GA4 Special Reports for PPC Announced
Posted: Wed Dec 04, 2024 10:08 am
Data-driven strategies are essential in digital marketing. One of the prominent components of such a strategy is the use of analytics. While marketing analytics are useful, we can’t help but discuss its role in PPC campaigns, especially using Google Analytics 4 to track your campaign performance.
Marketers had to migrate to GA4 last year and adapt to its functionality, including reporting features. As a result, it has divided experts into two: some use the default reports, while some PPC experts customize their reports according to their needs. In general, Google Analytics 4 offers the option of custom reports that help track ad campaign results with selected dimensions and metrics.
This article will explore GA4 reporting features, the benefits and challenges of custom reports in GA4, and how you can create a PPC report on this platform. But let’s start by exploring default and custom reporting.
Default or Custom GA4 PPC Reports?
Default reports in Google Analytics 4 provide an instant way to access standard metrics and dimensions armenia phone number resources providing insights into specific aspects. These pre-configured reports do not require additional setup and are easily available to users.
There are two main default report types: overview and detail reports.
Overview Report
Overview Report in Google AnalyticsDetailed Report
Detail Report in Google Analytics
The default reports in GA4 cover a wide range of PPC-centric data points, making them a valuable resource for beginners and those who want quick access to metrics without extensive setup.
Once PPC data starts flowing into GA4, it will initially appear in the Realtime report and will soon populate other PPC related reports. While some data is collected automatically, additional setup may be required for certain types of information.
The default GA4 report provides an overview of your campaign performance, but it may not go into the detail you need to thoroughly analyze your PPC campaigns.
The default dimensions provide insights into several categories:
User demographics: Age, Gender, Interests, Location
Technical details: Device category (mobile, desktop, tablet), Browser
User interactions: Session start time, Page views, Event triggers
Acquisition channels: traffic source (direct, organic search, paid ads, social media).
These metrics help understand user behavior and optimize PPC campaigns .
On the other hand, custom GA4 reports offer a more specific approach. They allow you to focus on specific metrics. This includes adding and removing metrics and dimensions, applying filters, changing sorting criteria, adding a secondary dimension, updating the reporting collection, and using report settings for further exploration. This can give you more detailed insights into your campaign performance.
It is possible to create up to 150 custom reports per property in Google Analytics. It is also possible to customize both detail and overview reports.
Note: If you don't see this option, you don't have permission to customize the detailed report.
You gain the flexibility to drill down deeper into your PPC data by setting custom dimensions, such as purchased product categories or User IDs.
Custom Dimensions and Metrics in GA4
Custom Dimensions in GA4
It’s important to set up the most critical custom dimensions for best use. This will help you capture key data insights that are crucial to your goals. Once you’ve set up the most important ones, you can move on to the less impactful ones.
Depending on your goals and the level of detail required, a combination of default and custom dimensions can provide a comprehensive understanding of your PPC performance.
Custom Google Analytics Reports for PPC
While the default reports provide a good starting point, GA4 custom reports are often more useful for PPC. You can customize your Google Analytics reports to focus on the metrics that matter most to your campaigns, such as cost per conversion.
A starting point for report customization is to set up the base reports. For example, you can customize the base report Lifecycle - Acquisition - Overview.
When you select "View Google Ads Campaigns" you will have access to a comprehensive overview of your campaigns.
This section includes campaign names, user engagement, session data, revenue metrics, costs, event counts, etc. You can also explore deeper information about ad groups, keywords, ad network types, and account-specific details.
You can start customizing this report by adding the required metrics or dimensions.
But before we dive deeper into customizing reports, let's discuss the benefits and some limitations of GA4 custom reporting.
Benefits of GA4 custom reports
There are four key benefits to leveraging custom reports on PPC to better understand them.
Custom views - Custom Google Analytics reports give you more detail about what's working and what's not on your website, helping you understand the effectiveness of your ads, your audience, your conversion funnel , and every step of the way.
