CODEWITHSUNDEEP
google-analyticsgoogle-ads-api
user5494400
user5494400

Reputation: 3

How to find adwords GCLID id in google analytics and link it to conversions manually?

I'm using a 3rd party tracking software (tracking202) to track conversions (as I can use the google conversion tag directly on my site, for some reason). Now, I've complete tracking data including keywords, placement and IPs of the converted users. Now, since Auto Tagging is enabled in my adwords account, google used glid id on my URLs since the beginning. I want to upload conversion data to adwords through the offline conversions import feature. And for that, I've 2 queries:

  1. Where do I find the gclid ID in google analytics?
  2. How do I link the converted IPs with GCLIDs ? (Since I have the converted IPs list in tracking202, if there's a way to filter IPs in google analytics and set the GCLID as the secondary dimension.. I would be able to collect the converted GCLIDs. But I'm not sure if its posisble in google anlaytics.

Please suggest what I can do in this case. Thanks a lot.

Upvotes: 0

Views: 13570

Answers (1)

Eike Pierstorff
Eike Pierstorff

Reputation: 32760

Google Analytics does not make the glcid accessible via the interface. If you want to get at the gclid you would have to store them yourself in a session scoped custom dimension (obviously this will not work for data already collected).

You need to create the custom dimension in the property settings (under "Custom Definitions") and then add a bit to your tracking code (poorly written PHP code for demonstration purposes only):

ga('create', 'UA-XXXX-Y', 'auto');

<?php if(isset($_GET['gclid'])) { ?>
    // Set value for custom dimension at index 1.
    ga('set', 'dimension1', $_GET['gclid']);
<?php } ?>

// Send the custom dimension value with a pageview hit.
ga('send', 'pageview');

i.e. "if there is a query string variable called glcid assign it's value to the custom dimension with the numeric index 1".

Technically the same works for the client IP address (which is likewise not displayed in the GA interface or exposed via the API). However you must not (as stipulated by the Google TOS) store information that allow to identify a user in Analytics (it might depend on your legislature if IP addresses are personally identifiable information. I don't know Googles stance on this, but it would be illegal in the Europe, at least without explicit consent of the user).

You may however store an anonymous identifier that allows to pull information from GA and connect it to information stored in other systems, so if you store e.g. the strongly hashed IP both in GA and in your other tracking system then you can use this as a key field to merge the records outside of GA.

Upvotes: 3

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