Understanding User Acquisition by Medium in Google Analytics 4
Analyzing users by medium is crucial for understanding how different marketing channels contribute to your website traffic. This insight helps allocate marketing budgets effectively and identify which channels bring the most valuable users to your site. We'll show you how to create this essential report in Google Analytics 4 to track and analyze your traffic sources effectively.Basic Report Structure
- Report Type: Free Form Exploration
- Primary Dimension: Session medium
- Visualization: Table format with optional bar chart
- Time Range: Customizable (recommended: 30 days)
- Comparison: Option to compare time periods
Steps to Create the Report
- Open GA4 and navigate to Explore section
- Click the Blank template to start a new exploration
- Under the Dimensions click the + button and search for Session medium, check the checkbox beside it and click Confirm
- Under the Metrics click the + button and search for Total users, New users, Engaged sessions, and Average engagement time, check the checkboxes and click Confirm
- Drag Session medium to the Rows section of your report
- Drag all selected metrics to the Values section of your report
- In the Filters section, add any specific conditions you want to apply
- Set your desired date range in the report settings
- Optional: Add a comparison date range to analyze trends
Important Dimensions and Metrics
- Session medium: Shows the marketing medium (organic, cpc, referral, etc.)
- Total users: Number of unique users from each medium
- New users: First-time visitors from each medium
- Engaged sessions: Quality of visits from each medium
- Average engagement time: How long users from each medium interact with your site
Actionable Insights
- Identify which mediums bring the most engaged users and allocate more budget to these channels
- Compare new vs. total users to understand which mediums are best for user acquisition
- Analyze engagement time across mediums to optimize content for different traffic sources
- Use the insights to adjust your marketing mix and channel strategy
- Monitor trends over time to detect changes in channel effectiveness
Answers Similar Questions
- How to track traffic sources in GA4
- GA4 medium report setup
- Google Analytics 4 channel analysis
- Track marketing channels in Google Analytics
- GA4 traffic source reporting guide
