If you use Google Analytics to track activity on your site or app, then Analytics can share some of the data it collects with Search Ads 360. Once Search Ads 360 receives this data, you can do any of the following:
- Use Search Ads 360 reports to discover which keywords, dynamic targets and other biddable items lead to Google Analytics transactions and conversions.
- Use Analytics data in a Search Ads 360 bid strategy. You can create a bid strategy that maximises conversions reported by Analytics.
- Use the Google Analytics data, formula columns and automated rules to automate your workflow.
- Currently, the Google Analytics data driven attribution model is applied by default that you can use with Google Analytics conversions.
Note:
- You can choose between data-driven attribution model and last-click attribution model for each exported Google Analytics key event while changing your conversion action settings.
- For Google Analytics key events, cross-channel last click attribution model is the default attribution model.
- Search Ads 360's 'Count' settings don't affect imported Google Analytics conversions. In Google Analytics, you can set the counting method for key events as 'Once per event' or 'Once per session'.
Important details about Google Analytics data in Search Ads 360
Google Analytics data is available in Search Ads 360 reports for the following items:
- Keywords
- Dynamic targets
- Text ads
- Shopping ads
- Product groups
- Items in social and client accounts
If you're finding conversion reporting discrepancies in your Google Analytics data, review the following possible reasons:
- Data exported to Search Ads 360 is always event-scoped. For the most accurate comparison with Google Analytics, we recommend using the key event performance report in the 'Advertising' section, which uses event-scoped dimensions. By contrast, reports in the 'Reports' and 'Explore' sections, such as those for user acquisition and traffic acquisition, offer user and session scope. These will not align with Search Ads 360’s event-level data. Learn more about Scopes.
- Search Ads 360 and Google Analytics report conversions at different time intervals, and so they may show different numbers.
- Discrepancies may occur if there's a mismatch in the attribution model for the Google Analytics data compared to the model that is used for analysis in Google Analytics.
- Modelled conversion data isn't shared from Google Analytics to Search Ads 360.
- Limited support for mobile app advertising use cases
- If your campaign links to an app, Google may not track visits for Search Ads 360 and won't report on conversions attributed to clicks by other products such as Google Analytics and Google Ads.
Google Analytics data will populate in the 'Conversions' columns if included, and in custom columns.
Tip: To ensure that revenue metrics are reported correctly, set the currency when sending 'value' (revenue) data.
Only data associated with Search Ads 360 visits
Google Analytics only sends data for activity that occurs during a visit attributed to a Search Ads 360 click or campaign, according to the selected attribution model. For example:
- A customer clicks a paid search ad that was trafficked by Search Ads 360.
- Values for the ad's tracking URL parameters reach Search Ads 360, and Search Ads 360 records a visit.
- When the customer lands on your site, Analytics either starts a new session or adds metrics to an existing session. Then Analytics sends data that occurs during that session to Search Ads 360 when the session or conversion is attributed to the click or campaign in Step 1.
Google Analytics doesn't send data about other activity on your site, such as sessions that start from direct traffic or sessions that start with a paid search ad that isn't managed by Search Ads 360.
Learn more about how Google Analytics associates user sessions with Search Ads 360 visits.
Paid search metrics in Google Analytics
When you link Search Ads 360 and Google Analytics, campaign and cost data, as well as paid search metrics from Search Ads 360 clients such as Google Ads and Microsoft Advertising, will appear in Analytics.
With the integration enabled, the data in Search Ads 360 and in Google Analytics should mostly match, though there might be minor discrepancies due to processing differences in each system.
If you link Google Analytics and Google Ads, you'll find data that Google Ads sends to Analytics. This may be slightly different from the data Search Ads 360 has for the same campaigns for a few reasons:
- Search Ads 360 displays data associated with Search Ads 360 visits, while Google Ads reports in Analytics display data associated with Google Ads clicks.
- Search Ads 360 and Analytics process data separately, so there may be some variation in precisely when data is processed.
- Search Ads 360 only shows Analytics data starting from the day you link Search Ads 360 to Analytics. If your Analytics report starts before the day you linked Search Ads 360 to Analytics, the data won't match.
Note: Make sure that the advertiser’s web server or redirection service doesn't strip the gclid and gclsrc parameters, utm parameters or other parameters from landing page URLs.
The gclid and gclsrc parameters are added automatically for Google Ads accounts when you enable auto-tagging and for other accounts when you link your Search Ads 360 sub-manager account with Analytics.
Freshness of Analytics data in Search Ads 360
Analytics metrics in Search Ads 360 reports may vary in freshness from approximately real time (less than one minute) to daily (24 hours or more), depending on the Analytics-property data limits and service level agreements (SLA).
Due to scaling, there may be discrepancies in your reports, depending on the date range of the report and when the report is created. For example, a report that you create on 5 January for the period 4–5 January may show 100 goal completions, while the same report might show 103 goal completions if you create it on 7 January.
Unsampled data in Search Ads 360
While reports that you find in Analytics sometimes show sampled data, the Analytics data in Search Ads 360 reports is unsampled.
Removing the Search Ads 360 link
If you remove the link between Search Ads 360 and Analytics, here's what to expect:
- In Search Ads 360: You'll no longer find new Analytics data in Search Ads 360. Historical data from the time the link was in place until the time you remove the link is still available. Analytics reporting columns will still be available, but will include only historical data from the time the link was in place. Any bid strategies that use Analytics data will be using inaccurate data.
- In Analytics: You'll no longer find Search Ads 360 data in Analytics. Historical data from the time the link was in place is still available. If you linked Google Ads to Analytics, you'll still find the data that Google Ads is sending to Analytics.
If you relink Search Ads 360 to Analytics:
- If you relink to the same Analytics property, you'll access all the historical data that was collected when you were linked previously. You'll also find new data starting from the day you re-enabled the link. You won't access data about activity that occurred while the link was removed.
- If you link to a different Analytics property, you won't access the historical data associated with the old property.