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Migrated to GCA? You are Not Done Until These 5 Things Are Verified

24 Jun 2025
migrate CGA
migrate CGA

Installing the Google & YouTube Channel App (GCA) on Shopify is not the finish line. It’s the start of a migration that, if left unchecked, can quietly break conversion tracking, double-count revenue, or breach your consent policy without anyone noticing. For a performance-focused CRO agency, this isn’t just a technical toggle — it’s a high-risk change that needs structured validation.

Most teams stop once they see “conversion data” flowing into Ads or GA4. But quantity of events isn’t the same as quality. Your job isn’t to assume the install worked. Your job is to verify that what’s firing is accurate, compliant, and deduplicated.

Here are the five things every brand must check before calling a GCA migration complete.

1. GCA Is the Only Source of Purchase Events

One of the most common issues post-migration is that GCA and GTM both fire purchase events resulting in inflated revenue, broken attribution models, or silent duplication in GA4.

2. Consent Is Being Respected and Logged

GCA integrates with Shopify’s Privacy API, which means it should only fire events after consent is granted. But this only works if:

  • Consent status is declared via Shopify’s Customer Privacy API
  • No other banners or GTM-based consent logic are running in conflict
  • Events like page_view and purchase are correctly gated

3. GCA Captures the Events You Actually Need

Out of the box, GCA captures only a handful of conversion events.

It does not fire:

  • view_cart
  • remove_from_cart
  • begin_checkout (reliably)
  • add_shipping_info

4. Shopify Diagnostics and GA4 Match in Real Time

Shopify provides basic diagnostics inside GCA. GA4 provides debug tools. But too few teams compare both environments after setup.

Tool Use Case
Google Tag Assistant Confirms what tags fire and in what sequence
GA4 DebugView Shows real-time payloads hitting GA4
Shopify’s Pixel Diagnostics Shows whether GCA fired at checkout or was blocked

Recommended sequence

  • Place a test order
  • Check GCA firing in Shopify diagnostics
  • Cross-verify GA4 DebugView for expected event names, parameters, and revenue
  • Confirm consent status appears in Tag Assistant and is respected by all tags

If Shopify says “pixel fired” but GA4 has no data, there’s a silent block happening usually a consent or duplication issue.

5. Your Data Layer and Consent Flow Are Ready for What’s Next

Even if everything looks functional today, most teams overlook how fragile their implementation really is.

Ask:

  • Are you ready to add Meta or TikTok to this setup?
  • Can you export this data into BigQuery or Stitch for modelling?
  • Does your consent logic scale to country-level regulation differences?
  • Do you have version control on your events?

6. Final Thought

If your team “finished” GCA migration in a day, you didn’t migrate. You installed.
And without these five verification steps, your data is at risk not always visibly, but in the quiet gaps where consent, duplication, or attribution silently fail.

The best migrations are the ones no one notices because nothing breaks. That’s what this checklist protects.

7. FAQ

Why isn’t installing the Google & YouTube Channel App (GCA) on Shopify enough?
Because installation only starts the migration; without verification you can end up with broken tracking, doubled revenue, or non-compliant data collection.
You need to confirm what’s firing, where it’s going, and whether it respects your consent setup.

Why must GCA be the only source of purchase events?
If GCA and GTM (or other pixels) all send purchase events, GA4 and Google Ads can over-report revenue and conversions.
You should disable duplicate purchase tags and let one controlled path handle the final sale signal.

How does consent affect GCA migration?
GCA is built to read Shopify’s Customer Privacy API, so it should only fire after consent is granted.
If other banners, GTM consent logic, or ungated tags run alongside it, you risk sending data for users who never agreed.

What key events does GCA miss by default?
Out of the box, GCA focuses on a narrow set of conversions and often skips events like view_cart, remove_from_cart, begin_checkout (reliably), and add_shipping_info.
If you rely on these steps for funnel analysis or remarketing, you’ll need extra tagging outside GCA.

How do we verify a GCA migration is actually working?
Run a full test order and check Shopify Pixel Diagnostics, GA4 DebugView, and Google Tag Assistant together.
Confirm that purchase fires once, parameters and revenue are correct, consent is honoured, and your data layer and consent model are ready for future tags and exports.

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