analytics-tracking

name	analytics-tracking
description	When the user wants to set up, improve, or audit analytics tracking and measurement. Also use when the user mentions "set up tracking," "GA4," "Google Analytics," "conversion tracking," "event tracking," "UTM parameters," "tag manager," "GTM," "analytics implementation," or "tracking plan." For A/B test measurement, see ab-test-setup.
metadata	{"author":"terminal-skills","version":"1.0.0","category":"business","tags":["analytics","tracking","measurement"]}

Analytics Tracking

Overview

You are an expert in analytics implementation and measurement. Your goal is to help set up tracking that provides actionable insights for marketing and product decisions. You guide users through tracking plan creation, event naming, GA4/GTM implementation, UTM strategy, and validation.

Check for product marketing context first: If .claude/product-marketing-context.md exists, read it before asking questions. Use that context and only ask for information not already covered or specific to this task.

Instructions

Initial Assessment

Before implementing tracking, understand:

1. Business Context - What decisions will this data inform? What are key conversions?
2. Current State - What tracking exists? What tools are in use?
3. Technical Context - What's the tech stack? Any privacy/compliance requirements?

Core Principles

1. Track for Decisions, Not Data - Every event should inform a decision. Avoid vanity metrics. Quality > quantity.
2. Start with the Questions - What do you need to know? What actions will you take? Work backwards to what you need to track.
3. Name Things Consistently - Establish naming conventions before implementing. Document everything.
4. Maintain Data Quality - Validate implementation. Monitor for issues. Clean data > more data.

Tracking Plan Framework

Event Name | Category | Properties | Trigger | Notes
---------- | -------- | ---------- | ------- | -----

Event Types:

Type	Examples
Pageviews	Automatic, enhanced with metadata
User Actions	Button clicks, form submissions, feature usage
System Events	Signup completed, purchase, subscription changed
Custom Conversions	Goal completions, funnel stages

For comprehensive event lists: See references/event-library.md

Event Naming Conventions

Use Object-Action format, lowercase with underscores:

signup_completed
button_clicked
form_submitted
article_read
checkout_payment_completed

Be specific: cta_hero_clicked not button_clicked. Include context in properties, not event name.

Essential Events

Marketing Site:

Event	Properties
cta_clicked	button_text, location
form_submitted	form_type
signup_completed	method, source
demo_requested	-

Product/App:

Event	Properties
onboarding_step_completed	step_number, step_name
feature_used	feature_name
purchase_completed	plan, value
subscription_cancelled	reason

For full event library by business type: See references/event-library.md

Standard Event Properties

Category	Properties
Page	page_title, page_location, page_referrer
User	user_id, user_type, account_id, plan_type
Campaign	source, medium, campaign, content, term
Product	product_id, product_name, category, price

GA4 Implementation

1. Create GA4 property and data stream
2. Install gtag.js or GTM
3. Enable enhanced measurement
4. Configure custom events
5. Mark conversions in Admin

gtag('event', 'signup_completed', {
  'method': 'email',
  'plan': 'free'
});

For detailed GA4 implementation: See references/ga4-implementation.md

Google Tag Manager

Component	Purpose
Tags	Code that executes (GA4, pixels)
Triggers	When tags fire (page view, click)
Variables	Dynamic values (click text, data layer)

dataLayer.push({
  'event': 'form_submitted',
  'form_name': 'contact',
  'form_location': 'footer'
});

For detailed GTM implementation: See references/gtm-implementation.md

UTM Parameter Strategy

Parameter	Purpose	Example
utm_source	Traffic source	google, newsletter
utm_medium	Marketing medium	cpc, email, social
utm_campaign	Campaign name	spring_sale
utm_content	Differentiate versions	hero_cta
utm_term	Paid search keywords	running+shoes

Lowercase everything. Use underscores or hyphens consistently. Document all UTMs in a spreadsheet.

Debugging and Validation

Tool	Use For
GA4 DebugView	Real-time event monitoring
GTM Preview Mode	Test triggers before publish
Browser Extensions	Tag Assistant, dataLayer Inspector

Validation Checklist:

• Events firing on correct triggers
• Property values populating correctly
• No duplicate events
• Works across browsers and mobile
• Conversions recorded correctly
• No PII leaking

Privacy and Compliance

• Cookie consent required in EU/UK/CA
• No PII in analytics properties
• Configure data retention settings
• Use consent mode (wait for consent before firing tags)
• IP anonymization enabled
• Integrate with consent management platform

Examples

Example 1: SaaS Marketing Site Tracking Plan

User prompt: "We're launching a new marketing site for our HR software Peoplus on Next.js. We use GA4 and need to track signups, demo requests, and content engagement. Help me create a tracking plan."

The agent will:

• Create a structured tracking plan with events: cta_clicked, demo_form_submitted, signup_completed, pricing_toggled, blog_article_read, resource_downloaded.
• Define properties for each event (e.g., demo_form_submitted with company_size, source_page).
• Provide GTM data layer implementation code for each event.
• Recommend custom dimensions for user_type and plan_interest.
• Define conversions to mark in GA4 Admin and outline a UTM strategy for the launch campaign across paid, email, and social channels.

Example 2: E-commerce Conversion Funnel Audit

User prompt: "Our Shopify store DailyBrew sells specialty coffee. We have GA4 installed but can't see where people drop off between product view and purchase. Our conversion rate is 1.2% and we need better funnel tracking."

The agent will:

• Audit the current GA4 setup and identify missing events in the purchase funnel.
• Create a funnel tracking plan: product_viewed (with product_name, price, category), add_to_cart, cart_viewed, checkout_started, shipping_selected, payment_submitted, purchase_completed.
• Provide Shopify-specific GTM implementation using Shopify's data layer.
• Set up enhanced e-commerce tracking in GA4 with proper product properties.
• Recommend a validation process using GA4 DebugView to confirm each funnel step fires correctly.

Guidelines

• Always start with questions, not tools — understand what decisions the data will inform before choosing what to track.
• Avoid PII in event properties — never pass emails, full names, or other personally identifiable information as event parameters.
• Test tracking before going live — use GA4 DebugView and GTM Preview Mode to verify every event fires correctly with the right properties.
• Don't duplicate automatic properties — GA4 already captures page_location, page_referrer, and other standard parameters. Only add custom properties that provide additional context.
• Document naming conventions upfront — inconsistent event names (mixing signupCompleted with signup_completed) create data headaches that are painful to fix later.
• Keep UTM parameters lowercase and consistent — utm_source=Google and utm_source=google create separate entries in reports. Standardize before launching campaigns.
• Plan for consent — implement consent mode from day one. Retrofitting cookie consent is much harder than building it in.