Google Analytics 4 (GA4) on your Shoporama online store

Why Google Analytics 4 for your online shop?

Google Analytics 4 (GA4) shows you what's happening in your online store. You can see which pages people visit, where they come from, which products they look at and how many end up buying. This gives you a solid basis for making decisions about marketing, assortment and user experience.

Shoporama has a built-in GA4 integration so you don't have to mess with code, scripts or tags. Simply enter your Measurement ID and Shoporama handles the rest for you. You get automatic e-commerce events, server-side tracking and Consent Mode included in the package.

The easy way: Shoporama's built-in GA4 integration

The recommended way to set up GA4 is via Shoporama's own tracking module. It takes minutes and you get accurate tracking from day one.

Step 1: Create a GA4 property with Google

1. Log in to analytics.google.com
2. Click Admin (the cog in the bottom left corner) and select Create property
3. Follow the wizard, select Web as platform and enter your web shop URL and name
4. Once your data stream is created, your Measurement ID will appear. It starts with G- followed by a series of characters
5. Copy your Measurement ID. You will need it in the next step

Step 2: Enable tracking in Shoporama

1. Log in to your Shoporama administration
2. Go to Online Shop in the left sidebar (the section with the gear icon) and select Tracking
3. Check the Enable tracking checkbox
4. Select whether you want to enable server-side tracking and Consent Mode (more on both below)
5. Under Platforms, check Google GA4
6. In the Measurement ID field, enter your ID in the format G-xxxxxxxx
7. Click Save

That's it. Shoporama will automatically populate your online store and start sending data to GA4. You don't need to ask a developer for help and you don't paste scripts anywhere.

E-commerce events are sent automatically

When GA4 is enabled, Shoporama automatically sends the most important e-commerce events to Google. You don't need to configure anything in GA4 other than setting up your property. The following events are sent:

• view_item - when a customer opens a product and sees the details
• add_to_cart - when a product is added to the cart
• begin_checkout - when the customer begins the checkout process
• purchase - when an order is completed (with order value, products and VAT)

With these events, you get access to all of GA4's e-commerce reports out of the box, including conversion rate, average order value, most popular products and the entire customer journey from first visit to purchase.

Server-side tracking for more accurate measurement

Shoporama offers server-side tracking, where data is sent directly from the server to Google instead of only from the browser. This solves several known issues with traditional client-side tracking.

The benefits of server-side tracking:

• Adblockers don't block data. When measured via your own subdomain, the browser sees it as part of your online store and not as a third party
• More accurate numbers. Browser-based restrictions like ITP, Safari restrictions and disappearing cookies do not affect server-side data
• Better conversion measurement. You typically get 10-30% more recorded conversions compared to client-side only
• Faster online store. Fewer tracking scripts in the browser means faster loading

To enable server-side tracking, check the Enable server-side tracking checkbox on the Tracking page. You also need to create two DNS records (A and CNAME) with your DNS provider. Shoporama will display the exact values on the page and the status will change to Ready when DNS is set up correctly.

Consent Mode v2 and GDPR

GA4 is only allowed to set cookies and collect personal data if the visitor has given consent. This requires Consent Mode v2, which is Google's framework for handling consent correctly.

When you check the Use Consent Mode checkbox on the Tracking page, the following happens automatically:

• GA4 only fires full events when visitors have consented to cookies
• Before consent, anonymous signals are sent so you still get an estimate of traffic
• Shoporama's built-in cookie consent solution sends consent signals directly to Google
• You meet GDPR and ePrivacy Directive requirements without losing insights

If you use a third-party cookie banner like Cookiebot or CookieInformation, make sure it sends correct consent signals to Google. Shoporama's own solution handles this out of the box.

Alternative: Use Google Tag Manager

If you already have a GTM container or need to send data to many different platforms via the same container, you can use Google Tag Manager. It's not necessary to get GA4 working in Shoporama, but it provides flexibility if you work with advanced metrics or third-party tools.