Advanced segmentation – With GA4 custom reports, you can segment your data based on specific criteria. This can help you identify trends, patterns, and areas of opportunity that may not be visible in standard reports.
Marketers had to migrate to GA4 last year and adapt to its functionality, including reporting features. As a result, it has divided experts into two: some use the default reports, while some PPC experts customize their reports according to their needs. In general, Google Analytics 4 offers the option of custom reports that help track ad campaign results with selected dimensions and metrics.
This article will explore GA4 reporting features, the benefits and challenges of custom reports in GA4, and how you can create a PPC report on this platform. But let’s start by exploring default and custom reporting.
Default or Custom GA4 PPC Reports?
Default reports in Google Analytics 4 provide an instant way to access standard metrics and dimensions armenia phone number resources providing insights into specific aspects. These pre-configured reports do not require additional setup and are easily available to users.
There are two main default report types: overview and detail reports.
Overview Report
Overview Report in Google AnalyticsDetailed Report
Detail Report in Google Analytics
The default reports in GA4 cover a wide range of PPC-centric data points, making them a valuable resource for beginners and those who want quick access to metrics without extensive setup.
Once PPC data starts flowing into GA4, it will initially appear in the Realtime report and will soon populate other PPC related reports. While some data is collected automatically, additional setup may be required for certain types of information.
The default GA4 report provides an overview of your campaign performance, but it may not go into the detail you need to thoroughly analyze your PPC campaigns.
The default dimensions provide insights into several categories:
User demographics: Age, Gender, Interests, Location
Technical details: Device category (mobile, desktop, tablet), Browser
User interactions: Session start time, Page views, Event triggers
Acquisition channels: traffic source (direct, organic search, paid ads, social media).
These metrics help understand user behavior and optimize PPC campaigns .
On the other hand, custom GA4 reports offer a more specific approach. They allow you to focus on specific metrics. This includes adding and removing metrics and dimensions, applying filters, changing sorting criteria, adding a secondary dimension, updating the reporting collection, and using report settings for further exploration. This can give you more detailed insights into your campaign performance.
It is possible to create up to 150 custom reports per property in Google Analytics. It is also possible to customize both detail and overview reports.
Note: If you don't see this option, you don't have permission to customize the detailed report.
You gain the flexibility to drill down deeper into your PPC data by setting custom dimensions, such as purchased product categories or User IDs.
Custom Dimensions and Metrics in GA4
Custom Dimensions in GA4
It’s important to set up the most critical custom dimensions for best use. This will help you capture key data insights that are crucial to your goals. Once you’ve set up the most important ones, you can move on to the less impactful ones.
Depending on your goals and the level of detail required, a combination of default and custom dimensions can provide a comprehensive understanding of your PPC performance.
Custom Google Analytics Reports for PPC
While the default reports provide a good starting point, GA4 custom reports are often more useful for PPC. You can customize your Google Analytics reports to focus on the metrics that matter most to your campaigns, such as cost per conversion.
A starting point for report customization is to set up the base reports. For example, you can customize the base report Lifecycle - Acquisition - Overview.
When you select "View Google Ads Campaigns" you will have access to a comprehensive overview of your campaigns.
This section includes campaign names, user engagement, session data, revenue metrics, costs, event counts, etc. You can also explore deeper information about ad groups, keywords, ad network types, and account-specific details.
You can start customizing this report by adding the required metrics or dimensions.
But before we dive deeper into customizing reports, let's discuss the benefits and some limitations of GA4 custom reporting.
Benefits of GA4 custom reports
There are four key benefits to leveraging custom reports on PPC to better understand them.
Custom views - Custom Google Analytics reports give you more detail about what's working and what's not on your website, helping you understand the effectiveness of your ads, your audience, your conversion funnel , and every step of the way.
Advanced segmentation – With GA4 custom reports, you can segment your data based on specific criteria. This can help you identify trends, patterns, and areas of opportunity that may not be visible in standard reports.