Google Analytics Audit Test #

141

Using Event Create Rules?

Why It Matters:

Critical to the function of your data collection for deeper analysis.

Industries:

All

Checks For:

Accuracy

How accurate is your recent data?

Insight Category:

Behavior

Can you tell what visitors are doing?

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Background

A GA4 audit is essential for uncovering missing insights—key data points that organizations don't yet know and can act upon. A well-done audit evaluates both behavioral tracking and traffic attribution, ensuring each is accurate and useful. It also assesses whether the data collected truly supports business decisions and reporting.

Test Detail

This test checks whether a Google Analytics property is making use of Event Create Rules—a Google Analytics feature that allows you to define new events within the Google Analytics interface based on conditions from existing events.

While Event Create Rules may appear convenient (especially when direct tag access is limited), they come with important caveats:

  • They rely on early binding of data (within the Google Analytics UI), which can limit flexibility and reversibility
  • They are harder to debug, audit, or document compared to tag-based or server-side event creation
  • They can obscure the original source of events, creating confusion between real and derived actions
  • They make late-binding practices in a data warehouse more difficult, reducing your ability to refine logic post-collection

We recommend against over-reliance on Event Create Rules and suggest using them only for very lightweight transformations or temporary fixes.

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How to Conduct This Test

Basic Tests

  • In Google Analytics > Admin > Events, look for events with the gear ⚙️ icon labeled as “Created” in the UI
  • In the same panel, review the list of Modified Events—which can also include transformations applied post-collection
  • Take note of any Event Create Rules that:
    • Overlap with events already sent from Google Tag Manager or your website
    • Are duplicating core actions (e.g., form_submit, purchase)
    • Depend on fragile conditions like URL fragments or parameter text
  • In BigQuery, you may see these events appear without a corresponding tag or origin in the raw event logs

Automated, Free Audit

Want to know if your event structure is at risk of becoming unmanageable? Run our Instant Audit

Or hire a pro to restructure your event tracking pipeline for long-term stability.

How To Fix

  • Audit all Created Events and determine which ones should be:
    • Sent directly via Google Tag Manager or gtag.js
    • Created in a data warehouse or reporting layer via late binding instead
  • Migrate important or conversion-related Create Rules into Google Tag Manager or backend implementations where:
    • You can apply stricter QA
    • Data lineage and parameter values are easier to maintain
  • Use Google Analytics DebugView to test what’s firing and compare event structure between frontend and derived events
  • Update your event naming documentation to clearly distinguish between real (tagged) and synthetic (created) events
  • Hire a pro to audit and clean up your Google Analytics events to ensure clarity, control, and future-proof attribution modeling.

Tips from a Google Analytics Consultant

Focus on Insights

Every Google Analytics audit should result in a plan for more insights.

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An insight is:

  • something you don't know
  • and can act on to improve performance

The Goal

Identify and remove insight blockers. Don't get tempted to track things you can't act on!

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