How to Exclude PayPal & Co. in Google Analytics

Shop providers using Google Analytics have recently been encountering the issue where a conversion is credited not to the actual marketing channel like Google AdWords, but to a payment provider like PayPal. It is relatively unlikely that customers first heard about your online shop from the pages of external payment providers, distorting the figures. This is, of course, frustrating.

As studies show, it is essential for shop operators to offer a wide range of payment options. For every second online shopper, the payment methods offered play a decisive role in their choice of shop. Therefore, dispensing with e-payment providers is not a solution for shop operators.

This is how assignments are made in Google Analytics

The allocation in Google Analytics is based on the last-cookie principle. This means only the last contact is considered for conversion attribution. The problem: This principle inadequately accounts for the customer’s purchase decision process, as most transactions are preceded by multiple interactions. The decision to make a purchase can take several days or even weeks, depending on the type of product, and runs across various channels (organic search, AdWords, social media).

Most shop operators offer their customers various payment options, including direct debit, credit card payment, online banking, and payment systems like PayPal.

If the customer pays via PayPal or another payment provider, they leave the online retailer’s website. After the payment, the customer returns to the site and arrives at the order confirmation page, where the e-commerce tracking code is usually embedded. From Google Analytics' perspective, PayPal, by redirecting to the target page, finally convinced the customer to make a purchase. This provider is then listed as the conversion source.

This is how you can permanently exclude external payment providers from Google Analytics

The good news: You can relatively easily and permanently exclude payment providers as referrals in Google Analytics at the account level, so that the right source is assigned to conversions. However, you’ll need admin rights to do this. So first, ensure that you have the necessary rights for the relevant account. Then click on the “Admin” menu item. In the middle of the three columns, you will find the link “Tracking Info” with the sub-item “Referral Exclusion List”. Click on it.

With the red button “+ Add Referral Exclusion” you can now exclude the relevant payment providers by entering the URL (paypal.com, paymill.com, sofort.com etc.) into the field. Click on “Create”. And that's it.

After the exclusion, the conversion will no longer be listed as the last (payment provider) but as the last actual access. However, note that a retroactive data exclusion is not possible. Exclusions only take effect after creation. This is because Google Analytics generally does not make retrospective changes to the figures. This also means that you cannot restore the data retroactively during the exclusion period. Therefore, you should always use the referral exclusion list with consideration.

Don't be surprised if you still occasionally find payment providers after successful exclusion. The reason for this is the different cookie durations, which can range from a few hours to several months, depending on the cookie. PayPal, for instance, states that it uses both session and persistent cookies. However, PayPal does not provide information about the maximum life span of its cookies. The payment service sofort.com uses a cookie active for 30 days for conversion tracking. Partner cookies are even active for up to 90 days. Although users can delete cookies and the cache at any time, experience shows that only a fraction of internet users do so. Shop providers must be patient until all external payment providers are completely excluded from Google Analytics.

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