If you’re seeking out this information then you can probably agree that GA4 is exceptionally difficult to navigate.
Who is this GA4 interface designed for anyway? Data engineers, maybe. Not marketers, that’s for sure. (That’s why we created Ottimo: so marketers could access the GA4 data they actually need.)
Overview
In this post we’ll present four methods for finding an individual page in GA4:
- Pages and Screens report [6 steps]
- Custom report [14 steps]
- Exploration [8 steps]
- Ottimo [4 steps]
We’ll walk through each one step-by-step with screenshots for you to follow along. The first three methods are implemented within the GA4 dashboard. The fourth method is through Ottimo, which connects with GA4 data but uses a much simpler, more user-friendly dashboard.
Here we go…
1. Using the default “Pages and Screens” report [6 steps]
Advantages of this approach: It’s the simplest and quickest of the methods within GA4.
Disadvantages of this approach: You have to repeat these steps every time. Also, it can be hard to filter for just your exact page. If you’re looking just for a “/blog” page, for example, it can be difficult if you have a big blog.
The simplest way of getting here with the default reports that are set up in GA4 is to go to Reports > Lifecycle > Engagement > Pages and screens.
From here you should see a list of pages, but by default it’s sorted by page title. This isn’t always as helpful, especially if you have lots of repeat titles.
You go here and you can pick either page path plus query string, or if you want easier, more rolled up page performance, you can just do page path and screen class.
Then you just go in here and you type in the page path you care about.
It will filter the listed pages (such as “/blog”).
Adding a conditional filter for page path
Alternatively, from within the same report you'll see that there is this filter bar at the top. Click the add filter button.
The advantage of this approach: It gives you a little more control than the default report because you’re able to filter for more parameters.
Then you’ll see a sidebar that lets you filter by lots of different properties. You can pick “Page path and screen class” again – but now you have more options for matching the page path.
If you pick “contains” you can find any URL containing “/blog” for example. If you pick “exact” you can filter for just “/blog”.
If you are comfortable with Regex as well, you can match some more nuanced regexes to include or exclude page paths containing different values.
And you’re done.
2. Setting up a custom report [14 steps]
The next option is building a custom report.
The advantage of this approach: You can build a meaningful report and it will persist, which is really nice.
The disadvantage: The process is longer and a bit more tedious.
First off, go to Reports > Library > Create new Report
In this example, we’ll start with “Blank” so it's really obvious how you do everything.
First we’ll add dimensions. Dimensions include data fields like dates, page paths, channels, etc.
For this instance, we'll choose “Page path” and then hit “Apply.”
To recreate the same report as the one above, we'll add a metric and choose “Views”. Things like bounce rate, users, sessions, views, those are metrics.
We'll come in here and we'll see that it's the same thing, and we can actually customize this using the build filter.
We want to filter this report so that it shows pages containing a particular word or phrase.
The process here is the exact same as building a filter from the previous option. Select “Contains” for the Match Type and select the phrase that you want to filter for. (In this instance, the phrase we’ve chosen is “google analytics”.
After saving your filter, you save your report and give it a name. In this example, we’ll name it “Pages containing google-analytics.”
Now we'll go back and we'll see that it's always available right in the library.
Adding your custom report to the sidebar
You can also add it to your sidebar by creating a collection. We'll make a new one here.
Pick a “Blank” collection.
Name it whatever you want. In this example, we’ll simply name it “Custom reports.”
Now search for the report you named earlier. When drag over the report that you named earlier.
Then save it.
Now go back to the library screen and publish the collection.
It’s published! And it persists. So you can find it any time in the Custom reports tab.
3. Exploration [8 steps]
Exploration is the most granular way to break down metrics for a single page.
The advantage of this approach: you can access and export a wider variety of data.
The disadvantage: In most cases it might be more data – and more complicated – than you really need to see for a single page.
To get started, go to “Explore” in the sidebar. Click “Blank” to start a new blank exploration.
We’ll do a “Free form” visualization. Free form is the most customizable option for a visualization.
Pick a date range that you want to view.
Then within the Dimensions field, type the word “page” into the search bar and select “Page path and screen class” (like we've done before). Once it’s selected, click “Import”.
Then in metrics, we'll import “Views”.
Now drag the “Page path and screen class” dimension from the “Variables” column on the left to the “Rows” section in the “Settings” column.
Do the same with the “Views” metric. Drag it from the left – drag it from the “Variables” column on the left to the “Values” section in the “Settings” column.
You can see how this becomes a pretty intense way of consuming data.
This example we’ve created here is one of the most simple explorations you can create. It’s showing a roll-up of performance across the last 12 months.
4. Ottimo [4 steps]
Ottimo is a data tool that integrates your page’s GA and Google Search Console data in a simple interface designed specifically for content marketers. We created Ottimo after seeing countless marketers get frustrated with the GA interface. (We have been the frustrated marketers many times.)
Rather than burying you in data fields like GA4, Ottimo surfaces the metrics that marketers actually need. It also enables you to search for individual pages by title, right away.
Sign in to Ottimo using a Google account that has access to your website’s GA and GSC data. Then fill out these fields in order to set up your first library.
After you click “Create” it will take a few minutes to process and integrate the GA and GSC data.
Once your account is all set up, finding an individual page takes just two clicks.
First, click on the “Library” tab.
There you’ll find a search bar. You can find any page by typing in words or phrases from the page’s title or URL into the search bar. In the example below, we’re looking for the pages on our site that have Google Analytics in the title.
Click on the desired page to get an individual performance report.
As noted, Ottimo surfaces only the data that marketers actually need to assess the performance of a page in organic search. This includes traffic, growth rate, bounce rate, and top-performing search queries.
It will also link you directly to the page’s filtered data in the GA4 interface. Just click the “Google Analytics” button.
The “Google Analytics” button brings you directly to a “Pages and screens” report for that individual page.
It’s that simple. You can find any page and its GA4 data in a matter of seconds.
Next steps
Finding the data you need is the first big hurdle. The next question is: how can you use that data to improve performance and conversion for the individual page and the library on the whole?
- If search and engagement metrics are disappointing, you might implement an on-page update.
- If engagement and conversion metrics are strong, distribute it widely on your targeted social platforms.
- If branded search queries are driving traffic to the page, consider optimizing for strategic branded queries.
- If overall traffic is in decline, identify the causes and revise the page to start growing again.
And if you’re puzzled by any of the data you find, feel free to drop us a line anytime!