How to set up GTM

1. Create an account and a web container at tagmanager.google.com
2. Write down your GTM Container ID in the format GTM-xxxxxxx
3. In Shoporama, go to Online Shop in the left sidebar and select HTML fields
4. Paste the GTM code in the head section field and the no-script part in the body field(follow Google's instructions)
5. Create a GA4 Configuration tag in GTM with your Measurement ID and trigger it on All Pages
6. Enable Send e-commerce data on the GA4 tag so that Shoporama's dataLayer events are passed on

Shoporama automatically pushes e-commerce events to the dataLayer so that GTM can capture them and pass them on to GA4. If you have already configured server-side tracking in Shoporama and are also using GTM, please make sure that events are not sent twice. Contact support if you are in doubt.

Check that it works

Once you have saved your Measurement ID, you can test that data is arriving:

1. Open your online store in a regular browser (not incognito) and accept cookies if Consent Mode is active
2. Click around: open a product, add it to cart, go to checkout
3. Log in to GA4 and go to Reports " Realtime
4. You should see your own activity within a minute or two
5. To test e-commerce events, you can use GA4's DebugView together with the Google Analytics Debugger extension in Chrome

E-commerce reports (Monetization section in GA4) typically take 24-48 hours before they are fully populated with data the first time.

Related topics

• Tracking in your Shoporama online store - main overview of all tracking options
• Google Ads conversion tracking - so you can measure the impact of your ads
• HTML fields for scripts and GTM
• Cookie consent and Consent Mode v2
• Server-side tracking

Frequently asked questions

Do I have to pay for Google Analytics 4?

Google Analytics 4 is free to use for the vast majority of online stores. Shoporama's tracking module is a paid feature (you can see the price on the Tracking page in your admin), but it includes integration with all major advertising platforms, server-side tracking and Consent Mode.

Where do I find the Tracking menu item in the admin?

In the Shoporama admin, you'll find it in the left sidebar under the Online Shop (the section marked with a gear icon). Click on Online Shop to expand the menu and select Tracking.

Do the GA4 numbers match my orders in Shoporama?

GA4 shows how many purchases are registered via tracking, which does not always match 100% with the number of orders in Shoporama. The differences are typically due to visitors who have rejected cookies, users of adblockers or network errors. Server-side tracking reduces these differences significantly. For accounting and bookkeeping, always use orders from Shoporama, not GA4.

I have switched from Universal Analytics. What do I need to do?

Universal Analytics has been completely shut down by Google. You need to create a brand new GA4 property and insert your new Measurement ID in Shoporama. The old UA tracking ID with the format UA-xxxxxx no longer works. Historical data from UA is only available as an export.

Do I need to use both Shoporama's built-in GA4 and Google Tag Manager?

No, this is not necessary. Shoporama's built-in GA4 integration is enough for most eCommerce stores. GTM only makes sense if you're already used to it or if you need to send data to many different third-party tools like Hotjar, Microsoft Clarity and the like. If you use both the built-in GA4 and GTM with GA4 tag, you risk getting double-registered events.

Does server-side tracking affect the speed of my online store?

On the contrary. Server-side tracking shifts some of the tracking work away from the browser, so pages load faster. It can also provide a small SEO benefit as Google uses page speed as a ranking factor.

What happens to my data if the customer rejects cookies?

With Consent Mode v2, anonymous signals about the visit are still sent to Google, so you get an estimate of the traffic. However, detailed e-commerce events and user behavior are only recorded for customers who have accepted cookies. This is a legal requirement under GDPR.

Can I exclude my own visit from GA4 data?

Yes, you can. Go to Admin in GA4, select your data stream and create an internal traffic filter based on your IP address. You can also install the Google Analytics Opt-out browser extension in the browser you use to manage your webshop.

Can I pass GA4 data to Google Ads?

Yes, you can. In GA4, you can link your property to your Google Ads account under Admin " Product Links. This allows you to import conversions and use GA4 audiences in Google Ads campaigns. Shoporama also has a separate Google Ads integration on the Tracking page that sends conversions directly to Google Ads.

How quickly does my data get into GA4?

Activity appears in the Realtime report almost immediately (typically within a minute). Most reports update with a delay of 24-48 hours. E-commerce reports can take up to 48 hours to fully populate the first time you activate GA4.

Need help?

If you're stuck in the setup or have questions about what data you see in GA4, you're always welcome to write to support@shoporama.dk. We are happy to help you get everything in place.