Updates from GA4 to BigQuery come with a day-long delay, so yesterday’s metrics arrive in intraday tables and the funnel looks incomplete.
GA4 and BigQuery handle data differently:
• GA4 uses its own day rules,
• while BigQuery stores raw events with precise timestamps and can drift with time zones.
What problems does this cause for marketing?
The delay and date mismatches distort conversions, ROAS, and budget decisions. We risk acting on stale signals, and optimization plans become less accurate and timely.
What can we take away from this?
• Work with intraday tables and adapt the analysis after you have a full picture.
• Understand how the delay affects daily funnel comparisons and which data points go missing in transfer.
How to move forward?
• Set up data reprocessing for intraday and normal tables.
• Don't rush with decisions based on today's performance.
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