Ad platforms optimize toward the conversions you tell them about. If tracking is missing, duplicated or counts the wrong action, campaigns learn the wrong lessons — and reports become a matter of opinion.
Decide what counts as a conversion
Pick the actions that genuinely indicate business value: a submitted enquiry, a booked call, a purchase. Page views and button clicks can be useful signals, but they should not be the primary goal campaigns optimize toward.
A basic setup checklist
- GA4 installed once, through Google Tag Manager
- Form submissions tracked on confirmed success, not on button click
- Phone calls tracked where calls are a key channel
- Consistent naming for events and campaigns
- Conversions imported into ad platforms from a single source of truth
- Consent handled according to the regions you operate in
Test it like software
Submit test enquiries, complete test purchases, and confirm each appears once in analytics and ad platforms. Repeat after any website change. Broken tracking is common and often goes unnoticed for months.