Throughout this course – wherever you see a Set Up lesson – you’ll be making changes to your Google Analytics settings.
Goals, Filters, Content Groupings… you’ll be creating them all!
Each of these types of configurations permanently change your data. It’s possible to get something wrong and end up with slightly off, totally inaccurate or NO data until you realize your mistake. Or you might want to refer to completely unchanged data some time in the future.
Create Views to backup your data and test your changes
RECAP: Views are different ways to look at all the Google Analytics data about your shop or website, using different filters and other settings.
Raw Data
Contains minimal settings changes from the Google Analytics default.
The “Raw Data” View is a backup in case you get something wrong, like accidentally create a filter that removes ALL your data and you don’t notice for a week!
Test
Contains settings and configurations you want to trial first, to make sure they work correctly and don’t ruin your data. Only apply them to your main View when you’re sure they’re working ok.
Make the changes in this course in this View first! There’s a bonus lesson at the end about how to transfer them.
All Web Site Data
Your main View, with all your current, tested settings and configurations. This is where you look at reports.
Stop! Protect that data! – Preparing Google Analytics with backup & test Views
IMPORTANT: These instructions are for Universal Analytics. Google Analytics 4 comes with a built-in method for testing filters without needing to maintain separate Views. (In fact, the concept of “Views” no longer exists!) Before you start creating or testing things with Filters in Google Analytics, it’s important to take some steps to keep your data safe. What’s the danger? Whenever…