Facebook Pixel allows you to track what users are doing on your site, collect remarketing audiences and create lookalikes. If the Facebook pixel is implemented correctly, it will feed relevant information to FB machine learning algorithms. FB ML will use pixel data to show your ads to people who are most likely to convert.
For several years now, we could track events on the site via javascript code, Facebook SDK inside apps, or upload offline events. But how can you track users who installed Ad Blocker or track events outside the site? Or how can you extend a cookie lifetime? It can be done by implementing Facebook conversion API. This article will show you how to set up Facebook conversion API via Google Tag Manager Server Container.
Let’s take a look at what Facebook Conversion API is and how we can use it to improve event tracking, attribution, and data collection on Facebook. Facebook Conversion API allows sending any events from your server to Facebook server.
Facebook CAPI has the same purpose as a Facebook pixel, but they have different technologies behind them. The policies and restrictions made FB CAPI more tailored to the needs of the modern tracking environment. As for Facebook Conversion API, it doesn’t involve the user’s browser for sending tracking information. Everything is done through the cloud server. It makes user data more secure and accurate.
If we take a closer look at the link of Facebook ads, we will see that at the end of almost any URL, FB appends its additional parameter fbclid. The pixel code on the landing page stores the value of this parameter in a cookie and then sends it along with any Facebook event. Along with click id (fbclid) Facebook uses browser ID (fbp). Fbp and fbc cookies helps FB determine what kind of user landed on your site and who converted.
FB can match users through other parameters such as email, phone number, first/last name, etc. The more user data you send to Facebook Conversion API, the higher the match rate you receive.
Facebook server-side tagging or Facebook conversion API was available on Facebook for a couple of years. But starting from 2021, FB started to push Conversion API harder. If you have a dedicated Facebook representative helping with your Ad account, he will most likely call you and recommend setting up a Facebook conversion API.
These are the most important reasons to consider implementing Facebook Conversion API:
We will use the server Google Tag Manager container to set up Facebook Conversion API. Inside the Google Tag Manager server and web containers, you will need to set up server-side tracking for Universal Analytics (or GA4, or Data Tag/Data Client) and configure events for those actions that you want to track with Facebook conversion API.
To sum up, you will need these things to configure Facebook conversion API:
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