How does Elevar compare to the native Shopify GA4 integration
Overview:
As of March 2023, the Google Sales Channel in Shopify allows you to enable a GA4 Tracking Integration.
Main Takeaways:
Should I use the native GA4/Shopify integration or should I use Elevar's Server-Side GA4 integration?
We'd recommend using Elevar's Server-Side GA4 integration.
Are there any benefits to using the Elevar over the native GA4 integration?
Yes! The main benefits (as of March '23) of using Elevar over the native integration are:
- Elevar sends the purchase event sent server-side (guarantees 99%+ order accuracy). The native integration using client-side tracking, which can under report due to adblockers, page load speed, etc.
- You can track product list performance data with Elevar. The native integration does not track this
Elevar tracks upsell data. The native integration only sends a purchase event on the final thank you page. If a shopper navigates away before they make it to the thank you page (which many customers do when shown an upsell offer), data never gets sent. - Elevar allows you to track shopping behavior rates correctly (cart-to-detail, buy-to-detail rates you're used to seeing in UA, for example) by name. The native integration includes the parent and variant name in the name field. On most stores, you will only get a product view of the default variant, but you will get add to carts and purchases of the variant the customer selected. Elevar passes only the parent name, so you get a consistent name throughout the shopping funnel.
- Elevar tracks the "add_shipping_info" step. The native integration does not.
- Elevar passes product information in the "add_payment_info" step. The native integration does not pass product information.
- Elevar allows you to customize the order identifier, product identifier, & transaction value.
- Elevar passes a user identifier. This leads to less direct/none data & more data attributable to a marketing channel. The native integration does not pass a user identifier.
- Elevar setup can work on non-Shopify pages.
Are there any benefits to using the native GA4 integration over Elevar?
With the native integration, stores without the checkout.liquid can track checkout funnel events.
Elevar has this functionality in beta. As of now (March '23), our beta will track checkout funnel events, but it may under-report. We are releasing an update in April where this will no longer under-report.
On Elevar's Fully Managed server & want to join this beta? Email [email protected] with your account name & say "I want to join the checkout funnel beta"!
Full Comparison Chart:
Last Updated on March 13th 2023
| Event Data | Elevar | Google Sales Channel |
|---|---|---|
| vistor_type parameter | Yes | No |
| Product list tracking | Yes | No |
| ecomm_prodid, ecomm_totalvalue, ecomm_pagetype parameters | No, but can be added via GTM | Yes, on view_item, add_to_cart, and begin_checkout events (totalvalue NaN on PDP) |
| Product id sent | Customizable - sku, product id, or variant id | Product id only |
| Product name sent | Parent | Parent - variant (begin_checkout event only sends parent) |
| Sends additional product IDs | Yes | No |
| Data on checkout without checkout.liquid | No | Yes |
| begin_checkout | Fires every time info page is visited | Only fires first time |
| add_shipping_info | Yes | No |
| add_payment_info | Sent on view of payment step. Includes product data | Sent on payment submission. No product data included |
| Server side purchase | Yes | No |
| Transaction ID | Customizable - Order Name, Order Number, or Order ID | Order Name |
| Transaction value | Customizable - Grand Total, Subtotal, or Product Subtotal | Subtotal |
| user_id | Yes | No |
| page_path parameter | No | Yes (not beautified on checkout like UA) |
Upsell Comparison
| Event Data | Elevar | Google Sales Channel |
|---|---|---|
| Post purchase pageview | /[ShopID]/checkouts/checkout_one_web_analytics | /checkouts/c/[CartID]/post-purchase |
| Purchase event | Sent server side based on order create webhook. Data based on original order (does not include products purchased in upsell) | Sent browser side on thank you page. Data based on original order only. Value = subtotal |
| Upsell event | Sent browser side on upsell accept. Includes data from upsell only | NO |
Note: The native GA4/Shopify integration is new, and we've seen a beta flag on it. We expect changes to the integration in the future.
Updated 5 months ago