The first thing I do with every client project is setup and install proper tracking for every domain property. This is such a critical step that it can't be over emphasized. Without proper tracking data you're flying blind. I've also found that very few websites are properly "wired up" or inadequately so to some degree.
Inadequacies usually come from assuming that Google Analytics is all you need.
GA is still useful but it's a bloated monster from an era that had little competition. I have found I use it less and less in recent years.
However because it is Google, I still include it as one of the mandatory core platforms. But because it is Google the data should be cross checked and calibrated against another source. I have been using Statcounter for years to do this. It's super clean and efficient, with some better views of what's going on at a glance.
Google Console is now the only reliable free source of tracking keywords that are indexed for your website (Statcounter among others lost that ability when Google decided to hide that info behind SSL years ago) so Google Search Console is positively a must have platform.
