Facebook Conversion API events are sent directly to Facebook’s servers, bypassing the browser. They can overcome limitations like ad-blockers, or browser privacy settings.
You can learn how to configure Conversion API with PixelYourSite from this video.
Find out how to check if your cache plugin creates a major issue with Conversion API from this video.
Conversion API events are not supposed to fully replace the more traditional browser events but instead work as a backup solution (at least for now!). When your Facebook Pixel doesn’t fire on a visitor’s browser, Conversion API will step in and try to save the day.
Deduplicating Events
If you’re worried about double-counting your events, rest assured that this won’t be a problem. Facebook is well equipped to deduplicate events if the right configuration is used.
Deduplication works based on two things:
a. The event’s name
b. The event’s ID
When an event has the same name and event ID, Facebook will deduplicate it.
PixelYourSite automatically takes care of this part for you, creating unique ids for every pair of events.
Matching – a potential problem
There are some limitations, and Conversion API won’t work perfectly all the time.
How Conversion API Events are different from the “normal” browser events
The biggest difference is related to MATCHING. Facebook needs to “match” a website visitor triggering the event to an existing Facebook account. Traditionally, this is done using cookies. This technology is browser-specific, so unavailable for Conversion API events.
User Data Keys
Conversion API matching relies on User Data Keys, a set of information your server is supposed to send along with these events:
- Email,
- Phone,
- Last Name,
- First Name,
- City,
- State,
- Browser ID,
- Click ID,
- IP Address,
- User Agent
The most useful data keys are not always available. It’s impossible to know the name, email, phone, or address of a simple website visitor. This type of information is usually available for logged-in users that have previously interacted with your website. A good example would be a WooCommerce client.
For the vast majority of your traffic, you’ll rely on less efficient data keys, like the Browser ID, IP Address, User-Agent.
To capture these data keys, PixelYourSite uses a dedicated library build by Facebook’s own team of developers, similar to the Facebook Pixel Official WordPress plugin.
Server Sending Invalid Match Key Parameters
It’s possible that you will see this type of warning in your Events Manager Diagnostic section:
ISSUE
Your server is sending an invalid ip_address, user_agent parameters value for your PageView event. This may be because there was an error in the parameter value. This may cause issues with the attribution and delivery optimization of ad campaigns that are using this event.
This error can be triggered by a very limited number of events when the script can’t identify correctly some of the required data keys. We are still trying to understand when and why this issue happens. One hypothesis is that the events are triggered by a web crawler, not a real user.
Since these errors occur in very limited instances, there are no reasons to worry about it.
Event Match Quality
Facebook’s Help:
Event Match Quality indicates how effective the customer information sent from your server may be at matching event instances to a Facebook account. High-quality event matching may improve ads attribution and performance. This metric is in development.
Expect to see a very low score for the most common events, like PageView, or ViewContent. These are events triggered by virtually any website visitor. For these events is very hard to send really useful customer information, like name, email, or address.
Events that are usually triggered by logged-in users will see a better score. If you run an e-commerce website (WooCommerce or Easy Digital Downloads), the Purchase and CompleteRegistration events should score higher. That’s because at this point we have access to some real data about the person triggering the events.
However, even for these high-performance events the match quality won’t be super-hight. Most of the time there are differences between what data we use on a personal Facebook account and in an online store.
It’s AI, so it will get better
Should you worry about sending so many events with a low match quality score?
No, not really, and this is why: Facebook’s AI it’s a beast feeding with data. The more data they have, the better they get. Even very low quality data is better than nothing.
They will be able to connect the many, many dots, and find some use for low matching score events. And in time, the system will get smarter, with improved capability to use Conversion API signals.
Important Q&A
Why is Facebook Conversion API useful?
Conversion API sends information directly to Facebook’s server, bypassing browsers’ limitations, like ad blockers, or privacy settings.
Will the data be duplicated when I use Conversion API?
No, because Facebook can successfully Deduplicate events. For this to work, the event must have the same name and the same event id.
How is matching done for Conversion API events?
Conversion API events matching uses “User Data Keys” like Email, Phone, Last Name, First Name, City, State, Browser ID, Click ID, IP Address, User Agent.
What is Event Match Quality?
Event Match Quality indicates how effective the customer information sent from your server may be at matching event instances to a Facebook account.
4 Responses
Hi Cristian,
I need help with error:
PageView Event Missing Some Deduplication Parameters
You’re sending PageView events through both your pixel and the Conversions API, but they’re not being deduplicated properly because not enough of these events are receiving an event_id parameter. Event instances sent without an event_id parameter cannot be deduplicated.
This may cause issues with the measurement of your events as well as the attribution and delivery optimization of any ad campaigns that are optimizing for this event.
I’m not sure how to go about fixing it with this reply on Facebook:
Add an event_id parameter to all PageView events that you’re sending from both your pixel and the Conversions API. To add an event_id parameter to the events you’re sending through the Conversions API, you can use the Payload Helper tool on the Facebook for Developers site to validate that your payload is set up correctly. To add an event_id parameter to the events you’re sending through your pixel, go into your website’s source code and add an event_id parameter to each of your PageView event instances.
Thank you in advance.
Hello good evening, I have submitted an error in my facebook ads manager. In the part of the Diagnostics section of your event manager, I get this message:
Server Sending Invalid Match Key Parameters for PageView Event
Your server is sending an invalid ip_address, user_agent parameters value for your PageView event. This may be because there was an error in the parameter value.
This may cause issues with the attribution and delivery optimization of ad campaigns that are using this event.
How can I solve it and start running my advertising campaigns since because of that error I have not yet been able to launch my campaign.
We use pixelyoursite, however still have page view duplication problem. Please help fix it.
Hey , thx~~ this article is great~~ I know what you mean ^^
I have a question, if the cookie already exist, why cant the CAPI use cookie ??
the browser can send the cookie to web server and then send to FB server, but you said CAPI dont use cookie, it use user data
why ??