In the context of reports and data analyses, the abbreviation "N/A" frequently appears. It can raise questions about its meaning and its impact on data interpretation. Here's a detailed explanation of what "N/A" means and how to deal with it in your analyses.
Definition of N/A
N/A" stands for "Not Assigned" or "Not Available". It appears when certain information is not available or cannot be attributed to a specific property. This can happen for several reasons, such as:
- Data is not collected or calculated for this property.
- Events do not contain the property in question.
- Values are empty or null in events.
Common causes of N/A
- Incorrect tagging or missing data
When events are not correctly tagged (value typing) or when certain properties are not filled in, the value "N/A" may appear. For example, if a property such as "page_title" is not filled in an event, this property will display "N/A".
- Irrelevant data
Some properties may not be relevant for all event types. For example, events of type "page.display" may not include click data, resulting in "N/A" for the "Click" property.
- Privacy and consent issues
Privacy settings, such as those introduced by Apple with iOS 15, can mask information such as IP address, preventing accurate location determination and resulting in "N/A" values for geolocation properties.
How to manage N/A values
- Filter
To prevent "N/A" values from affecting your analyses, you can use filters to exclude them. For example, by using the "Not empty" filter, you can eliminate all "N/A" values from your reports.
- Disable "Show N/A rows" option
The solution allows you to disable the display of lines containing "N/A" values. This option can be activated or deactivated as required to clean up your data and focus on the relevant information.
- Checking and correcting tag
Make sure that all necessary properties are correctly tagged in your events with the right type. Review your tagging configurations to ensure that all relevant data is collected and transmitted correctly.
Impact of N/A values on analyses
"N/A" values can impact totals in your analyses. For example, if certain visits or clicks cannot be attributed to specific properties, this may result in differences in totals. It's important to understand that visits may appear in several rows, but will only be counted once in the overall total.