Last Updated on by Dan S
Originally Published February 2, 2022.

In this guide we will cover some key aspects surrounding the setup and running of Google Ads for your Shopify store

Install the Google Shopping Channel

Firstly, we recommend installing the Google Shopping Channel. This should cover most of your integration and setup woes. You will also be able to quickly launch campaigns in just a few clicks.

It will guide you through setting up the relevant Google accounts or connecting your existing ones.

How to Setup Google Adwords Conversion Tracking for Shopify

Do you run Google Ads to drive traffic to your store? Do you use the Google Shopping App for Shopify? Setting up Conversion tracking is the easiest way to see if your Ads are delivering a return on Investment (ROI).

Although Google’s Adwords supports other types of conversion tracking, we are going to focus on the tracking a sale.

Before we get started, this guide assumes you have a Google Adwords Account and a Shopify Account. You should also have a Google Analytics account which should be tracking visitors on your store.

The following guide is in 2 parts. The first part will be use setting up the conversion snippet under Adwords. This is the default code we will be putting on your shopify site. The second part will be us changing this code so that it accurately records the sales figures, not just a successful conversion.

Part 1 – Setting Up the Conversion Code under Google Adwords

First off, login to your Adwords account and from the top menu select Tools > Conversions

Next, we need to click the orange +Conversion button.

Now we need to select the type of conversion tracking code we need. As this is a Shopify site, we select the first one “Website”.

Now we need to fill in settings for the conversion snippet.

  • Name: For the name field, you can just enter anything you want. Naming it “Shopify Conversion” seems logical.
  • Value: For this field, select the middle option “The value of this conversion action may vary (for instance, by purchase price)” and leave it at 1. Don’t worry about the value, we are changing this later on.
  • Count: This should be defaulted to “Every Conversion” which is correct.
  • Conversion Windows: This again should be fine on the default setting as picture. You can change it if you want a shorter or longer window but the default setting works fine.
  • Category: Change this to “Purchase/Sale”.
  • Include In Conversions: Leave this checked/ticked. It should be checked by default.
  • Attribution Model: This should be defaulted to “Last Click”. There is no real need to change this. The main 2 are First/Last referring to the Ad a customer clicked. First Click only comes into play if the customer has clicked more than one ads to get to your store. We suggest leaving it to Last Click.

Once you have filled in all the settings as above, click “Save & Continue”.

The next step is pasting the code it has generated on to your site and making a few changes to it. So copy the code generated on page after you clicked Save & Continue. It should look like the below (Clicking the box will select all the text for you so you just need to copy it Ctrl + C on Windows or right click > copy, Apple/Cmd + C on Mac) :

 

Part 2 – Implementing the Snippet on your Shopify Site

Now we have our snippet from Part 1, you need to paste this into your Shopify site and make some changes so it records the correct values.

So, Log in to your Shopify admin and click “Settings“.

Next, click “Checkout“.

Scroll down until you find the section titled “Order Processing“. At the bottom of this section, you will see a text box titled “Additional Scripts“. This is where you need to paste the script you should have copied from Part 1 into that box.

Once you have pasted the script we will next need to make some changes to it.

The first change we are going to make is so the correct total value for the conversion is shown in Adwords.

We need to replace where it says var google_conversion_value = 1.00;

with this instead if ({{ subtotal_price }}) { var google_conversion_value = {{ subtotal_price | money_without_currency }}; }

Please note at this point: The change we just made reports the value of the item only. If you want the value reported to include Shipping & Taxes for the conversion, you need change the snippet to if ({{ total_price }}) { var google_conversion_value = {{ total_price | money_without_currency }}; } 

Lastly, we just need to change value in the bottom part of the script. We need to replace value=1.00

to value={{ subtotal_price | money_without_currency }}

As we mentioned in the previous change, if you want the Total price including Shipping & Taxes, you will need to use total price here. That code will instead be value={{ total_price | money_without_currency }}

Now you need to click Save and you are done!

A couple of points to add. This method gets data into Adwords for conversion tracking purposes. We still suggest you use Google Analytics to report accurate conversion tracking. This method implemented relies on you using Shopify supported Payment methods which return the user as standard to your store’s Thank You page when they complete payment.

 

How to efficiently populate fields for the Google Shopping app in your Shopify store

If you have managed or are managing an online Shopify store, populating data fields can be a mundane task. However, it is necessary if you want to use the Google Shopping app.

Similarly, completing the data fields for Google Shopping manually is also tiring. To help conquer this task, we’ve discovered some excellent solutions that allow you to populate the fields for the Google Shopping app in bulk.

It will not only give you back precious time, but it will significantly reduce the margin of error. So let’s take a look.

Specifying metafields

Adding Manufacturing Part Numbers (MPNs) is the most efficient method for populating important data fields on your online store. You can easily add MPNs to the Google Shopping app. However, if you want to add them in bulk, you’ll need to add the MPNs to the appropriate metafield.

To complete this task, there are two options.

Firstly, you can use the CSV to populate every product’s namespace using the mm-google-shopping feature. Please note that you should use lowercase for these entries, even though the dropdown menu shows the first letter as an uppercase.

If the CSV method does not work for you, you can use a third-party app called Matrixify. It is simple and easy to use and will let you add MPNs to the relevant metafields. If you have numerous metafields that need updating, include Metafields as additional columns along with items they are attached to.

Google Shopping app

Editing individual metafields for product variants

If you need to toggle the variants individually, use the following query:

(&query=<name of product>)

Once you gain access, you can add the MPNs in the metafields using meta_fields.global.MPN

You will need to use uppercase for MPN, as lowercase will not work here.

 

If you need more advance control over your product feed from Shopify to Google, there are some alternative 3rd party apps you can use. A favourite amongst merchants is the Feed for Google Shopping from Simprosys InfoMedia. It may be a little daunting at first as they cover everything but they have some brilliant documentation and support.