Google Analytics 4 Integration

Connect your Google Analytics 4 property to track website analytics, user behavior, and conversion metrics in Aim.

Overview

This integration allows you to:

• Track website traffic and user behavior
• Monitor conversion events and goals
• Analyze user engagement metrics
• Import custom dimensions and metrics
• Sync data automatically on your chosen schedule

Prerequisites

Setup Overview

Step 1: Create Service Account

1.1 Select or Create Google Cloud Project

First, you’ll need a Google Cloud project to house your service account.

1.2 Enable Google Analytics Data API

The Analytics Data API must be enabled for your project.

1.3 Create Service Account

Now create a service account that Aim will use to access your GA4 data.

1.4 Create and Download JSON Key

Troubleshooting: Organization Policy Blocks Key Creation

Why this happens: Many enterprises block service account key creation to enforce more secure authentication methods like Workload Identity Federation.

Solutions:

Option 1: Contact Your Organization Administrator (Recommended)

You cannot proceed without org admin help. Ask your Google Cloud organization administrator to:

1. Grant you the Organization Policy Administrator role, OR
2. Disable the “Block service account API key bindings” policy for your project, OR
3. Create the service account key on your behalf and share it securely

For Admins - How to Allow Key Creation:

Option 2: Use Workload Identity Federation (Advanced)

For organizations that require keyless authentication, you can use Workload Identity Federation. This is more complex to set up but eliminates the need for service account keys.

Contact Aim support for help setting this up.

Step 2: Grant GA4 Access

Now that you have a service account, you need to grant it access to your Google Analytics 4 property.

2.1 Find Your Service Account Email

Open the JSON key file you downloaded. Look for the client_email field:

{
  "type": "service_account",
  "project_id": "your-project-id",
  "client_email": "aim-analytics-connector@your-project-id.iam.gserviceaccount.com",
  ...
}

Copy this email address - you’ll need it in the next step.

2.2 Add User to GA4 Property

Step 3: Configure in Aim

Now you’re ready to set up the connection in Aim.

3.1 Find Your GA4 Property ID

3.2 Create Connection in Aim

Step 4: Select Metrics

Choose which Google Analytics 4 metrics you want to track in Aim.

Available Metrics

User & Session Metrics

• Active Users - Distinct users who visited your site
• New Users - First-time visitors
• Sessions - Number of sessions
• Average Session Duration - Length of sessions
• Sessions per User - Average sessions per user

Engagement Metrics

• Engagement Rate - Percentage of engaged sessions
• Bounce Rate - Percentage of non-engaged sessions
• Average Engagement Time - Time users spent actively engaged
• User Engagement - Engaged sessions per user
• Events per Session - Average events per session

Content Metrics

• Page Views - App screens or web pages viewed
• Screens per Session - Average screens per session
• Event Count - Total number of events

Conversion & Revenue Metrics

• Conversions - Conversion events triggered
• Total Revenue - Revenue from purchases and subscriptions
• Session Conversion Rate - Percentage of sessions with conversions
• Revenue per User - Average revenue per user
• ARPPU - Average revenue per paying user

Custom Metrics & Dimensions

Aim also supports importing custom dimensions and metrics you’ve defined in GA4. These will appear in the metric selection list once the initial connection is established.

To add custom dimensions:

1. Set them up in GA4 first
2. Re-sync your Aim connection
3. They’ll appear in the available metrics list

Metric Recommendations

Data Sync & Refresh

Initial Sync

After completing setup, Aim will perform an initial data sync:

• Historical data: Last 90 days (Pro/Enterprise plans) or 30 days (Free plan)
• Sync time: 5-15 minutes depending on data volume
• Status: Monitor progress in Systems → Your Connection → Sync History

Ongoing Syncs

Based on your chosen refresh cadence:

• Hourly: Every hour at :05 past the hour
• Daily: Every day at 12:00 AM UTC
• Weekly: Every Monday at 12:00 AM UTC

Manual Refresh

You can trigger a manual refresh anytime:

1. Go to Systems → Your Connection
2. Click Sync Now
3. Wait for sync to complete (usually 1-3 minutes)

Using GA4 Metrics in Aim

Creating Metrics

Once your integration is synced, you can create metrics from GA4 data:

1. Go to Metrics → Create Metric
2. Select your GA4 connection as the data source
3. Choose the metric you want to track
4. Add filters, segments, or date ranges as needed
5. Click Create

Learn more about creating metrics →

Building Dashboards

Add GA4 metrics to dashboards:

1. Go to Dashboard → + Add Widget
2. Choose a widget type (Metric Card, Line Chart, etc.)
3. Select your GA4 metric
4. Customize visualization
5. Click Add to Dashboard

Learn more about dashboards →

Setting Up OKRs

Use GA4 metrics as Key Results in OKRs:

1. Go to OKRs → Create Objective
2. Add a Key Result
3. Link it to a GA4 metric
4. Set target value and deadline
5. Track progress automatically

Learn more about OKRs →

Best Practices

Security

• Rotate keys regularly: Generate new service account keys every 90 days
• Use separate service accounts: Don’t reuse service accounts across multiple tools
• Minimum permissions: Only grant Viewer role unless you need editor access
• Monitor access: Regularly review service accounts in GA4 Admin > Property Access Management
• Store securely: Use a secrets manager (AWS Secrets Manager, Google Secret Manager, etc.)

Performance

• Choose appropriate cadence: Most use cases work fine with daily syncs
• Start with core metrics: Don’t import all metrics unless you need them
• Use date ranges: Filter to relevant time periods to reduce data volume
• Monitor quota: GA4 API has request limits; contact support if you hit them

Reliability

• Set up alerts: Get notified if syncs fail
• Check sync history: Regularly review Systems → Connection → Sync History
• Test after changes: If you modify GA4 setup, re-test the Aim connection
• Keep credentials valid: Service account keys don’t expire, but org policies might change

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

”Permission denied” error

Cause: Service account doesn’t have access to GA4 property

Solution:

1. Verify the service account email in your JSON file
2. Check that this exact email was added to GA4 Property Access Management
3. Confirm Viewer role was assigned
4. Wait 5 minutes for permissions to propagate, then retry

”Invalid grant” or “Invalid credentials”

Cause: JSON key is malformed or incorrect

Solution:

1. Ensure you copied the ENTIRE JSON file contents
2. Check that the JSON is valid (use a JSON validator if unsure)
3. Try re-downloading the key from Google Cloud Console
4. Create a new key if the old one was deleted

No data appearing after sync

Cause: Property ID might be incorrect, or GA4 property has no data

Solution:

1. Double-check the Property ID in GA4 Admin > Property Settings
2. Verify your GA4 property has data (check in GA4 first)
3. Check date ranges - Aim defaults to last 30 days
4. Try a manual refresh in Aim

Sync fails with “Quota exceeded”

Cause: Too many API requests to GA4

Solution:

1. Reduce number of metrics being synced
2. Increase refresh cadence (daily instead of hourly)
3. Contact Aim support to review your quota usage

Still Having Issues?

• Check the general integration troubleshooting guide
• Review GA4 API documentation
• Contact Aim support with:
  • Connection name in Aim
  • Error messages from sync logs
  • Steps you’ve already tried

Next Steps

• Set up another integration
• Create your first metric
• Build a dashboard
• Set OKRs with GA4 metrics

Related Integrations

Consider connecting these complementary tools:

• Amplitude - Product analytics for deeper user insights
• Segment - Customer data platform to centralize events
• BigQuery - Export GA4 data to your warehouse for custom analysis