How do you set up conversion tracking in Bing Ads?

Setting up conversion tracking in Bing Ads (now part of Microsoft Advertising) is crucial for measuring the success of your campaigns and understanding which actions lead to your desired business outcomes. Here's a step-by-step guide on how to set up conversion tracking in Bing Ads:

1. Create a UET (Universal Event Tracking) Tag
The first step is to create a UET tag, which is a small piece of code that you'll place on your website. This code tracks user actions, such as purchases, sign-ups, or form submissions.

Steps to Create a UET Tag:
Log in to Microsoft Advertising:

Go to Microsoft Advertising and log into your account.

Navigate to Conversion Tracking:

In the top menu, click on the Tools icon (spanner wrench).

Under Tracking, click Conversion Tracking.

Create a UET Tag:

Click on Create UET Tag.

Give your UET tag a name (e.g., "Sitewide Tracking", "Purchase Tracking").

Optionally, add a description to help identify its purpose later.

Save the Tag:

Click Save to create the tag. Once created, you'll see the Tag ID (a unique identifier for your tag).

2. Install the UET Tag on Your Website
Now that you've created the UET tag, you need to install it on your website to track conversions.

Steps to Install the UET Tag:
Copy the UET Tag Code:

After saving the UET tag, you will see the tag code. Copy this code to your clipboard.

Paste the Code on Your Website:

Paste the UET tag code into the header of every page on your website, ideally before the closing </head> tag.

If you use a Content Management System (CMS) like WordPress, you can usually add the code through the theme settings or via a plugin designed for script management.

If you use an e-commerce platform (e.g., Shopify, Magento), there are often built-in options to add a UET tag.

Test the UET Tag:

After adding the tag, you can verify that it's working by visiting your website and checking the UET Tag Status in Microsoft Advertising. There's an option to Test the Tag under the "Conversion Tracking" section to confirm that it's firing correctly.

3. Create Conversion Goals
Now, set up the specific conversion goals you want to track (e.g., purchases, form submissions, sign-ups).

Steps to Create Conversion Goals:
Navigate to Conversion Tracking:

Go to the Tools menu and select Conversion Tracking again.

Create New Goal:

Click on Create a Conversion Goal.

Choose a Conversion Type:

Select the type of conversion you want to track. This could be:

Website Conversion: Track actions that occur on your website (e.g., purchases, sign-ups, downloads).

Phone Calls: Track phone calls made through your call extensions or click-to-call feature.

App Downloads: If your business has a mobile app, you can track installs and interactions with your app.

Configure Conversion Settings:

For a Website Conversion:

Select Website Conversion.

Enter the URL of the conversion page (e.g., thank-you page, confirmation page, or order confirmation page).

Select UET Tag: Choose the UET tag you created earlier from the dropdown.

Choose the Conversion Action: This can be any action you wish to track (e.g., "Thank you page," "Lead form submission," etc.).

For Phone Calls: Select Call Extension or Click-to-Call based on the method you want to track.

For App Downloads: Use the appropriate settings for mobile app tracking.

Set Conversion Value (optional):

You can assign a monetary value to the conversion if applicable (e.g., if a product purchase is tracked as a conversion, you can assign the product's price as its value).

You can also select to track values dynamically if each conversion has a different value (e.g., sales of various products with different prices).

Configure Conversion Settings:

Set up conversion counting:

One: Tracks only the first conversion per user (e.g., sign-up).

Every: Tracks all conversions (e.g., every purchase).

Set conversion window: Define how long you want to track a conversion after an ad click (e.g., 30 days).

Choose whether to include view-through conversions (if someone views your ad but doesn't click it).

Save the Conversion Goal:

Once everything is set, click Save.

4. Monitor and Optimize Your Conversions
Once conversion tracking is set up, you can monitor the performance of your conversions directly in Bing Ads.

Steps to Monitor and Optimize:
View Conversion Data:

In your Campaigns tab, you can add conversion columns (e.g., Total Conversions, Conversion Rate, Cost per Conversion, ROAS) to your reports. This allows you to see which ads, keywords, or ad groups are performing best in terms of conversion actions.

Optimize Campaigns:

Use conversion data to identify which keywords, ads, and audience segments are driving the best results.

Adjust bids, targeting, and ad copy to optimize for higher conversions.

A/B Test: Run tests to find the best-performing combinations of ads, keywords, and landing pages for better conversion rates.

5. Optional: Integrate with Google Analytics or Other Tools
For a more comprehensive view of your conversion data, consider linking Bing Ads with Google Analytics or other tools to track performance across channels and gather more insights.

Conclusion
By following these steps, you can successfully set up conversion tracking in Bing Ads and gain valuable insights into the effectiveness of your ads. Tracking conversions helps you understand which ads, keywords, and campaigns are driving valuable actions on your website. You can then optimize your campaigns based on this data to improve your ROI and overall performance.