GA4 User-Provided

Data

Q1’24
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Future-proofing with
01 04 Audience Activation
User-Provided Data in GA4

Agenda 02 Conversion Measurement 05 Getting Started

03 User Journey Measurement 06 Appendix

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Future-proofing with
01 User-Provided Data in GA4
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Future-proofing with User-Provided Data in GA4

Privacy & technology changes are restricting

user-level tracking & identifiers

3P

Web Cookie is Browsers begin to cut Chrome announces plans Ecosystem collaborating Chrome deprecates
developed support for 3P cookies to phase out 3P cookies on alternatives 3P cookies

1994 2019 2020 Now 2024

2012-2013 2020 2021 2022

iDFA and AdID Apple announced Apple enforces Privacy Sandbox on
introduced restrictions for IDFA new restrictions Android Announcement

App
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Future-proofing with User-Provided Data in GA4

The industry is shifting towards measurement

strategies rooted in first party data

A challenge, an opportunity,
and an evolutionary change
As the industry moves away from user-level tracking
and identifiers, marketers will lose visibility into how
people interact with their ads and properties.

Investing in measurement and activation strategies

powered by first party data will be key to mitigating
the impact of this shift.
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Future-proofing with User-Provided Data in GA4

The future is consented.

It’s first-party.
It’s modeled.
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Future-proofing with User-Provided Data in GA4

Introducing User ID & User-Provided Data in GA4

User-ID and User-Provided Data work together to power measurement and activation rooted in first party data:

User ID is core to the GA4 platform and lets customers supply their own user identifier to connect behavior across devices and platforms. Hashed
User-Provided Data can be supplied along with User ID to power privacy-centric measurement solutions like enhanced conversions & Customer Match
(Alpha). Please note, that as with your other GA data, this is never used by Google to build or enhance its own user profiles and results are reported in
aggregate.

User ID powers cross-device User-Provided Data enables customers

& cross-platform measurement to supply additional hashed consented
with first party data. 1P data (email, phone #, mailing
address) to GA4.
User ID lets you associate your own
identifiers with individual users so you This is matched with Google data
can connect their behavior across in a privacy-centric way to power 1P
various devices and platforms. based measurement and activation.
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Future-proofing with User-Provided Data in GA4

User-provided Data (UPD) is core to privacy-centric

measurement in GA4 post 3PCD
Audience Conversion User Journey
Activation Measurement Measurement

Transitioning to privacy-centric measurement

Observed Aggregate Modeling

1P data ingestion with User-Provided Privacy Preserving APIs: Behavioral and

Data Attribution, Topics Conversion modeling
(supporting enhanced
conversions & Customer Match)

Transitioning to privacy-centric activation

User-Provided Data & enhanced Privacy Preserving APIs:

conversions/Customer Match Support Protected Audience API (fka FLEDGE)
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Future-proofing with User-Provided Data in GA4

User-provided data powers 1P measurement & activation

Hashed user-provided data collection for User-ID will power cookieless measurement and activation in Google Analytics 4:

Collect consented, hashed user-provided data along with measurement data to enable improved audience insights, conversion
attribution, and audience activation.

User Journey Measurement Conversion Measurement Audience Activation

Demographics & Interests Enhanced Conversions Customer Match (Alpha)

Utilize consented, hashed
user-provided data and additional
consented information from users
who are signed in to their Google
accounts to improve audience
demographic and interest insights
Improve conversion attribution for
reporting and bid optimization in
Google Ads for your GA4 conversions
with support from user-provided data
and enhanced conversions
Streamline activation of your
user-provided data through Customer
Match which allows you to populate
lists for use in goal-based buying
(CLO), bidding and ad personalization.
Customer Match powers O&O
remarketing use cases post 3PCD.
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Future-proofing with User-Provided Data in GA4

Future-proof your setup with User-Provided Data in GA4

Google Analytics 4 was designed to evolve for the future and built with privacy at its core. User-Provided Data powers GA4’s
long term vision long term vision of fully powering measurement & activation use cases with first-party data. Prepare for a
world without third party data by implementing User-Provided Data in Google Analytics 4 today.

Today With GA4 + User-Provided Data

Demographics &
Third party cookies First party data
Interests Measurement

Conversion Measurement First & third party cookies First party data

Audience Activation (O&O)* Third party cookies First party data

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Future-proofing with User-Provided Data in GA4

Tap into existing privacy-centric solutions with GA4

Enhanced conversions has long been supported for customers powering measurement with Google Ads.
With the introduction user-provided data, Google Analytics 4 users can now take advantage of this privacy-centric
solution for their GA4 powered conversions in Ads.

