Why Conversion Tracking Matters
Tracking pageviews and visitor counts is helpful, but without conversion tracking, you're missing the most important piece of the puzzle: are visitors actually doing what you want them to do? Whether it's signing up for a newsletter, making a purchase, downloading a resource, or filling out a contact form, conversion goals help you measure the effectiveness of your website and marketing efforts.
In this comprehensive guide, we'll walk you through everything you need to know about setting up and tracking conversion goals effectively, from basic concepts to advanced strategies.
What Are Conversion Goals?
A conversion goal is a specific action you want visitors to complete on your website. When a visitor completes this action, it's counted as a "conversion." Goals help you:
- Measure Success: Quantify how well your website achieves its objectives
- Calculate ROI: Determine the return on investment for marketing campaigns
- Identify Problems: Find pages or flows where users drop off
- Optimize Performance: Test changes and measure their impact on conversions
- Understand User Journey: Track how visitors move through your site before converting
Types of Conversion Goals
There are two main types of conversion goals you can track with modern analytics platforms:
1. Pageview Goals
Pageview goals trigger when a visitor lands on a specific page. These are perfect for:
- Thank you pages after form submissions
- Order confirmation pages after purchases
- Download confirmation pages
- Registration success pages
2. Custom Event Goals
Custom event goals trigger when a specific JavaScript event is fired. Use these for:
- Button clicks (e.g., "Add to Cart", "Request Demo")
- Form submissions without page redirects
- Video plays or completions
- File downloads
- External link clicks
Setting Up Pageview Goals
Pageview goals are the simplest to set up. Here's a step-by-step guide:
Step 1: Identify Your Goal Pages
First, determine which pages indicate a successful conversion. Common examples:
/thank-you- Newsletter signup confirmation/order-complete- Purchase confirmation/welcome- New user registration/download-success- Resource download
Step 2: Create the Goal in Your Dashboard
- Log into your analytics dashboard
- Navigate to your site settings
- Click on the "Goals" tab
- Click "Add New Goal"
- Enter a descriptive name (e.g., "Newsletter Signup")
- Select "Pageview" as the goal type
- Enter the URL path (e.g.,
/thank-you) - Save the goal
/product/*/purchase-complete
will match any product purchase confirmation page.
Setting Up Custom Event Goals
Custom event goals require a bit of JavaScript but offer much more flexibility. Here's how to set them up:
Step 1: Add Event Tracking Code
Add this code where you want to track the event (e.g., in a button's onclick handler):
// Basic event tracking
window.purestats = window.purestats || function() {
(window.purestats.q = window.purestats.q || []).push(arguments)
}
// Track a conversion event
purestats('Signup')Step 2: Create the Goal
- Go to your site settings → Goals tab
- Click "Add New Goal"
- Enter the goal name (must match the event name, e.g., "Signup")
- Select "Custom Event" as the goal type
- Save the goal
Common Event Tracking Examples
Track Button Clicks
<button onclick="purestats('CTA Click')">Get Started</button>Track Form Submissions
<form onsubmit="purestats('Contact Form')">
<!-- form fields -->
<button type="submit">Submit</button>
</form>Track File Downloads
<a href="/whitepaper.pdf"
onclick="purestats('PDF Download')">
Download Whitepaper
</a>Advanced: Tracking Events with Properties
Sometimes you want to track additional information with your events. You can pass custom properties:
// Track a purchase with value
purestats('Purchase', {
props: {
plan: 'Premium',
value: 99.00,
currency: 'EUR'
}
})
// Track signup with source
purestats('Signup', {
props: {
source: 'homepage',
plan: 'free-trial'
}
})Best Practices for Conversion Goals
1. Use Clear, Descriptive Names
Use names that instantly tell you what the goal represents. "Newsletter Signup" is better than "Goal 1". "Premium Purchase" is better than "Conversion".
2. Start with Macro Conversions
Focus first on your primary business objectives (purchases, signups, leads). Then add micro conversions (video views, resource downloads) to understand the full user journey.
3. Test Your Goals
After setting up a goal, test it immediately by completing the action yourself. Check your analytics dashboard to confirm the conversion was tracked correctly.
4. Set Up Goal Funnels
For multi-step processes (checkout flows, registration forms), track each step as a separate goal to identify where users drop off.
5. Review and Refine Regularly
Review your goals monthly. Remove goals that are no longer relevant and add new ones as your business objectives evolve.
6. Don't Over-Complicate
Start with 3-5 key goals. Having too many goals makes it harder to focus on what really matters and can slow down your analytics dashboard.
Common Conversion Goal Examples by Industry
E-commerce
- Add to Cart
- Begin Checkout
- Purchase Complete
- Newsletter Signup
- Account Creation
SaaS Products
- Free Trial Signup
- Demo Request
- Product Tour Completion
- Upgrade to Paid Plan
- Feature Activation
Lead Generation
- Contact Form Submission
- Phone Number Click
- Whitepaper Download
- Consultation Booking
- Quote Request
Content Sites
- Newsletter Subscription
- Article Read Completion (scroll depth)
- Video Play / Completion
- Social Share Click
- Comment Submission
Analyzing Your Conversion Data
Once your goals are set up and collecting data, here's how to use that information effectively:
Key Metrics to Track
- Conversion Rate: Percentage of visitors who complete the goal (conversions ÷ total visitors × 100)
- Top Converting Pages: Which pages bring in the most conversions
- Traffic Sources: Which channels (organic, social, referral) drive the most conversions
- Time to Conversion: How long it takes visitors to convert
- Conversion Paths: The sequence of pages visitors view before converting
Troubleshooting Common Issues
Problem: Goals Not Tracking
Solutions:
- Check that your analytics script is properly installed
- Verify the URL path or event name matches exactly
- Test the conversion yourself and check the browser console for errors
- Ensure ad blockers aren't preventing tracking
Problem: Duplicate Conversions
Solutions:
- Check if users can refresh the thank-you page (add a redirect)
- Implement client-side logic to prevent duplicate event firing
- Use session-based deduplication on the server side
Problem: Low Conversion Rates
Solutions:
- Analyze the user journey to find drop-off points
- Simplify your conversion process (fewer form fields, clearer CTAs)
- A/B test different page variations
- Improve page load speed
- Add social proof and trust signals
Taking Action on Your Data
Having conversion data is only valuable if you act on it. Here's a simple framework for continuous improvement:
- Review Weekly: Check your conversion rates and look for sudden changes or trends
- Identify Issues: Find pages or flows with unusually low conversion rates
- Form Hypotheses: Based on data and user feedback, create theories about what might improve conversions
- Test Changes: Implement improvements and measure their impact
- Iterate: Keep what works, discard what doesn't, and repeat
Start Tracking Conversions Today
Setting up conversion goals is one of the most impactful things you can do to improve your website's performance. With the right tracking in place, you'll have the insights you need to make data-driven decisions and optimize your user experience.
Ready to get started? PureStats makes it easy to set up and track conversion goals without compromising user privacy. Our intuitive interface and comprehensive documentation help you get up and running in minutes.
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