Understanding GA4 Parameters: Key Concepts and Definitions

GA4 event parameters are key-value pairs attached to events in Google Analytics 4 that provide additional context and detailed information about user interactions on your website or app. Unlike Universal Analytics, where different hit types existed, GA4 treats every user interaction as an event, and parameters enrich these events with more granular data.

Key concepts and definitions include:

• Event: Any user interaction tracked in GA4 (e.g., page views, clicks, form submissions).
• Event Parameter: A key-value pair that adds specific details to an event. The key is the parameter name, and the value is the data related to that parameter (e.g., product name, link URL).
• Automatic Parameters: GA4 automatically collects some parameters for certain events, such as page title or page location for page views.
• Custom Parameters: User-defined parameters tailored to specific tracking needs, such as tracking a particular button click or product attribute.
• Custom Dimensions: To make custom event parameters visible in GA4 reports, you must register them as custom dimensions in the GA4 interface under the "Configure" menu. This involves creating a custom dimension with the same name as the event parameter and setting its scope to "event".

Best practices for using GA4 event parameters include:

• Use lowercase letters and separate words with underscores (not spaces or dashes) in parameter names.
• Avoid starting parameter names with reserved prefixes like "ga", "google", or "firebase".
• Plan and document your event parameters carefully, defining their names, expected values, data types, and purposes to ensure consistency and clarity across your analytics implementation.
• Be aware of GA4 limits: up to 10 parameters per event for standard accounts, and 25 for GA4 360 accounts.

Example: To track outbound link clicks, you might create an event named click_outbound with parameters like link_url to capture the URL clicked. This helps understand user navigation after leaving your site and track affiliate conversions.

In summary, GA4 event parameters are essential for capturing detailed, custom insights about user behaviour, enabling more precise analysis and decision-making. Proper setup involves defining parameters, implementing them in your tagging system, and configuring custom dimensions in GA4 to report on them effectively.