Previously With GA4 & User-provided data

Without enhanced conversions support
for GA4, many Analytics customers had
to opt for Ads conversions to take
advantage of these feature. This lead to
additional overhead recreating similar
conversions with Google Ads powered
conversion tracking methods.
With the introduction of user-provided
data, GA4 customers no longer have to
make this choice. They can now activate
on the same GA4 powered conversions
they’ve already created in Google Ads,
while taking advantage of these
privacy-centric solutions.
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Getting Started

Safeguarding your User-Provided Data

● Restricted use for sensitive verticals that may collect sensitive customer information (healthcare & finance)
● Our Google tags capture the customer field you define in the conversion page and automatically format and hash
it, unless the data is already hashed by the customer
● All of this happens prior to Google receiving any data

● We use the hash algorithm SHA256, an irreversible one-way hashing mechanism

● No unhashed data is ever shared with Google

● Data is always securely sent to Google servers encrypted via HTTPS

● If the hashed value matches a Google user hashed data value, we record a conversion
● Observed conversion data is used to model conversions for non signed in traffic
● As with your other GA data, this is never used by Google to build or enhance its own user profiles

● Matched data is encrypted

● Hashed data that does not match Google's data is deleted
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02 Conversion Measurement

User-Provided Data & Enhanced Conversions

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Conversion Measurement

User-Provided Data enables Enhanced Conversions for GA4

User-Provided Data enables enhanced conversions Google Analytics 4 data in Ads. Together, they enable more accurate
conversion measurement by capturing hashed customer data advertisers collect on their conversion page (e.g. email
addresses) and then matching it against Google logged-in data. Alpha participants who enabled enhanced conversions
for GA4 saw an average Conversion lift of 5% on Search with additional improvements for YouTube on the roadmap.

01 02 03 04

Google signed-in user The user converts The gTag captures a field you specify We match this against
views your ad on your website (eg. email address), hashes the data Google’s hashed user data
(unless already hashed) and securely and a conversion is reported
sends it to Google in your account

Who is this best for?

Google Analytics 4 advertisers who run Search or YouTube campaigns on Google Ads with access to customer data on their website.

*Source : Google Internal

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Conversion Measurement

Enhanced Conversions has significant longer-term

benefits for overall performance
Increased Conversion ● Recover lost conversions due to browser and regulatory changes
Observability ● Observe net new conversions from additional 1P data

Better modeling and overall ● Improved observability allows our conversion modeling
conversion reporting to be more accurate

Improved bidding ● Better data ingested by bidding models (tROAS / tCPA)

& attribution and attribution models (DDA)

● Better overall CVRs

Improved Performance ● Higher ROAS / Lower CPA
● Higher statistical significance in incrementality studies
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Conversion Measurement

Enhanced Conversions Performance Impact

Alpha clients who spend

on Search experienced
an average Planned Improvements

+5%
● YouTube EVC measurement
and modeling
● Further cross-device
Median increase in their reported measurement improvements
conversion rates
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User Journey
03 Measurement

Demographics & Interests Data

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User Journey Measurement

User-Provided Data powers 1P data demo

& interests reporting
Today, demographics & interests reporting in Google Analytics 4 is powered by third-party cookies.

With the introduction of user-provided data, Google Analytics 4 will be able to utilize the advanced hashed user data matching technology to derive
demo & interests reporting from the first party data you provide. This will ensure durability for demo & interests reporting post 3PCD.

As a result advertisers can get

answers to the questions they need:

● How many new users are coming to my site from New

York?
● How many users age 25-34 are landing on my site from
a Google Ads click?
● What is the difference in user behavior between shopping
enthusiasts & travel buffs?
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04 Audience Activation

User-Provided Data & Customer Match (Alpha)

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Audience Activation

User-Provided Data enables Customer Match for GA4

User-Provided Data enables Customer Match for Google Analytics 4 data in Ads. Together, they enable 1P data powered
remarketing in Google Ads. Similar to enhanced conversions, Customer Match works by capturing hashed customer data
advertisers collect and then matching it against Google logged-in data. Customer Match is an opt-in feature in Google Ads.

Send User-Provided Google matches your Reach your new Expand to new
data via gTag/GTM/or customer data to audiences across customers
MP based on user Google accounts devices and channels New Customer Acquisition,
interactions with your Once we create your Optimize performance Optimized Targeting, and
site or app audience list, we discard of your cross-channel Audience Expansion can
User-Provided Data all user-provided data campaigns by using CM further leverage your CM
is sent via a privacy-safe, conversion-based customer audience data
hashed method lists

Who is this best for?

