Goal
Create a conversion tracking pixel in Mapp Engage and prepare it for use on your online shop, so you can measure message-driven conversions and revenue. This makes it possible to collect the following data from your website:
Number of recipients who visit an online shop or website based on a message
Number of recipients who complete a conversion based on a message
Number of total conversions completed via this tracking pixel
Total sales via this tracking pixel
Sales of a message compared to all messages that triggered conversions
Background Information
Evaluation of conversions is possible with or without cookies:
With Cookies: The online shop system does not need to store recipient information from Engage, because it is available on the customer's PC (see Cookies-Based Conversion Tracking). However, many recipients set their browser settings to not accept cookies. These recipients cannot be tracked with this method.
Without Cookies: Many email recipients do not allow cookies in their browsers. A cookie-less conversion tracking method is also available. It is not possible to trace interrupted shopping sessions using this method (see Cookie-Less Conversion Tracking). In addition, the user email (or UID) plus MID must be added to every link in the message.
For optimal recipient activity tracking, we recommend using cookies together with link parameters.
Prerequisites
For how conversion tracking works conceptually (cookie vs. cookie-less, secure tracking, where results appear), see Conversion Tracking – Basics. To switch tracking on for your sendouts, see Activate Conversion Tracking for Messages.
Procedure
A) Create the Tracking Pixel
In the main navigation menu, click Administration > Categories > Conversion Tracking.
Click Create (New Tracking Category).
In the input field Name, enter a name for the new conversion tracking.
(optional) In the input field Description, enter a description of the new conversion tracking.
Click Save. The pixel is created and activated, and appears in the Conversion Tracking overview window.
Select the entry to view the pixel code in the Details area. Four HTTP fragments are provided, combining cookie-based vs. cookie-less tracking with normal vs. secure (HTTPS) domains.
UI reference for this screen: see Tracking Category: Create or Edit.
B) Adapt the Pixel for Your Shop
Add the following placeholders to the fragment before embedding it. Your shop system or merchant provides the values.
Placeholder | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|
itemcnt | yes | Total number of purchased articles. Automatically created by your online shop system. |
amount | yes | Total value of all purchased articles. Automatically created by your online shop system. |
ecm_order_id | yes | Order ID, created by the online system on the order confirmation page. Must be a unique value for every call to the tracking URL, so that a reload is not counted as a new conversion. Otherwise the tracking is ignored. |
random | optional | A random number that prevents the pixel from being saved in the browser cache, so it is reloaded each time a visitor opens the page. Created by the online system and stored for 3 minutes in Mapp's database. If used, it must not be re-used for any call for 2 minutes or the tracking is ignored. |
uemail or UID | cookie-less only | Identifies the user that created the conversion. To use UID, add the parameter &uid=XXYour_Placeholder to the tracking pixel; alternatively use the existing uemail placeholder. The value must be added to every link of the message and passed through the whole shopping session back to Engage. |
MID | cookie-less only | Message ID; identifies the message that created the conversion. Added by Engage to each link of the message and passed through the shopping session back to Engage. For testing, find the ID under Messages > Prepared Messages. |
Example (cookie-less, with placeholders):
<img src="http://mydomain.com/ev/my_domain?eventid=3300020004&itemcnt=0&amount=0&random=XX_random_XX&ecm_order_id=XX_order_id_XX&uemail=XX_user_email_XX" width="1" height="1" />Example (with values and MID):
<img src="http://mydomain.com/ev/my_domain?eventid=3300020004&itemcnt=1&amount=99&random=123456&ecm_order_id=97826&uemail=peter.curry@example.com&MID=3301711385" width="1" height="1" />Secure (HTTPS) pages: use the secure fragment hosted on the dedicated secure domain. The general secure host cannot be used because it is a different domain than your shop. HTTPS requires certificate registration — contact your customer service representative. (Details: Conversion Tracking – Basics › Secure Conversion Tracking.)
C) Add the Pixel to Your Shop and Activate Tracking
Place the adapted pixel on your order confirmation page. This must be done by your online shop system. For detailed instructions, see Cookie-Less Conversion Tracking.
For cookie-less tracking, also add MID and UID/uemail to every link in the message (see Tracking & Links).
Activate conversion tracking for the message or, recommended, for the whole group — see Activate Conversion Tracking for Messages.
As adding the same tracking pixels manually for each message is prone to human error, we recommend setting the tracking pixel inside each group.
Related
Conversion Tracking – Basics (concept)
Activate Conversion Tracking for Messages (turn it on)
Tracking Category: Create or Edit (UI reference)
Mapp Engage Variables – Conversion Tracking (activation variable)