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How to Track Conversions from Google Adwords

By Jerry A. Taylor

One of the most important parts of using Google Adwords is being able to track conversions accurately. After you've made your selection of keywords, created a compelling ad, and then implemented your Google Adwords campaign, the next step is to start tracking conversions and reviewing the results.

You have the option of simply using your landing page hits and number of sales from a link to analyze your conversions. But it's also worth looking at the tools Google provide its Adwords users for acquiring conversion data. Here are some tips and guidelines for using Google's conversion tracking tools.

First, you'll need to embed your conversion link using JavaScript. If you are using a shopping cart or other type of setup where the buyer receives a confirmation as part of their checkout process, your best bet is to use some JavaScript code that gets sent back to the Google Adwords tracker.

This tool allows you to track the ads that clicked through and produced a complete conversion; bear in mind that this tool does not allow you to see the number of visitors to the site. Just place the few lines of code into your website, and then access your conversion tracking reports directly on the 'Campaign Summary' page in the Reports Center of Google Adwords.

The only requirements for installing conversion tracking on your website is that you are running approved Adwords ads on the site, and that the code snippet is placed only on your conversion page. If you're missing either of these elements, you will not be able to generate accurate data about your Adwords campaign.

You might want to check if the code works by completing a conversion. Just remember that you cannot click on your own ads, as this is a violation of your contract with Google. The conversion tracking reports would be available within 24 hours after a user has clicked your ad and gone through the whole process.

If you are using PayPal or another payment checkout system, you can still track conversions by setting up your Google Adwrods conversion tracker correctly. All you need to do in this case is set up a conversion confirmation web page within PayPal; you can then insert the Google Adwords JavaScript code directly into the web page. Whenever a customer completes the PayPal or other shopping cart process, you'll have a record of their visit, and, most importantly, the conversion.

Authors Sarah Milstein, J.D. Biersdorfer and Mathew McDonald of the book "Google: The Missing Manual", explain that it's also important to determine your total cost-per-conversion over any given campaign period.

This information will tell you the actual costs of generating a sale with your campaign. To calculate this, match the number of conversions with the total cost of campaign for a certain period.

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