In this month’s edition of our “Dear Kara” column, a software marketer asks for help convincing their web developer of the value of conversion tracking.
Dear Kara,
I’ve recently taken over our online lead gen initiatives, and am hoping you can shed some light on Capterra campaign tracking. While looking through our vendor portal, I stumbled upon a free snippet of JavaScript. I understand that the code is built to report when a visitor from Capterra converts on our website. But our web developer says adding that tracking code will slow down our page load time. Is that true?
We use Google tracking codes to monitor the success of our traffic sources, both organic and Pay Per Click (PPC). Google Analytics shows us the source of our referral traffic, the number of “goal” completions from those sources, page views, time spent on site and bounce rate. I’d love to have this detailed information about our other PPC sources, such as Capterra.
How do I get my web developer to understand the value of adding tracking codes from alternative sources?
Sincerely,
Seeking Truth About Tracking
Dear Seeker,
Sometimes, the truth hurts. But, lucky for you, this isn’t one of those times!
Let me give you a little background on the Capterra tracking JavaScript: Our snippet of code, albeit similar to Google, was built to help you more easily track Capterra-specific performance. The code sits on the success pages of your site and tracks the IP addresses of cookied Capterra visitors. So the code only monitors traffic that originated on Capterra. Since the code sits on this success page of your site, it will not slow down page speed time or Google rankings. This would only occur if the code was built to sit on all pages of your site. This should put your developer at ease!
While Google tracking codes and analytics are valuable, there is something to be said for having an alternative method of tracking in place. In the event that Google tracking is disrupted, you’ll still want access to channel data. Capterra’s code allows you to generate reports on performance broken up by directory with the date and time of each web form completion. This helps you match each Capterra conversion to the contact details that were submitted in the lead. By knowing who converted, and how they found your website, you’ll more easily be able to gauge the quality of your ad channels and the return you see on each traffic investment.
To sum it all up, tell your web developer this: The code only takes a minute to install, will not impact your page load time, and will give you valuable data you need for the continued success of your business.
And if that doesn’t convince him, how about this: Capterra will happily issue a $50 credit on your account for the proper installation of this code!
Kara
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