Conversion tracking provides key insights into user actions after viewing or clicking an ad. You can keep track of users who call, buy a product, install a mobile app, and more. AdWords provides different conversion trackers to track different ways in which customers convert, and this guide will go over the different types of conversion trackers and how to apply them.
Types of conversion trackers
A conversion in AdWords is a specific instance of a user performing some valuable action after clicking on an ad or viewing a Display Network ad. To measure conversions, you'll need to set up a ConversionTracker.
A conversion tracker is specific to the way in which a conversion action is tracked and recorded. For instance, an online purchase is tracked with a conversion tag (a JavaScript code snippet or an Image tag) placed on the checkout confirmation page, whereas a phone call is tracked by using a Google forwarding number. Each of these conversion actions requires a separate conversion tracker.
Most types of conversions also require additional actions on your part to track them. For instance, tracking conversion actions on your website requires an AdWordsConversionTracker to be created and a special code snippet called a "tag" to be added to the conversion page on your website.
Tracking phone calls from call extensions requires an
AdCallMetricsConversion
tracker, using a Google forwarding number and specifying the conversion tracker
in the phone call extension's FeedItem.
Tracking Android app downloads from Google Play, however, requires only the
creation of a ConversionTracker and specifying the package name of your app
as one of its attributes. Each of these are described in more detail below.
Phone call conversions
In the AdWords user interface, this type of conversion is referred to as "Calls from ads". The AdCallMetricsConversion tracker is used to track phone calls from call extensions that use a Google forwarding number. A call is reported as a conversion if it lasts longer than a user-defined duration, or a default of 60 seconds if no call length is explicitly specified.
This conversion type will be automatically enabled and tracked simply by
specifying the tracker in the phone call extension's
FeedItem
using the placeholder type
for CONVERSION TYPE ID.
Conversions on websites
The AdWordsConversionTracker
encompasses two different types of conversions, as distinguished within the API
by the trackingCodeType field.
| trackingCodeType | AdWords User Interface Source |
|---|---|
WEBPAGE |
Website |
CLICK_TO_CALL |
Phone number clicks |
| --- | Analytics |
"Website" and "Phone number clicks" conversions require a code snippet to be retrieved using the ConversionTrackerService and placed on the web pages that indicate a conversion action, such as a checkout confirmation or lead submission page.
The CLICK_TO_CALL type differs from
AdCallMetricsConversion
in that it does not track actual phone calls. Instead, it only tracks clicks on
a phone number from a mobile device. This is useful when you are unable to use
Google forwarding number for tracking actual phone calls.
App conversions
An AppConversion covers both mobile app installs and in-app actions, for Android and iOS. The following table shows the equivalent parameters to use for each Source in the AdWords user interface:
| appPlatform | appConversionType | AdWords User Interface Source |
|---|---|---|
ITUNES |
DOWNLOAD |
iOS app install (first open) |
ITUNES |
IN_APP_PURCHASE |
iOS in-app action |
ANDROID_MARKET |
DOWNLOAD |
Android app install (from Google Play) |
ANDROID_MARKET |
FIRST_OPEN |
Android app install (first open) |
ANDROID_MARKET |
IN_APP_PURCHASE |
Android in-app action |
When you specify FIRST_OPEN as the appConversionType, you have the option of providing
an appPostbackUrl
to get instant confirmation when a user first opens your app. Check out the
mobile app conversion tracking guide
for more details.
Upload conversions
An UploadConversion
maps to the "Import" conversion source in the AdWords user interface. When
they are created in the web interface, auto-tagging
is automatically enabled for the account; however, this does not occur when you
create the conversion tracker via the API. If you create a conversion tracker
using the API, you should also enable auto-tagging using
CustomerService.
Without auto-tagging you won't get the GCLID parameter that is required to
upload conversions corresponding to a click.
Once you create an UploadConversion, you can use the OfflineConversionFeedService to upload conversions for clicks. See the Importing Conversions guide for details.
Calls from websites
A WebsiteCallMetricsConversion maps to Calls from a website in the AdWords user interface. Unlike AdCallMetricsConversion, this tracker requires a code snippet to be added to your website in order to retrieve the dynamic Google forwarding number for call tracking on numbers listed on your website. In addition, you must set up a call extension and attach it to the campaign or ad groups whose website calls you want to track.
System-wide default conversion trackers
To simplify creation of conversion trackers that do not require tags, AdWords provides some system-wide default conversion trackers. These trackers have default settings for various fields including name, value, etc.
If you want to edit the settings for any of these conversion trackers, create
a new ConversionTracker of the same subtype and provide the conversionTypeId
of the system-defined tracker in the originalConversionTypeId field of
that ConversionTracker object. This operation is equivalent to editing your
account's own copy of the system-wide conversion tracker. All usage of the
system-wide conversion tracker in your account is automatically replaced with
the conversion tracker you just created (using the system-wide conversion
tracker's ID as the originalConversionTypeId), including conversion stats in
reports.
Only one ConversionTracker can be created from a given system-defined
conversion type in any account. If you try to create a second
ConversionTracker using the same system-defined conversion tracker in the
originalConversionTypeId field, that operation will fail. In other words, once
you have edited a system-wide conversion tracker for your account, you own the
edited copy and not the original.
In the case of call extensions for example, this implies that all call extensions in the account that were using the system-wide AdCallMetricsConversion will now be mapped to the one you just created, and any previous conversion stats that showed the system-wide conversion type will now show the one you just created.
Here is a table of system-wide default conversion trackers and their IDs:
| ConversionTracker | Name | conversionTypeId |
|---|---|---|
| AdCallMetricsConversion | calls from ads | 179 |
| AppConversion | android_download | 214 |
The default AppConversion is also unique in that you cannot specify the App ID. Instead, it tracks all conversions from Google Play apps for which there is not a more specific AppConversion.
Cross-account conversion tracking
When your account is opted into cross-account conversion tracking, conversion trackers that are returned by the ConversionTrackerService include:
- All conversion types defined by the manager account that is used by the account for cross-account conversion tracking.
- All conversion types on which the customer has accrued stats, including system-defined types and types owned by the manager even if that manager unlinks subsequently.
- All types the customer has defined in their own account, including Analytics goals and transactions (including ones not imported into AdWords--those will have the HIDDEN status and can only be imported through the AdWords user interface) created in linked Google Analytics profiles.
You can set up and query cross-account conversion trackers via the API, but you must opt in your accounts to cross-account conversion tracking from the manager account. See this help center article for more information.
