‘Democratize Data’ is one of Quantifi’s core values, so we are often asked about this. At the heart of this issue lies control. When it comes to analytics data, you believe you should control and own your data. We advise all our partners to create and manage their Google Analytics accounts, giving them unbiased and transparent information to make informed business decisions.
You may be just starting with GA4, so this is an excellent time to review who controls your account and owns your GA4 data. We have had many businesses come to us with GA accounts that they are surprised to learn are owned by ex-employees, former vendors, jilted lovers, or all of the above, and they have no control or access to their data.
The following will show you how to check who is in control.
To see your roles, log in to GA4 and click the bottom left Admin Icon > Account Access Management. You can assign five roles to your GA4 account: Administrator, Editor, Analyst, Viewer, and None. You want to ensure you have Admin access for yourself. Ideally, this will be via a business-owned work email, so in case there is a personnel change or someone leaves to go play for the Mets, the business retains control. There are many stories of people leaving organizations and taking access with them, never to be seen again.
Admin access is the highest level and allows you to manage users and grant permissions. Look at who has admin access; if you do not want them to have this control, you can adjust their permissions or remove them from the org if they are no longer employees or vendors.
If you do not have admin access, you can email the administrator and ask for increased permissions.
If the admin does not grant you permissions, we suggest you create your own GA4 instance.
Administrator
Full control of Analytics. Can manage users (add/delete users, assign any role or data restriction). Can grant full permissions to any user, including themselves, for any account or property for which they have this role. Includes permissions of the Editor role. (Replaces Manage Users permission.)
Editor
Full control of settings at the property level. Cannot manage users. Includes permissions for the Analyst role. (New name for Edit permission.)
Analyst
Can create, edit, and delete certain property assets. Can collaborate on shared assets. Includes permissions of the Viewer role. (New name for Collaborate permission.)
Viewer
Can see settings and data; can change which data appears in reports (e.g., add comparisons, add a secondary dimension); can see shared assets via the user interface or the APIs. Cannot collaborate on shared assets. For example, shared explorations can be viewed, but not edited, by those with a Viewer role. (New name for Read & Analyze permission.)
None
The user has no role in this resource. The user may have a role for another resource.
Data Restrictions
No Cost Metrics
Cannot see metrics related to cost. Cost metrics are unavailable in reports, explorations, audiences, insights, and alerts. See below for more information.
No Revenue Metrics
Cannot see metrics related to revenue. Revenue metrics are unavailable in reports, explorations, audiences, insights, and alerts. See below for more information.
Conclusion
Managing and owning your own data is best practice and will future-proof your business for the long run, so build a strong analytics foundation from the start by owning your accounts and data.
We hope this has been helpful; if you need any assistance, please get in touch with info@getquantifi.com, and we would be happy to help.
Decide with Data.