Victorian Collections provides users with data from Google Analytics on a by request basis. This data can help your organisation to better understand how and what the public are viewing from your collection. It’s important to note that types of analytics that are available for individual organisations are limited. Broadly the types of data that be provided via Google Analytics are number of page views, peak visitation days, and top items of interest. If there is information in addition to these areas that your organisation hopes to access, contact the VC team, however we cannot guarantee that it will be reportable via Google Analytics at organisation level.
In 2023, Google is replacing its existing analytics platform, Universal Analytics (commonly known as GA3) with a new platform, Google Analytics 4 (GA4). From 1 July 2023, Google will only process data in GA4.
Google will not migrate historical data from GA3 to GA4, meaning that the new platform will preserve analytics from 1 July 2023 onwards. Google has also advised that after July 1, it will be possible to access historic data within GA3 for at least six months. The VC team are preparing workflows to export and preserve historical data recording statistics relating to views of individual item pages over time. However we strongly recommend that VC organisations place requests for data captured prior to 30 June 2023, as soon as possible.
What does this mean for my organisation?
You can still request analytics for your organisation’s collection page as normal, however there are some considerations to keep in mind:
Requesting analytics for data captured prior to 30 June 2023
Please place your request for this data with the Victorian Collections team as soon as possible so we can ensure you are able to easily access your analytics for the 2022/23 financial year period. To allow us to prioritise requests, please also include any relevant due dates (e.g. internal report submissions, board meetings, annual report required).
Requesting analytics for data captured from 1 July 2023
Requests for analytics relating to data captured from 1 July 2023 onwards may require increased processing time as the VC team become more familiar with the new platform.
Placing an analytics request
The process of placing a request for Google Analytics data is straightforward. Simply submit a ticket to the Victorian Collections helpdesk which includes the following information: - The name of your organisation
- The exact time period you are interested in (e.g. 1 Jul 2018 - 30 June 2019)
- The data you are interested in (e.g. number of page views, popular items)
As each analytics request needs to be processed manually by a team member, it’s important to provide as much lead time as possible before you need this data and be specific about what type of data you would like to receive.
Still have questions? Leave a comment.