Pixel tracking in Google Checkout

If you don’t care about pixel tracking in Google Checkout, stop reading. Otherwise, go read this post on the Google Checkout blog. The documentation on pixel tracking in Google Checkout also just went live.

People started pinging Google about this earlier this week, so I’m glad that this feature is now available. More background info if you want it:

http://www.searchenginejournal.com/?p=4059
http://affiliate-blogs.5staraffiliateprograms.com/2006/12/04/google-checkout-affiliate-tracking/ and http://affiliate-blogs.5staraffiliateprograms.com/2006/12/06/google-checkout-affiliate-sales/
http://www.threadwatch.org/node/10494
http://www.webmasterworld.com/ecommerce/3179902.htm#msg3182906

Note: This is not a debunk post. This is just an info post. 🙂

14 Responses to Pixel tracking in Google Checkout (Leave a comment)

  1. Why were only those listed conversion tracking applications approved, what standards were used in the selection process?

  2. Goodbye PayPal.

  3. Nice one Adam. Hello Google checkout 🙂

  4. S.E.W., I’m assuming that the list was the high-impact services that the Checkout folks were able to confirm as working. Was there a tracking application you wanted that is missing from that list?

    I’m not an affiliate tracking guru, but I’m looking at
    http://code.google.com/apis/checkout/developer/checkout_pixel_tracking.html
    and it looks like you can insert any url for the 1×1 image that you want, so I believe you could integrate it with any application that allows pixel tracking. It looks like you can choose a full range of params to be added to the url:
    order-subtotal, order-subtotal-plus-tax, order-subtotal-plus-shipping, buyer-id. Honestly, it looks like quite a bit of fun to set up. It makes me wish that I had something to sell. 🙂

  5. Man I hope Google checkout can compete with PayPal, competition is so most welcome!

    All signs so far seem positive

  6. Google checkout could have been very popular by now if eBay hadn’t banned people from using it. Does google have any thought on why eBay may have done this Matt? Apart from the obvious.
    And if the obvious is true, Doesn’t that make their ban illegal?

  7. Pro-SEO

    “Google checkout could have been very popular by now if eBay hadn’t banned people from using it.”

    If thats true, I wouldn’t be surprised to see most of eBay pages turned to supplementals, or even deindexed. You never know what one of Matt’s Data Push or Data Refresh will do to eBay.

    Sorry eBay. You don’t like our checkout.. our Data Push doesn’t like your site 🙂

  8. Don’t know what could happend with PayPal, but for example NetEller just can’t compite.

  9. Harith, don’t even suggest stuff like that.

    My *personal* opinion is that if eBay considers Google Checkout unproven or that it doesn’t have a long enough track record, that’s their choice. I’m sure the Checkout team will work hard with updates like this to build a solid track record over time.

  10. Hi Matt,

    It’s good to see that this fix has been implemented, but I have to ask. What took so long? Merchants working with Google Checkout have known about this problem for over a month. It only came to a head because Commission Junction revealed in an email that affliate tracking was not working for several merchants (e.g. eBags, Petco, Golfsmith, eCost and Starbucks Store). You can read the whole thread about this at:

    http://forum.abestweb.com/showthread.php?t=82361

    Once this information was revealed the sh#t hit the fan, as affiliates realized they were losing thousands of dollars in commissions, not to mention the affiliate networks were probably losing hundreds of thousands if not millions of dollars. There is no way the Google Checkout system should have been rolled out during the busiest shopping time of the year without adequate testing of affiliate tracking. Now obviously the lion share of the blame has to fall on the merchants and affiliate networks for failing to do this, but Google needs to take at least some of the blame for not putting a fix in place earlier.

    Sincerely,

    — Todd Martini
    Alex’s Coupons

  11. Todd, you’d have to catch a Checkout person and ask them to find out more details about the timing. Each time I’ve emailed someone from that team, I’ve gotten a quick and solid response, so I think it’s a great team. My guess would be that there’s lots of different things they’re doing, and they have to prioritize.

  12. Hey Matt,

    Thanks for the quick response, I’ll do that. 😎

    Hope everything is going great. Take care.

    — Todd Martini
    Alex’s Coupons

  13. Hey Matt,

    One quick question. Any chance you could email me the name and email address of someone on the Google Checkout team?

    Thanks in advance.

    — Todd

  14. Hey Matt:

    I was thrilled to find this thread. Good on you guys for finding a solution for this. I’m dumping PayPal in favor of G Checkout, if I can get the pixel/beacon working.

    Question-

    Which URL do we pull up to track the pixel? I know it’s the checkout page, but doesn’t that URL change with each purchase? Please advise or direct me to the right forum. Thanks- Scott

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