What is conversion tracking and how does it work?

Conversion tracking is a feature provided by Google Ads that allows advertisers to measure and track specific actions or conversions that occur on their websites or landing pages as a result of their advertising campaigns. It provides valuable data on the effectiveness and impact of your ads in driving desired user actions, such as purchases, form submissions, newsletter sign-ups, or app downloads.

Here’s how conversion tracking works:

1. Placing the conversion tracking code: To track conversions, you need to add a snippet of code, known as the conversion tracking code, to the web pages where the desired actions occur. This code is generated within your Google Ads account and consists of a small JavaScript snippet. When a user completes a conversion action, such as making a purchase or submitting a form, the code sends a signal back to Google Ads.
2. Recording the conversion data: When a user completes a conversion action, such as reaching a thank you page after making a purchase, the conversion tracking code on that page triggers and sends the relevant data back to Google Ads. This data includes information like the conversion type, the campaign that led to the conversion, the keyword that triggered the ad, and other relevant details.
3. Attributing conversions to campaigns: Google Ads uses various attribution models to determine which campaign, ad, or keyword contributed to the conversion. The attribution model determines how credit is assigned for a conversion when multiple clicks or interactions occur before the conversion. Common attribution models include last-click, first-click, linear, time decay, and position-based.
4. Viewing conversion data in Google Ads: Once conversions are tracked and attributed, you can view the data within your Google Ads account. The interface provides comprehensive reports and metrics that show the number of conversions, conversion rates, conversion values (if assigned), and other related statistics. This data allows you to evaluate the performance of your campaigns, keywords, and ads based on their ability to generate conversions.
5. Optimizing campaigns based on conversion data: Conversion tracking data enables you to make informed decisions about optimizing your campaigns. You can identify high-performing campaigns, keywords, or ads that drive the most conversions and allocate your budget and resources accordingly. It also helps you identify underperforming elements that may need improvement or refinement.
6. Fine-tuning targeting and bidding: Conversion tracking data can be used to refine your targeting and bidding strategies. By analyzing the conversion data, you can identify the demographic characteristics, locations, devices, or times of day that generate the most conversions. This information helps you optimize your targeting settings and adjust your bids to reach the most valuable audiences and maximize your conversion rates.

By implementing conversion tracking in Google Ads, you gain valuable insights into the effectiveness of your advertising efforts. It allows you to measure the impact of your campaigns, optimize your strategies, and allocate your resources effectively to achieve your business goals.

7. Setting up conversion actions: Within Google Ads, you can define specific conversion actions that you want to track. This could be a purchase confirmation page, a lead form submission, a download completion, or any other action that represents a valuable conversion for your business. By setting up conversion actions, you can track and measure the specific actions that are most important to you.
8. Multiple conversion tracking: Google Ads allows you to track multiple conversion actions simultaneously. This is particularly useful if your website or landing pages have multiple conversion points or if you want to track different types of conversions separately. You can set up and track multiple conversion actions within a single Google Ads account.
9. Conversion value tracking: In addition to tracking the number of conversions, you can also assign a monetary value to each conversion. This is helpful when you want to measure the return on investment (ROI) of your advertising campaigns. By assigning a value to conversions, you can see the total value generated by your campaigns, allowing you to make more informed decisions about your advertising budget and strategies.
10. Cross-device and cross-platform tracking: With the proliferation of devices and platforms, users often engage with your ads and website across multiple devices or platforms. Google Ads provides cross-device and cross-platform conversion tracking, allowing you to track and attribute conversions even when they occur on different devices or platforms. This helps you understand the full customer journey and measure the impact of your ads across different touchpoints.
11. Importing offline conversions: In some cases, conversions may occur offline, such as phone calls or in-store purchases. Google Ads provides the option to import offline conversions into your account, allowing you to track and attribute these conversions to your campaigns. This is done by uploading a file with the relevant conversion data to your Google Ads account.
12. Integration with other tracking tools: Google Ads can be integrated with other tracking tools and platforms, such as Google Analytics. By linking your Google Ads and Google Analytics accounts, you can gain deeper insights into user behavior, conversion paths, and additional data that can further enhance your conversion tracking and optimization efforts.

By implementing conversion tracking in Google Ads and utilizing the available features and options, you can gain valuable insights into the performance of your campaigns, optimize your targeting and bidding strategies, and make data-driven decisions to maximize your advertising ROI.

13. Conversion attribution models: Google Ads provides different attribution models that determine how credit for conversions is assigned to different interactions along the customer journey. You can choose from models like last-click, first-click, linear, time decay, and more. Attribution models help you understand the impact of different touchpoints and optimize your campaigns accordingly.
14. Conversion tracking with Google Tag Manager: If you use Google Tag Manager on your website, you can easily set up conversion tracking by adding the necessary tags and triggers. Google Tag Manager simplifies the process of implementing and managing conversion tracking codes, making it more efficient and flexible.
15. Conversion tracking for different campaign types: Google Ads offers conversion tracking for various campaign types, including search ads, display ads, shopping ads, video ads, and app ads. Each campaign type has specific conversion tracking options and requirements. You can set up conversion tracking for the campaign types that align with your advertising goals.
16. Conversion tracking for mobile apps: If you have a mobile app, Google Ads provides a mobile app conversion tracking solution. It allows you to track specific in-app events or actions, such as app installations, in-app purchases, or user engagement within the app. Mobile app conversion tracking helps you measure the effectiveness of your app campaigns and optimize your app promotion strategies.
17. Conversion tracking in Google Analytics: If you have Google Analytics set up on your website, you can link it to your Google Ads account and enable Google Analytics goals as conversions. This provides a more comprehensive view of user behavior and conversion data, allowing you to analyze the impact of your ads on website engagement and conversions.
18. Conversion tracking for offline events: If you have offline events or conversions, such as phone calls or store visits, that are valuable to your business, you can use Google Ads’ offline conversion tracking. This feature allows you to import offline conversion data into your Google Ads account, providing a more complete picture of your campaign performance.
19. Conversion tracking reports and insights: Google Ads provides various reports and insights related to conversion tracking. You can analyze conversion data by campaign, ad group, keyword, device, location, and other dimensions to understand which elements of your campaigns are driving the most conversions. These insights help you optimize your campaigns and allocate your budget more effectively.
20. Conversion tracking troubleshooting: If you encounter any issues with conversion tracking, Google Ads offers troubleshooting resources and support. You can refer to the Google Ads Help Center, community forums, and contact Google Ads support for assistance in resolving any tracking issues or discrepancies.

By leveraging the capabilities of Google Ads’ conversion tracking, you can gain valuable insights into the performance of your campaigns, identify areas for improvement, and optimize your advertising strategies to drive more conversions and achieve your business goals.