track engagement trends
  • Identify popular content
  • Monitor user retention

3. Pages and Screens​

Path: Reports → Engagement → Pages and screens

What you'll see:

  • Most viewed pages
  • Average time on page
  • Bounce rate per page
  • Entry/exit pages

Use cases:

  • Find most popular documentation
  • Identify pages that need improvement
  • Optimize high-traffic pages
  • Understand user journey

4. Events Report​

Path: Reports → Engagement → Events

All tracked events:

  • guide_view - Guide section visits
  • search_open - Search interactions
  • code_copy - Code snippet copies
  • file_download - Downloads
  • video_start/pause/complete - Video engagement
  • scroll_depth - Reading depth
  • time_on_page - Engagement duration
  • navigation_click - Navigation patterns
  • contact_support - Support requests
  • faq_expand - FAQ usage
  • And more...

🎨 Creating Custom Dashboards​

Dashboard 1: Documentation Health Monitor​

Purpose: Quick overview of documentation performance

Setup:

  1. Go to Explore → Create a new exploration
  2. Name it: "Documentation Health Monitor"
  3. Add the following cards:

Card 1: Total Users (Last 7 Days)​

  • Metric: Total users
  • Visualization: Scorecard
  • Time range: Last 7 days
  • Comparison: Previous period

Card 2: Top 10 Pages​

  • Dimension: Page path
  • Metrics: Views, Avg. engagement time
  • Visualization: Table
  • Rows: 10
  • Sort: By Views (descending)

Card 3: Daily Traffic Trend​

  • Dimension: Date
  • Metrics: Users, Sessions
  • Visualization: Line chart
  • Time range: Last 30 days

Card 4: Events Overview​

  • Dimension: Event name
  • Metrics: Event count
  • Visualization: Bar chart
  • Filter: Custom events only

Dashboard 2: User Engagement Deep Dive​

Purpose: Understand how users interact with content

Card 1: Scroll Depth Analysis​

  • Dimension: Event label (scroll_depth)
  • Filter: Event name = 'scroll_depth'
  • Visualization: Donut chart
  • Shows: How many users read 25%, 50%, 75%, 100%

Card 2: Time on Page Distribution​

  • Dimension: Event label (time_on_page)
  • Filter: Event name = 'time_on_page'
  • Visualization: Bar chart
  • Shows: 10s, 30s, 60s, 120s retention

Card 3: Navigation Patterns​

  • Dimension: Event label (navigation_click)
  • Filter: Event name = 'navigation_click'
  • Visualization: Pie chart
  • Shows: Navbar, sidebar, footer, TOC usage

Card 4: Code Copy Rate​

  • Dimension: Page path
  • Metrics: code_copy event count
  • Visualization: Table
  • Shows: Pages where users copy code most

Dashboard 3: Guide Performance Tracker​

Purpose: Compare performance across different user guides

Card 1: Guide Views Comparison​

  • Dimension: Event parameter: guide_type
  • Filter: Event name = 'guide_view'
  • Metrics: Event count, Unique users
  • Visualization: Column chart

Card 2: Guide Engagement Time​

  • Dimension: Page path
  • Filter: Page path contains '/guides/'
  • Metrics: Average engagement time
  • Visualization: Table

Card 3: Guide Completion Rate​

  • Dimension: Page path
  • Filter: Page path contains '/guides/'
  • Metrics: scroll_depth (100%) events
  • Visualization: Table

Dashboard 4: Support Insights​

Purpose: Understand support needs and FAQ usage

Card 1: Contact Support Clicks​

  • Dimension: Page location (from event parameters)
  • Filter: Event name = 'contact_support'
  • Metrics: Event count
  • Visualization: Table
  • Shows: Which pages trigger support requests

Card 2: FAQ Expansions​

  • Dimension: Event label (question text)
  • Filter: Event name = 'faq_expand'
  • Metrics: Event count
  • Visualization: Table
  • Shows: Most common questions

Card 3: Search Patterns​

  • Filter: Event name = 'search_open'
  • Metrics: Event count by page
  • Shows: Where users need to search

📈 Custom Reports & Explorations​

Report 1: User Journey Analysis​

What it shows: How users navigate through documentation

Setup:

  1. Explore → Path exploration
  2. Starting point: Landing page
  3. Steps: Show next 3 pages
  4. Segment: New vs. Returning users

Insights:

  • Common documentation paths
  • Where users drop off
  • Popular entry points
  • Navigation efficiency

Report 2: Content Gap Analysis​

What it shows: Pages with high traffic but low engagement

Setup:

  1. Explore → Free form
  2. Dimensions: Page path
  3. Metrics:
    • Views (high)
    • Average engagement time (low)
    • Scroll depth 100% (low)
  4. Filter: Views > 100, Avg time < 30s

Insights:

  • Pages that need improvement
  • Content that doesn't meet user needs
  • Opportunities for enhancement

Report 3: Video Performance​

What it shows: Video engagement metrics

Setup:

  1. Explore → Free form
  2. Dimensions: Event label (video URL)
  3. Metrics:
    • video_start count
    • video_complete count
    • video_pause average value (% watched)
  4. Calculated metric: Completion rate = (completes / starts) * 100

Insights:

  • Which videos are watched completely
  • Drop-off points
  • Video effectiveness

Report 4: Download Analytics​

What it shows: File download patterns

Setup:

  1. Explore → Free form
  2. Dimension: File name (from event parameters)
  3. Filter: Event name = 'file_download'
  4. Metrics: Event count, Unique users

Insights:

  • Most downloaded resources
  • Download trends
  • Resource popularity

🎯 Conversion & Goal Setup​

Conversion 1: Documentation Completion​

Definition: User reads guide to 100% scroll depth

Setup in GA4:

