Google Tool Tracks Ad Conversion via Multiple Devices

Google is testing a system which will track a user's location on the high street, in order to serve them targeted ads relating to the shops they have visited.

According to the firm's blog, Google is tracking consumers' smartphone locations, using this data to determine when consumers visit stores, and then connecting these shop visits with Google searches conducted via smartphones. If users have 'location services' activated when one of Google's apps is open on their mobile phone as they shop, the company can pinpoint where they are.

Last month, the search giant launched 'Estimated Total Conversions' to provide advertisers with a 'holistic view' of all the conversions driven by their ads on Google.com. This, the firm claimed, will demonstrate the drivers of online sales, as well as estimating sales taking place across multiple devices. At the time, Google said it was planning to add other conversion types such as phone calls and store visits to the service.

The first module - 'Estimated Cross-Device Conversions' - has been designed to track individuals who search an ad on Google.com using one device, and end up as a conversion through another device (or a different web browser on the same device). For example, if someone shops for jeans using their mobile phone, they may click on an ad for a specific retailer, and then later that day, they may go directly to that supplier's web site (using another device) to make a purchase.

In a Google blog post, Sridhar Ramaswamy, SVP, Ads and Commerce, said that in addition to cross-device conversions, both phone calls and store visits will soon be included as part of the Estimated Total Conversions service. 'These are important conversions to consider - people make more than 40 million calls to businesses each month directly from Google ads and are often looking for physical store locations when they search on Google, particularly on the go,' he added.