Finding wasted traffic in GA4 is easy with a custom report. Here’s how you can set it up.
Setting Up the Report
- Create a New Report: In GA4, go to Explore and create a new blank report.
- Add Dimensions: Include Page Title, Session Source/Medium, and Sessions as the key metrics.
- Add Filters: Filter by Page Title containing “404”. This helps identify pages where users land on 404 errors.
Identifying Wasted Traffic
You’ll now see sessions where users landed on a 404 page. You can also view the session source—whether it’s direct traffic, PPC (Google Ads), or organic traffic.
- Direct Traffic: Likely site search or users searching your brand name with additional keywords that lead to a non-existent page.
- PPC Traffic: If users land on a 404 page, it could indicate an issue with your Google Ads setup.
- Organic Traffic: This could be from users searching your brand name or a page that’s been deleted.
What to Do Next
Once you've identified any wasted traffic, dig deeper into the referring pages, fix broken links, and set up redirects where needed.
Conclusion
By setting up this custom report in GA4, you can easily spot and fix wasted traffic from both PPC and SEO sources, ensuring you don’t lose valuable visitors.