  1. Admin → Events → Create event
  2. Event name: documentation_complete
  3. Matching conditions:
    • Event name = scroll_depth
    • Event label = 100%
    • Page path contains /guides/
  4. Mark as conversion: ✅ Yes

Conversion 2: Support Contact Intent​

Definition: User clicks contact support

Setup:

  1. Admin → Events → Mark as conversion
  2. Select event: contact_support
  3. Toggle: Mark as conversion ✅

Conversion 3: Code Implementation​

Definition: User copies code snippet

Setup:

  1. Admin → Events → Mark as conversion
  2. Select event: code_copy
  3. Toggle: Mark as conversion ✅

Conversion 4: Resource Download​

Definition: User downloads documentation resource

Setup:

  1. Admin → Events → Mark as conversion
  2. Select event: file_download
  3. Toggle: Mark as conversion ✅

🔍 Advanced Segments​

Segment 1: Engaged Readers​

Criteria:

  • Time on page > 60 seconds
  • Scroll depth ≥ 50%
  • Sessions ≥ 1

Use case: Find highly engaged users

Segment 2: Quick Browsers​

Criteria:

  • Time on page < 10 seconds
  • Scroll depth < 25%
  • Bounce rate = 100%

Use case: Identify content that doesn't engage

Segment 3: Code-Focused Users​

Criteria:

  • code_copy events ≥ 1
  • Page path contains guides or reference

Use case: Understand developer documentation needs

Segment 4: Support Seekers​

Criteria:

  • contact_support events ≥ 1 OR
  • search_open events ≥ 3 OR
  • FAQ views ≥ 5

Use case: Users who need help finding answers

Segment 5: Guide Power Users​

Criteria:

  • guide_view events ≥ 3
  • Different guide types ≥ 2
  • Return visits ≥ 2

Use case: Active documentation users across roles

📊 Key Metrics to Monitor​

Daily Metrics​

  • ✅ Active users (realtime)
  • ✅ Page views
  • ✅ Top 5 pages
  • ✅ Error events (if configured)

Weekly Metrics​

  • 📈 User growth (vs. previous week)
  • 📊 Engagement rate
  • 🎯 Conversion events
  • 🔍 Search usage
  • 📄 New vs. returning users

Monthly Metrics​

  • 📚 Content performance (all guides)
  • 🎬 Video completion rates
  • 💬 Support contact rate
  • 📥 Download trends
  • 🌍 Geographic distribution
  • 📱 Device breakdown
  • ⏱️ Average engagement time trends

🚀 Action Items from Analytics​

If bounce rate is high (Greater than 70%)​

  • ❗ Review page content quality
  • ❗ Improve page load speed
  • ❗ Add better internal links
  • ❗ Check for broken links

If scroll depth is low (Less than 50%)​

  • ❗ Content too long or complex
  • ❗ Add table of contents
  • ❗ Break into smaller sections
  • ❗ Improve formatting

If search usage is high​

  • ❗ Navigation might be unclear
  • ❗ Content discovery issues
  • ❗ Add popular searches to navigation
  • ❗ Improve search functionality

If support contacts are increasing​

  • ❗ Documentation gaps exist
  • ❗ Complex features need better explanation
  • ❗ Add more examples
  • ❗ Create FAQ entries

🎓 Best Practices​

1. Regular Reviews​

  • 📅 Daily: Check realtime for issues
  • 📅 Weekly: Review engagement metrics
  • 📅 Monthly: Deep dive into trends
  • 📅 Quarterly: Strategy adjustment

2. Data-Driven Decisions​

  • ✅ Use data to prioritize documentation updates
  • ✅ A/B test significant changes
  • ✅ Track impact of improvements
  • ✅ Share insights with team

3. Dashboard Hygiene​

  • 🧹 Archive unused dashboards
  • 🧹 Update filters regularly
  • 🧹 Document custom metrics
  • 🧹 Share dashboards with team

4. Privacy Compliance​

  • 🔒 Review data retention settings
  • 🔒 Respect user privacy preferences
  • 🔒 Document data usage
  • 🔒 Regular privacy audits

📱 Mobile App (GA4 Dashboard)​

Download the Google Analytics app to monitor on the go:

Features:

  • Real-time monitoring
  • Push notifications for anomalies
  • Quick metric checks
  • Report sharing

🔗 Quick Links​

ResourceURL
GA4 PropertyG-9DY20V8FQD Dashboard
Realtime ReportAdmin → Reports → Realtime
Custom DashboardsAdmin → Explore
Event ConfigurationAdmin → Events
Conversion SetupAdmin → Events → Mark as conversion

💡 Pro Tips​

  1. Set up alerts: Get notified of traffic spikes or drops
  2. Compare periods: Always compare to previous period
  3. Use annotations: Mark significant events (launches, updates)
  4. Export data: Regular backups to Google Sheets
  5. Share insights: Create automatic reports for stakeholders
  6. Mobile monitoring: Use GA4 app for quick checks
  7. Custom dimensions: Leverage user_role, guide_type dimensions
  8. Event debugging: Use DebugView for event verification

🎯 Success Criteria​

Your documentation analytics are working well if:

✅ High engagement time (more than 2 minutes average)
✅ Deep scroll rates (more than 50% reach 75% depth)
✅ Low bounce rate (less than 40% for guides)
✅ Active code copying (indicates useful examples)
✅ Low support contact rate (self-service working)
✅ Increasing return visits (valuable resource)

📞 Support​

Need help with GA4 dashboards?

Internal Resources:

  • Analytics Setup Guide: /reference/analytics-setup
  • Verification Script: scripts/verify-ga4.js
Last updated on