Google Analytics 4 web advertisers who run campaigns on Google’s Owned & Operated surfaces

*Source : Google Internal

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Audience Activation

Customer Match support for GA4 will launch

in two phases

Phase 1 Phase 2

Support for conversion-based Support for all GA4 powered

customer lists customer lists in Ads

Phase 1 will introduce support for GA4 Phase 2 will unlock Customer Match
conversions as part of conversion-based support for imported GA4 based
customer lists. audience lists in Google Ads

This feature automatically creates audience With this phase audiences created and exported
segments for each of your conversion goals from GA4 to Ads will receive Customer Match
where enhanced conversions are active. support for O&O re-engagement campaigns.
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Audience Activation

Activate conversion-based customer lists today

Once User-Provided data and

Customer Match are enabled,
you can create conversion-based
customer lists based on specific
GA4 conversion goals (e.g.
purchases) powered by your 1P data.
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Audience Activation

Later this year, there will be support

for all GA4 based customer lists

Many advertisers export audience lists

from GA4 into Ads for activation
purposes. Later this year, these audiences
will be powered by User-provided data &
Customer Match technologies enabling 1P
data powered activation.
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05 Getting Started
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Getting Started

Get started with User-Provided Data in three steps

At launch, User-ID will be a prerequisite to enabling this feature. User-Provided Data is not available to sensitive verticals
(healthcare & finance) as determined by the property-level industry category.

01 02 03

Enable User-Provided Update tagging Validate your

Data in GA4 implementation implementation

Navigate to Data Collection in the Update your tagging Customers can validate
property-level Admin settings and implementation to send their User-Provided Data
enable User-Provided Data along User-Provided Data. This can be implementations using
with accepting the user-provided done via gTag, GTM, sGTM, or Chrome Developer Tools.
data feature policy Measurement Protocol.

ACTIVATE! Customers can expect to see improved cross-device measurement and modeling for their GA4 conversions in both GA4
and Ads after ~1 month of enablement .
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Getting Started

Implementation Options

gTag (automatic or manual) GTM, sGTM (automatic or manual) Measurement Protocol

Tag-Based Server-to-server

Getting Started
Enhanced Conversions Roadmap : 2024 & Beyond
In-UI Diagnostics
Enable seamless implementation
for all advertisers, from pitch
through launch
● Improved in UI Troubleshooting
alerts and signals
Expanded Compatibility
Maximize ability to use
enhanced conversions across
key customer types
● Work to reduce product limitations
● Support for customers without
a user ID implementation
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Improved Modeling
& Matching
Increase the potential for
advertiser impact with further
measurement improvements
● Continued cross-device
measurement and modeling
improvements

Getting Started
Considerations
BigQuery:
Once UPD is enabled, User ID will no longer be exported via BigQuery
at the event leve, and the user data export will pause. Reintroducing
support for User-ID in the BigQuery export is planned for later in Q1
‘24.
Web-only:
At Open Beta launch User-Provided Data will only be recommended
for web-only GA4 customers. Customers with an app stream are not
recommended for UPD enablement. This will change with feature
improvements coming in H1 ‘24.
Enablement:
Once enabled, the user-provided data setting cannot be disabled.
Users can stop sending user-provided data to GA4, but the setting
will remain enabled in the UI. Thus, users should carefully review
the considerations below before enabling the feature.
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UPD derived demographics & interests:
Once UPD is enabled, demo & interests data will be powered by UPD.
Thus, demo & interests coverage will vary on the availability of
user-provided data. Post 3PCD demo & interests data will rely on UPD.
User-ID remarketing:
Cross-device audience remarketing via User-ID will no longer be
available. Audiences defined with conditions involving user
interactions across multiple devices will degrade along with the ability
to remarket to these specific users with audience list exports.
User ID:
User-ID (supplied for signed-in users) is required for User-Provided
Data implementation. Thus, advertisers with high offline conversion
volume where the initial online interaction is not signed-in are not a
good fit for UPD during the Open Beta. The User ID requirement will be
removed a feature improvement in Q1 ‘24.
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06 Appendix
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Appendix

Enhanced conversions in Google Ads

vs. Google Analytics
Both Google Ads and Google Analytics support enhanced conversions. In both platforms, enhanced conversions drives
improved conversion measurement. The key difference is that each supports improved conversion measurement for their
respective conversion tracking types.

