Tracking conversions

Converting on your site has several advantages. With them, you can:

• Generate conversion reports: with Acquisition, Engagement, and Ads reports, you can check which activities are most important for your business. 
• Set rates based on conversions: import conversion data into Google Ads to set rates based on them yourself, or use them to intelligently set rates and thus optimize campaigns. 
• Assign share of conversions: you can combine your data with information from other ad channels to check customer touchpoints along the conversion path. 
• Display ads to users who have not yet converted: use your conversion data to create lists of non-converting audiences and import them into Google Ads for remarketing.

Conversion tracking configuration

Before we get into the technical aspects of configuring conversion tracking, let’s take a moment to properly prepare for it. The most important thing we should know, even before we get started in Google Analytics or Google Ads, is what kind of conversions we want to implement. We should determine them based on our marketing goals. Setting business goals – is the first and most important step in the process of implementing and optimizing marketing campaigns. With clearly set goals, we can transparently evaluate the effectiveness of the activities carried out. These may include, for example, increasing website traffic, increasing sales or increasing the number of subscribers.

When we have set our marketing goals, we can proceed to measure their achievement rate. In order to measure the goals we have set, it will be necessary to implement Google Analytics on the site. If you are a little advanced GA4 user, be sure to read the text titled GA4 – tips to make your job easier

If you don’t have Analytics implemented, or don’t know how to do it, don’t worry, it’s quite simple. Follow the steps outlined below: go to the “Settings” tab (the sprocket graphic in the lower left corner) and then “Google Analytics Service Configuration Assistant 4”. Follow the instructions given there to implement Google Analytics service on your site.

Once you’ve done that, you can move on to configuring conversions, and before that, events. You’ll do this under “Administration” and then “Events.” When you select this part of the menu, you will see a view of the events you have configured so far. To add a new one, just click “create event.” Conversions are based on events – that is, specific actions on the page. In Google Analytics 4 you should have a few key events configured by default, such as “first visit” – i.e. a user’s first visit to your site, as well as several others. Name the event depending on what you want it to be, such as “contact page visit,” and select the appropriate event matching conditions. These are the conditions that must be met for a conversion to be registered. In the event wizard you have predefined Google Analytics 4 events available, which will more than likely meet your needs, but if you don’t find the right parameter, you can simply add it yourself. 

After successfully configuring an event, you need to mark it as a conversion. New events will appear in Google Analytics only after a certain period of time. You can mark up to 30 events as conversions. You do not need to make any changes to your site. All the configuration is done in Google Analytics.

To mark a previously created event as a conversion:

1. In Google Analytics, click “Administration” on the left side of the page.
2. In the Service menu, click “Events”.
3. In the Existing Events table, click the switch in the Mark as conversion section.

Once you’ve set up conversions, you can use them in rate-setting strategies for your marketing campaigns. Be sure to read about Maximizing the number and value of conversions To use them in Google Ads, you must first import them in your account settings.

Google Ads conversion configuration

Google Analytics 4 is a great analytics tool that will allow you to configure conversions easily, but if for some reason you don’t want to use it, you don’t need to implement it on your website. You can also set up conversion tracking in Google Ads at the ad account level. You can find a step-by-step guide on the Google Ads – Help page, in the article Configuring conversion tracking on your site

What is a conversion rate?

Conversion rate is a breakdown of specific actions performed, relative to the total number of users who came to your site. It’s an indicator that helps you determine the effectiveness of your activities. In general, the higher the conversion rate, the better – because it means that users are performing the actions you care about. If the ratio is low, it could mean that the wrong audience is coming to the site, or that the site is improperly structured in terms of UX, or user experience. It could also indicate that your business’s offering is not competitive enough, causing users to abandon using it. 

How to Improve Conversion Rate

If users are frequently clicking on your ads, but less frequently buying products or using services, or even registering on your site, try optimizing your Google Ads efforts. If you don’t know how to do it, look for inspiration in the article titled Campaigns in search – how to optimize them There you will find practical tips to improve the performance of your campaign.

Conversions in mobile app

If you’re promoting Android or iOS mobile apps in Google Ads, you can use conversion tracking to see how successful your ads are at driving app installs or activity within them.

For Android or iOS apps, you can track different types of conversions:

App installs: conversion tracking can show how effectively ads are contributing to mobile app installs. Here are some possible options:

App downloads from Google Play: for Android apps, you can track app downloads from the Google Play Store by users who clicked an ad. Tracking conversions in Google Play is done automatically, so you don’t need to add tracking code to your app.

Tracking of conversions in Google Play is done automatically, so you don’t need to add tracking code to your app.

First launches: for Android and iOS apps, you can track the first app launches after installation by users who clicked the ad. You can use this option if you use Firebase or use a third-party app analytics provider’s platform.

First Runs.

In-app actions, such as purchases: You can track in-app purchases in Android apps that use in-app billing, or track custom actions using Firebase.

If you want to track conversions in your Google Ads account, but the topic is too difficult or time-consuming for you, you can use the services of Digital Agency The agency is primarily engaged in the planning and implementation of online marketing activities, which may consist of brand building, search engine advertising, public relations, creating marketing communications, optimizing online campaigns or data analytics.