Without tracking, Meta cannot tell which ads bring enquiries or sales, and it cannot find more people like your customers. The Pixel and Conversions API fix that.
What the Meta Pixel does
The Pixel is a small piece of code on your website. It reports actions visitors take, such as viewing a page, submitting a form or buying, back to Meta. This lets you:
- See which ads led to leads and sales.
- Optimise campaigns for those actions.
- Retarget people who visited your website.
What the Conversions API adds
Browsers and ad blockers increasingly stop tracking code. The Conversions API sends the same events from your website’s server directly to Meta, so fewer conversions are missed. Using both together gives the most complete data.
Standard events to track
| Event | When it fires |
|---|---|
| Lead | An enquiry form is submitted (often on a thank-you page) |
| Contact | Someone clicks call or WhatsApp |
| ViewContent | A product or service page is viewed |
| AddToCart, InitiateCheckout, Purchase | Online store actions |
How to set it up
- Create a dataset (Pixel) in Events Manager.
- Add the base code to every page, or connect it through Shopify, WooCommerce or your platform’s integration.
- Add event code for your key actions. Our event code generator creates it.
- Set up the Conversions API through your platform’s integration or a partner.
- Test with Events Manager’s Test Events tool.
Privacy
Mention the Pixel and cookies in your privacy policy. Our privacy policy generator includes it as an option.
Want the full picture? This article is part of Meta ads: the complete guide, our in-depth guide with everything in one place.
