Google Ads conversion tracking setup for an IV business

Decide what counts before you touch a tag

A conversion is whatever you tell Google is worth counting, so the first job is a list, not a tag. For a mobile IV business or an IV lounge, that list is short.

A finished booking, counted on the confirmation page your booking tool shows after someone books.
A call from the ad itself, when someone taps the phone number in your ad.
A call from your website, after someone clicked the ad and then called the number on your page.
A tap on your text link, if you take bookings by text.
A tap on the book button, when the booking itself happens on another company's site you cannot tag.

Leave out page views, scroll depth and time on page. They make the account look busy and tell you nothing about who booked. Write your list on paper first, with one line for each way someone can reach you today. Anything not on the list does not get a tag.

Choose primary and secondary actions

Google splits conversion actions into two kinds. Primary actions show in the Conversions column and steer bidding. Secondary actions "are for observation only", so you can watch them without letting them push your bids.

A simple rule works for most IV accounts. Make an action primary only when a person does it because they want a visit. A finished booking passes that test. So does a call that lasts long enough to be a real conversation. A tap on the book button is weaker, because some people tap, look at the times and leave. Keep it secondary when you can also count the finished booking.

If you import goals from Google Analytics, check their setting. Goals created there start as secondary, and you can only switch them to primary inside Google Ads. An account with every real goal stuck on secondary has nothing to bid toward.

Set up the booking conversion on your website

In Google Ads, open Goals, then Summary, and choose Create conversion action. Enter your domain and let Google scan it. The scan looks for a Google tag already on the site, which saves you from adding a second one.

Then pick how the booking gets counted. The URL method counts a page load, so use it when every booking ends on a thank you page on your own domain. Use the code method for taps on buttons and links, which is how you count text taps and book button taps.

Two setup problems are worth checking first.

The booking tool lives on a different domain from your site. When someone clicks your ad, Google adds a click ID (the GCLID) to the page address. If the booking finishes on another domain, that ID gets lost unless you pass it along. Google's fix: "If your conversion page is on a different domain than your landing page, use the gtag.js domain linker to pass the GCLID to the conversion page." The domain linker is a setting in your Google tag that carries the click ID across. If your booking company does not allow your tag on its pages at all, count the book button tap as your website goal instead.
The site has two tags. A website builder plugin and a hand pasted tag can both fire, and then every booking counts twice. Pick one way to install the tag and remove the other.

Track calls from the ad and from your site

If you take bookings by phone, calls need their own tracking. There are two kinds.

Calls straight from the ad need a call asset and call reporting turned on in your account settings. Once call reporting is on, Google counts those calls under a default action named Calls from ads. You can replace that default with your own action and set a minimum call length, so a wrong number or a hang up is not counted as a lead.

Calls from your website use a Google forwarding number. A short phone snippet swaps your number for that forwarding number for people who came from an ad. The snippet goes on every page that shows your phone number.

Google also offers call recording, where its AI analyzes recorded calls to judge lead quality. Callers may share health details on an IV call, so talk with whoever handles HIPAA and privacy for your practice before you turn it on. You can turn recording off in your account settings at any time.

If your Google Business Profile is linked to the ad account with call history on, calls from the profile that follow an ad click are reported under Calls from ads too.

Count one per lead and set the window

Each conversion action has a Count setting. The One option counts a single conversion per ad click. Use One for calls, text taps and book button taps. Someone who calls three times about the same drip is still one lead, and counting every call makes a week look better than it was.

Bookings are the exception. If one click can turn into two separate paid visits, such as a person booking for themselves and a friend at different times, Every can make sense for the finished booking action. If you are unsure, start with One everywhere and change it once the numbers match your calendar.

The conversion window is how long after a click a booking still counts. Google calls the standard setting "the default 30-day conversion window." That works for most IV campaigns. Shorten it only for a short promotion where a late booking would mislead you.

Test every action before you spend

Steps one to three happen the day you finish setup. Step four is the next morning. Step five is on launch day.

Open your site with Google's Tag Assistant running and confirm the tag fires on the pages you expect.
Make a real test booking, check that the confirmation page loads, then cancel the booking in your booking tool.
Tap the text link and the book button on your phone.
Check the conversion actions table in Goals the next day. An action that still shows no activity after a real test is not working, and you fix it before launch.
On launch day, call through your ad from a phone that is not the business line, and stay on long enough to pass your minimum call length. The forwarding number only appears after an ad click, so calling your normal number does not test it.

After launch, give it time. Google describes a learning phase of 7 to 14 days for automated bidding, and changing your goals during that stretch resets it.

What tracking will not do for a health business

Tracking tells you which ads led to bookings. It does not give you a list of past visitors to chase with ads. Google limits audience targeting in sensitive categories, and Health is one of them. Its policy says "Advertisers promoting products and services that fall within sensitive interest categories are unable to use advertiser-curated audiences." Plan your campaigns around search, where the person is asking for you right now, and treat remarketing as something you may not be allowed to use.

Keep health details out of anything a tag can read. Name conversion actions plainly, like Booking complete or Website call. Do not put the drip someone chose, a symptom or anything from your intake form into a page address or an event name. If your intake form sits on your own site, ask your booking or forms company how it handles tags on that page before you add one.

Check the numbers against your calendar every week

Once a week, put the Conversions column next to your booking calendar for the same days. Finished bookings in Google Ads should be close to the bookings that came from ads. If Google shows far more, look for a second tag or a Count set to Every. If it shows far fewer, test the confirmation page and the domain linker again.

When the counts line up, cost per lead becomes a number you can act on. Our guide to reading Google Ads numbers explains each column, and the negative keyword list helps you stop paying for searches that never book. If you would rather hand this off, our Google Ads service includes booking, call, text and form tracking.

The short version

Count only actions that lead to a visit: bookings, calls, text and book taps.
Make finished bookings and real calls primary. Watch the rest as secondary.
Use the domain linker if your booking tool is on another domain.
Count one conversion per click for leads.
Test every action with a real tap or call before launch.
Keep health details out of page addresses and event names.

Sources

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Questions

Straight answers.

Do I need Google Tag Manager to set up conversion tracking?

No. You can add the Google tag directly to your site or through your website builder. Tag Manager helps when you have several tags to manage. Use one method only, since two installs of the same tag can double count conversions.

How do I track bookings when my booking software is on another website?

If the booking company lets you add your Google tag, use the domain linker so the click information carries over to its confirmation page. If it does not allow your tag, count the tap on your book button as the website conversion and compare it with real bookings each week.

Should calls count as conversions for an IV business?

Yes, with a minimum call length so short calls and hang ups are left out. Track calls from the ad with call reporting and calls from your site with a Google forwarding number. Both can be primary if a real conversation usually ends in a booking.

Why does Google Ads show more conversions than I have bookings?

The usual causes are two copies of the tag on the site, a Count setting of Every on a lead action, or a weak action like a page view set as primary. Fix those, then compare the Conversions column with your calendar for the same week.

Keep reading

Related resources.

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★★★★★ “Such a great job setting up my website!” Tonya H., Ivy Coastal Wellness, Google review