Google Ads Google Analytics

● Enhanced conversions in Google Ads improves ● Enhanced conversions in Google Analytics

VS
measurement for conversions measured improved measurement for conversions measured
through Google Ads Conversion tracking through Google Analytics Conversion tracking

● Improved conversion measurement in Google ● Improved conversion measurement in Google Ads

Ads reporting and Google Analytics reporting
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Appendix Privileged & confidential

With 3PCD, we are transitioning to new mechanisms

to support key use cases
Use Case GA4 Feature Release date*

User-Provided Data &

Testing in alpha
Audience Customer Match
Remarketing
Activation
Integration with Q1’24 Chrome (web)
Protected Audience API H2’24 Android (app testing)

H2'24 Chrome (web**)

Integration with Attribution API
Conversion & Android (app testing)
Conversion attribution
Measurement
User-Provided Data &
Q4’23 open beta
Enhanced Conversions

User-Provided Data Q4’23 open beta

Demographic & interest
User Journey Q4’24 Chrome (web)
Integration with Topics API
Measurement & Android (app)

User-Provided Data &

Cross-device measurement Q4’23 open beta
Enhanced Conversions

*The release dates are subject to change. ** Only Engaged View Conversions attribution is impacted by 3PCD on web.
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07 Implementation Section
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Setup Options in
08 gTag and GTM

Automatic Setup: gTag, GTM Manual: gTag, GTM Manual: Measurement Protocol
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Setup Options in gTag and GTM Automatic Setup: gTag, GTM Manual: gTag, GTM Manual: Measurement Protocol

Step 1a: Enable User-provided data

Regardless of the
implementation method,
the first step is to enable
user-provided data.

In the popup that appears,

Review the Google Analytics 4
User-provided-data collection
for User ID Policy.
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Setup Options in gTag and GTM Automatic Setup: gTag, GTM Manual: gTag, GTM Manual: Measurement Protocol

Step 1b: Determine your implementation type

User-provided data can be implemented

through the follow methods:

● gTag
● GTM
● Measurement Protocol

gTag and GTM have both automatic and manual

collection methods. Measurement Protocol is
purely manual.
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Setup Options in gTag and GTM Automatic Setup: gTag, GTM Manual: gTag, GTM Manual: Measurement Protocol

Step 1b: Determine your implementation type

If you choose to have gTag or GTM

automatically collect UPD, select
that option in the UI.

If choosing to specify CSS selectors

or JavaScript variables in gTag or
GTM, select that option.

If adding a code snippet via gTag

or GTM, or sending UPD via
Measurement Protocol proceed to
the implementation without making
a selection in the UI.
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Setup Options in gTag and GTM Automatic Setup: gTag, GTM Manual: gTag, GTM Manual: Measurement Protocol

Step 2a: Automatic Setup

With automatic collection, Google

Analytics inspects your web pages
for strings that match the pattern
for an email address. Phone numbers
and addresses are excluded from
the option.

● gTag: If using your gTag implementation,

selecting the option to “automatically detect
user-provided data” (shown in the slide
above) is the only step required.

● GTM: If using GTM, in your GA4 event tag

select the option to include user-provided
data. Then select automatic collection
within the variable configuration.
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Setup Options in gTag and GTM Automatic Setup: gTag, GTM Manual: gTag, GTM Manual: Measurement Protocol

Step 2b: Manual Setup - Specify CSS selectors

or JavaScript variables

The first manual collection option

is to specify CSS selectors or
JavaScript variables via your gTag
or GTM implementation.

● gTag: Update the code on any pages where

you collect user-provided data, such as a
sign up page, lead generation page,
checkout page, or something similar. Full
instructions can be found here.

● GTM: If using GTM, in your GA4 event tag

select the option to include user-provided
data. Then select manual collection within
the variable configuration. Full instructions
can be found here.
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Setup Options in gTag and GTM Automatic Setup: gTag, GTM Manual: gTag, GTM Manual: Measurement Protocol

Step 2c: Manual Setup - add a code snippet

to your website

The second manual collection option

is to add a code snippet to your
website via your gTag or GTM
implementation.

● gTag: To update your website code, you

must set the user_data value along with
each user-provided data field within an
event, config, or set command using the
gtag( ) function. See full instructions here.

● GTM: If using GTM, identify and define

user-provided-data fields in your website
code and pass each user-provided-data
field in a custom JavaScript variable to
Google Analytics. See full instructions here.
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Setup Options in gTag and GTM Automatic Setup: gTag, GTM Manual: gTag, GTM Manual: Measurement Protocol

Step 2d: Manual Setup - Measurement Protocol

The final manual collection option

is sending user-provided data via
Measurement Protocol to GA4.

To send user-provided data along with a

Measurement Protocol request, add the
user_data parameter in the JSON payload.
The user_id parameter must be present
whenever user_data is provided. See full
instructions here.
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Setup Options in gTag and GTM Automatic Setup: gTag, GTM Manual: gTag, GTM Manual: Measurement Protocol

Step 3: Validate your implementation

At Open Beta launch customers

can validate their User-Provided
Data implementations using
Chrome Developer Tools. The full
instructions are documented here.

Early in 2024 we plan to support a GA4 in-UI

collection signal that will help customers
identify whether or not GA4 is collecting
user-provided data.