With the rollout of Google Analytics 4 (GA4), marketers in both Canada and the U.S. are navigating a new reporting landscape. Whether you’re spending on Meta Ads, Google Ads, Programmatic, or YouTube, GA4 offers new tools to measure the performance of media buying efforts compared to other digital marketing channels.
But with new metrics, new interfaces, and new event-based tracking, which GA4 KPIs actually matter?
This post breaks down the most useful GA4 reports and key performance indicators (KPIs) that help you understand how paid media is performing vs. organic, email, referral, or direct traffic—and where to double down or pull back budget.
1. Acquisition Overview: Start With the Big Picture
GA4’s Acquisition Overview report gives a high-level breakdown of how users are arriving at your site. It’s ideal for understanding:
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Which channels are driving the most users
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Which sources are bringing in engaged sessions
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How your paid traffic compares to organic and direct traffic
Start here to get a top-line read on performance. Then, dig deeper into channel-specific breakdowns.
2. User Acquisition: First User Default Channel Group
Report: User Acquisition > First user default channel group
This report tells you where new users first discovered your brand, segmented by GA4’s Default Channel Grouping (e.g. Paid Search, Organic Search, Paid Social, Referral).
Key KPIs to track:
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New users
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Engaged sessions per user
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Average engagement time per session
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Conversions (based on your defined goals)
💡 Why it matters: See how paid media compares to organic, direct, or social when it comes to first-time user acquisition—critical for growth-focused campaigns.
3. Traffic Acquisition: Session Default Channel Group
Report: Traffic Acquisition > Session default channel group
This report focuses on sessions rather than users. It’s helpful for comparing traffic sources during the entire customer journey, including return visits.
Key KPIs:
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Sessions
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Engaged sessions
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Bounce rate (modeled via engaged sessions)
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Conversion rate by session
💡 Why it matters: See which channels are re-engaging your audience and driving meaningful activity beyond that first click.
4. Engagement Overview: Segment Paid Users vs. All Users
Use GA4’s comparison feature to create a segment of users acquired via paid channels (e.g., Paid Search, Paid Social). Then, view the Engagement Overview to compare:
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Engaged sessions per user
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Average engagement time
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Conversion rates
💡 Why it matters: Paid clicks are expensive. This tells you if users from paid media are engaging deeply or bouncing.
5. Events: Segment Paid vs. All Users by Event Name
Report: Events > Event name
Segment the report by paid traffic and compare performance on critical events like:
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form_submit -
generate_lead -
purchase -
scroll -
video_start
💡 Why it matters: You can track precisely how paid media is driving action vs. other channels. It also helps optimize landing page UX and CTAs.
6. Pages and Screens: Page Path and Screen Class (Segmented)
Report: Engagement > Pages and screens
With a segment for paid media, analyze which pages or screens are being viewed most by paid users and whether they’re engaging as intended.
KPIs to monitor:
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Views
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Average engagement time
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Event count per page
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Drop-off points
💡 Why it matters: Not all landing pages perform equally. Use this to identify which paid landing pages are most effective.
7. Landing Page Report: Segment Paid Traffic Only
Report: Explore > Landing Page (custom report)
In GA4, the Landing Page report isn’t default, so you’ll need to build a custom exploration. Once built, compare:
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Landing page performance by channel
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Engagement time on landing page
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Conversions from landing page
💡 Why it matters: This is one of the most important reports for media buyers testing creative or audience segments. It shows which pages are converting and which are wasting spend.
8. Conversion Paths: Attribution Insights
Report: Advertising > Conversion paths
GA4 includes data-driven attribution, showing how each channel contributes across the conversion funnel.
Use this to:
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See whether paid media is introducing or closing conversions
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Compare position-based influence of channels
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View multi-touch pathways (e.g., Paid Search → Direct → Conversion)
💡 Why it matters: Paid media might not convert immediately, but this report shows if it plays a key role in the funnel.
9. Cost vs. Revenue Reports: Import Media Spend
If you’re importing cost data from Google Ads or other platforms, GA4 can show:
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ROAS (Return on Ad Spend)
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Cost per conversion
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Revenue by channel
💡 Pro tip: Use the Looker Studio (formerly Data Studio) connector to build cross-channel dashboards with cost and revenue included for better budget decisions.
10. Lifetime Value (LTV) with Custom Dimensions
While GA4 doesn’t have a built-in LTV report like Universal Analytics did, you can create one using:
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Custom dimensions for user source/medium
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User-ID-based tracking
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Integration with CRM or ecommerce platform
💡 Why it matters: You’ll see if media-bought users are bringing long-term value, not just quick conversions.
Final Thoughts: Measure What Moves the Needle
In GA4, it’s easy to get lost in data. But the most valuable KPIs for media buyers are those that show:
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Are paid users converting better or worse than organic?
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Which pages and creatives are driving results?
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Is paid media delivering incremental value or cannibalizing organic traffic?
By using the right default reports and custom explorations, marketers in Canada and the U.S. can finally tie media buying performance to business outcomes—and outshine other marketing channels.
Need help building GA4 dashboards to measure your media buying efforts?
We help performance marketers, ecommerce brands, and healthcare advertisers unlock real insights in GA4. Contact us to set up customized GA4 reporting that ties your ad spend to ROI.