Firebase and GA4 integration

[sysph]

Hi there,  I have some questions about Firebase and GA4 integration:

• Can we link GA4 to one BigQuery project  and then link Firebase to another project (app project)? any pros and cons ?

• Creating remarketing segments - GA4 / Firebase?

• How to tag app campaigns (Firebase)?

Thanks in advance

[ms4446 · Accepted solution]

Hi @sysph ,

I will address each of your questions in order:

Q1: Can we link GA4 to one BigQuery project and then link Firebase to another project (app project)? Any pros and cons?

Yes, it's possible to link GA4 to one BigQuery project and then link Firebase to another project (your app project). This setup might be used for organizational reasons, billing separation, or access control.

Pros:

• Separation of Concerns: Different projects can be used for different purposes, such as one for analytics and another for app development, which helps in managing access and permissions more effectively.
• Billing Management: By separating projects, you can more easily track and manage costs associated with BigQuery usage and Firebase services.

Cons:

• Complexity in Data Management: Having your data in different projects can complicate data management and integration tasks. For example, if you want to join Firebase data with GA4 data in BigQuery for comprehensive analysis, you'll have to manage cross-project data access and permissions.
• Potential for Increased Costs: While separating projects can help with billing management, it might also lead to increased costs if data needs to be replicated or accessed across projects, especially if you're transferring large amounts of data frequently.

Q2: Creating remarketing segments - GA4 / Firebase?

In GA4, you can create remarketing segments directly in the GA4 interface or by using the audience features in Firebase if you're focusing on app users. These segments can then be used for remarketing campaigns in Google Ads or other platforms that support GA4 or Firebase audiences.

GA4: Use the "Audiences" feature to create segments based on user behavior, demographics, and other criteria. These audiences can be published to Google Ads for remarketing.

Firebase: Firebase allows you to create audiences based on events and user properties. These audiences can be used for targeting in Firebase Cloud Messaging (FCM), A/B testing, and can also be linked to GA4 for further analysis and remarketing.

Q3: How to tag app campaigns (Firebase)?

For tagging app campaigns in Firebase, you typically use UTM parameters to track the performance of your marketing campaigns. When you link Firebase with GA4, you can analyze the effectiveness of these campaigns directly in GA4.

• Use UTM Parameters: Tag your campaign URLs with UTM parameters (utm_source, utm_medium, utm_campaign, etc.) to track where your traffic is coming from and how it's performing.
• Firebase Dynamic Links: For mobile apps, Firebase Dynamic Links can be used to deep link users to specific content within your app and carry the UTM parameters for tracking.
• Integration with Ad Platforms: Ensure your campaigns on platforms like Google Ads are properly linked and tagged to be tracked in Firebase and GA4.

Best Practices:

• Consistently use UTM parameters across your campaigns for accurate tracking.
• Monitor campaign performance in GA4 and Firebase to optimize your marketing efforts.
• Leverage Firebase's ability to track app-specific events and conversions in conjunction with GA4's advanced analytics features.

[sysph]

Thank you so much @ms4446  for the info. Where can i find these information? could you post the links please? thank you again

[ms4446]

For the most accurate and up-to-date information, direct sources from Google's documentation and support resources are recommended. Here are some links where you can find detailed information about GA4, Firebase, BigQuery integration, and related topics:

1. Google Analytics 4 (GA4) Documentation:

   • GA4 Help Center: https://support.google.com/analytics/answer/10089681
   • GA4 and Firebase integration: https://support.google.com/firebase/answer/6317479

2. Firebase Documentation:

   • Firebase Help Center: https://firebase.google.com/docs
   • Firebase and BigQuery integration: https://firebase.google.com/docs/projects/bigquery

3. BigQuery Documentation:

   • BigQuery Help Center: https://cloud.google.com/bigquery/docs
   • Accessing BigQuery data across projects: https://cloud.google.com/bigquery/docs/access-control

4. Creating and Managing Audiences in GA4:

   • https://support.google.com/analytics/answer/9267586

5. UTM Parameters for Campaign Tracking:

   • Google's URL Builder for tracking campaigns: https://ga-dev-tools.appspot.com/campaign-url-builder/

6. Firebase Dynamic Links:

   • https://firebase.google.com/docs/dynamic-links

[sysph]

Thank you so much @ms4446  these are so helpful. have a great day

[sysph]

Hi there, 

hope you're well.  

Regards to the first question, you mentioned that it's possible to link GA4 to one BigQuery project and then link Firebase to another project (your app project).   How do i query with BQ cross different project in this case?   

Thanks in advance

[ms4446]

hen you have GA4 data in one BigQuery project and Firebase data in another, you can still perform cross-project queries to analyze and integrate data from both sources. Here's how you can do it:

• Granting Cross-Project Permissions: Grant the necessary access to both projects' datasets to the service account or user that will execute the queries. This is the simplest method for frequent analysis, but requires careful permission management for security.

• Data Transfer Service: Set up regular data copies from one project's dataset to another using BigQuery's Data Transfer Service. This offers synchronization control but can introduce overhead, redundancy, and potential delays.

• Specifying Fully Qualified Table Names in Queries: Directly reference datasets in the other project by using fully qualified table names (project.dataset.table) in your queries. This avoids duplication and offers fine-grained permissions control but might be slower for large datasets.

Important Considerations

• Security: Always prioritize secure practices. Regardless of the method, carefully manage permissions to prevent unauthorized access.

• Costs: Larger data transfers and frequent cross-project querying can impact BigQuery costs. Factor this into your decision-making.

• Use Case: Evaluate whether the business value derived from keeping this setup truly justifies the added analytical complexity.

• Start Simple, Then Optimize: Begin with the external data source method for initial queries. This helps verify permissions and assess performance. If cross-project analyses become more frequent, consider the other techniques for optimization.

• Ideal World Scenario: BigQuery works best with a unified data set. If possible, explore ways to streamline the process and integrate GA4 and Firebase data into the same project.

Please Note:

• Data Governance: If this setup is necessary, establish clear data governance practices, especially around naming conventions for datasets and tables. This helps everyone understand where data lives.

• Views for Abstraction: Consider creating views in your primary project to simplify the complexity of cross-project joins. This can make querying easier for less technical analysts.