June 2023: the last weeks before GA4 took over from Universal Analytics
Covers June 2023. Part of our search timeline: a month-by-month look at the changes that shaped SEO, AI search, paid ads and social media, written in November 2026 for local businesses with the benefit of hindsight.
Quick answer: On 1 July 2023 Universal Analytics stopped processing data, which made June the final month to get ready. Any business without a proper Google Analytics 4 setup risked losing its tracking altogether, and plenty found holes in their conversion tracking that also threw off their Google Ads bidding.
For a local business running Google Ads, this was more than a reporting change. If calls and form fills were not being counted properly, the automated bidding behind your ads was working blind.
What happened during June 2023?
Google sent reminders that standard Universal Analytics properties would no longer process new data from 1 July 2023. For anyone who had not switched yet, the GA4 setup assistant offered to build a basic property for them automatically.
Why did it matter for UK advertisers?
UK businesses that imported conversions from analytics into Google Ads had to recreate them in GA4. A quote request counted twice, or a phone call not counted at all, fed automated bidding the wrong information and wasted ad spend.
Checks worth doing today
- Go through your GA4 key events and confirm each one fires just once for every genuine action, such as a call or a form sent.
- Make sure Google Ads is using the correct conversion actions as its primary goals.
- Set your GA4 figures against your job sheets, CRM or booking records to find any gaps.
Frequently asked questions
What happened to websites that never moved to GA4?
Universal Analytics simply stopped collecting new data for them. Some were given a basic GA4 property automatically, often with no proper conversions set up.
Should Google Ads count conversions from GA4 or from the Google Ads tag?
Either is fine. For bidding, the Google Ads tag tends to be more precise, while GA4 gives you a view across all your channels.
Sources and further reading
Want help with this? We set up and audit GA4 and conversion tracking for local firms through our analytics and reporting service. Get in touch.
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