Google Analytics is a very powerful tool that helps marketers and business owners understand their website users and activity across a B2B website. Analytics provides marketers with a high-level overview of their website and user journeys, but also allows for deep diving into specific segments and exploring what it all means to make business decisions based on core data. In fact, there are many different metrics that you can track through Google Analytics.
In July 2023, Google will be fully transitioning support of their analytics to the new GA4, and sunsetting any support for the current version of Universal Analytics. But, what if the new Google Analytics GA4 isn’t quite cutting it for you? Are there other alternatives?
The short answer is yes, but there are a few components that B2B marketers must consider before making the leap into a new platform.
In this blog, we’ll explore what areas you may want to evaluate for your next analytics platform and a few alternatives to Google Analytics.
What Are You Looking For?
Before we can dive into the alternatives, it’s best to lay out and understand exactly what you’re looking for in the new platform. Here are three big considerations.
Privacy
Google Analytics uses cookies to track user data and behavior. With new and changing privacy laws that constantly get more stringent on the protection of individual privacy and personally identifiable information, it may be enough for your team to consider switching to a new platform that puts user privacy first.
Easy to Use/Navigate, User Experience
Many B2B marketers are already very familiar with Google’s Universal Analytics, so the switch to GA4 and its layout can come as a huge shock for those that haven’t used it before. It may even feel like a completely new platform (here’s a comparison of Universal Analytics and GA4 dashboards). However, at its core, it’s still a Google product and includes similar reports.
With new platforms, your marketing team must be mindful of the initial user experience and ensure that there isn’t a steep learning curve before even using the platform, as this could put them off from the get-go.
Cost
Google Analytics is a free analytics platform, so why should you consider paying for your next analytics tool? This one comes down to additional functionalities, integrations, and customer support that others offer. Some platforms offer additional functionalities like heat mapping tools, session recordings, or built-in A/B testing. Other platforms offer native integrations with your Content Management System (CMS), which makes it even easier to connect. Lastly, customer support is critical to making the most out of your analytics tool – some offer 24-hour support for paid plans that can help answer your most technical questions at any time.
What Are Some of the Alternatives?
Although Google Analytics holds the largest market share of all analytics platforms at 30%, there are a quite a few alternatives that have made a name for themselves over the last few years. Whether you’re looking for a more privacy-centric platform, additional functionalities, or a different user experience, there’s an analytics platform that suits your B2B website design’s needs. We’ve even tested some alternative tools, so you don’t have to! Below are a few good alternatives to start with:
Fathom Analytics
Positives:
- Fathom Analytics is compliant with privacy laws in multiple countries, including GDPR, CCPA and more.
- Offers a built-in WordPress plug-in so your next B2B web design can use it right out of the box.
Negatives:
- Fathom is not free, ranging in prices from $14/month to $44/month and beyond.
- The dashboard is very minimalist and sleek but didn’t seem to offer the robust amount of data that B2B marketers like to know.
Matomo
Positives:
- Matomo was built with privacy compliance in mind.
- Offers similar dashboards and reporting to Google Analytics, so it’s a seamless transition.
Negatives:
- There is a free version of Matomo but offered limited features. The paid version can get very expensive quickly, especially if you’re tracking multiple websites or have a lot of monthly user activity.
- There have been reports of bugs and support that was lackluster at times.
Plausible
Positives
- Like Fathom Analytics and Matomo, Plausible offers an easy-to-use and privacy-friendly alternative to Google Analytics.
- Plausible only requires a small, lightweight script added to your website to work. It’s very easy to set up.
Negatives:
- We found that Plausible wasn’t as detailed with its results as Google Analytics. There were also some data discrepancies, which may could be because they use different tracking methods.
- Plausible Analytics is not free. Pricing depends on your website’s monthly page views and can creep up quickly if you’re generating a lot of B2B website traffic.
Yandex Metrica
Positives:
- Yandex Metrica is free.
- In-depth data tracking and analytics that offers the ability to see the entire user journey, including clicks and scrolls.
Negatives:
- Russian-based company, so there could be some privacy and security concerns.
- The user interface isn’t as intuitive, especially if you’re coming from a tool like Google Analytics.
At the end of the day, it’s up to your B2B marketing team to decide which analytics platform is the best for your website and needs.
