Connect Google Analytics (GA4)


Send a key event to Google Analytics (GA4) every time a real visitor reaches a step you care about, so GA4 counts people instead of page loads.

In short: the GA4 integration sends a key event you name to your Google Analytics property, from Bread & Butter's servers, whenever a visitor reaches the trigger you set: a lead stage, or a funnel you've saved. Bots are removed first, and the key event lands on the same visitor GA4 already knows, through their GA4 client ID. There's no tag to add to a thank-you page. You connect it with your stream's Measurement ID and a Measurement Protocol API Secret, and you create the key event in GA4 first so it's ready to receive. It costs no credits and is available on the Free plan and the Pro plan.

Why send key events from Bread & Butter

Most websites count leads in GA4 with a tag on the thank-you page or a form trigger in Google Tag Manager. Those tags count page loads and clicks: a refresh counts twice, a failed form counts as a lead, spam bots count as leads, and a visitor who closes the tab too soon isn't counted at all. Bread & Butter sends the key event from its servers when a real visitor reaches your trigger, and every key event in GA4 has a profile behind it that you can open in Bread & Butter. See Why send your GA4 key events from Bread & Butter instead of a tag on your website?

Before you start

GA4 has to be on your website already (the Google tag, or GA4 through Google Tag Manager). Google requires it for events sent from a server, and it gives each visitor the client ID that Bread & Butter sends back with the key event, so GA4 puts it on the right visitor.

Step 1: Get your Measurement ID and API Secret

  1. Log in to Google Analytics.
  2. Click Admin (gear icon) at the bottom left.

  3. Under Data collection and modification, click Data streams.

    Data streams

  4. Select your data stream from the list.
  5. Copy the Measurement ID (e.g., G-XXXXXXXXXX) and save it for later.

  6. Scroll down and click Measurement Protocol API secrets.

    Measurement Protocol API secrets

  7. Click Create.
  8. Enter a nickname for the secret and click Create.
  9. Copy the Secret Value and save it for later.

Step 2: Create a key event in GA4

  1. In Google Analytics, go to Admin > Data display > Events.

  2. Click Create event.

    Create event

  3. Enter a custom event name (e.g., breadbutter_engaged_lead ) and configure your conditions.

    Custom event name and conditions

  4. Important: Mark this new event as a Key Event.

Note: It may take up to 24 hours for new events to appear in Google Analytics.

If you already count leads with a tag on your website, give the Bread & Butter key event its own name so the two counts sit side by side while you compare.

Step 3: Create the integration in Bread & Butter

  1. In Bread & Butter, open Integrations and choose the Google Analytics tile. If you already have integrations, click Add New first.
  2. Integration name: a name your team will recognize, like "Google Analytics - Engaged Leads".
  3. Measurement ID and API Secret: paste the values from step 1.
  4. Key event: enter the exact name of the event you created in step 2 (e.g., breadbutter_engaged_lead ). It has to match the name in GA4 exactly.
  5. Trigger: choose what sends the key event: a lead stage (Engaged Lead is the default), or a funnel you've saved. A funnel can be as simple as one user journey event, such as a download or a booking, or as specific as Focused visitors from paid search who viewed your pricing page.
  6. What to send: this shows List, the only option for Google Analytics, so there's nothing to choose here.
  7. Click Save & close. The new integration appears on your Integrations page, with a switch to pause it at any time.

When GA4 receives the event

Each time a visitor reaches your trigger, Bread & Butter sends the key event you named to GA4, straight away, from its servers. Refreshing a page or visiting again doesn't send it again; a lead who leaves the stage or funnel and comes back into it is sent again. Bots and spam submissions are removed before anything reaches your trigger. Visitors who were already in the stage or funnel when you saved the integration aren't sent; it acts on new arrivals from then on.

The key event carries the visitor's GA4 client ID, which Bread & Butter picks up from your Google tag automatically, so GA4 records it on the same visitor it already knows. It's sent for visitors your Google tag has seen; a visitor who blocks Google Analytics completely has no GA4 record to add it to. Along with the key event, GA4 receives the page and referrer of the visit. Google doesn't allow names or email addresses in GA4, so none are sent: the person behind each key event stays in Bread & Butter, one click away.

Allow up to 24 hours for a brand-new event to show in your GA4 reports.

To send a different key event for a different audience, for example one for Engaged Leads and another for a funnel of high-scoring leads from paid search, create one integration for each.

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