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Google Ads (Event Stream)

Amplitude Data's Google Ads integration streams your Amplitude event data to Google Ads with a few clicks.

Use cases

  • Enhanced conversion tracking: Link Amplitude events to Google Ads to track conversions more effectively. When a user clicks an ad and then completes a significant action tracked in Amplitude (like signing up or making a purchase), this integration attributes the action back to the specific ad click.
  • Data-driven advertising decisions: Analyze which ads lead to meaningful user actions to optimize ad spend, focusing on the most effective campaigns and channels.

Considerations

  • Enable this integration in each Amplitude project you want to use it in.
  • Amplitude sends custom events using Amplitude event_type as the event name.
  • This integration uses Google Ads Upload Click Conversions API. The event payload needs both the Google Click ID (gclid) and the Conversion Date Time properties. Google Ads uses the gclid parameter to track user interactions with ads and attribute conversions back to specific ad clicks. When a user clicks an ad served through Google Ads, Google Ads generates a unique gclid value and appends it to the URL. This parameter identifies the click and links it to later conversions. Amplitude drops events without a user property gclid.
  • gclid must be valid: none isn't acceptable.

Set up the integration

Amplitude setup

  1. In Amplitude Data, click Catalog and select the Destinations tab.
  2. In the Event Streaming section, click Google Ads.
  3. Enter a sync name, then click Create Sync.

After you create the destination, configure the settings.

Configure settings

  1. On the Settings tab, click Edit.

  2. Under Status, click the toggle from Disabled to Enabled.

  3. Upload the Google Cloud Service Account: A Google Cloud Service Account is a Google account used for server-to-server interactions and authentication within Google Cloud Platform (GCP) services. A user with access to the Google Ads Service Account can create the Google Cloud Service Account. The Google Ads Service Account should have domain wide delegation enabled.

    When you configure the domain-wide delegation, set the OAuth scope to https://www.googleapis.com/auth/adwords. For more information, refer to Configure the OAuth screen in Google's documentation.

  4. Enter the Google Cloud Service Account User Email: This is the email address of the user who created the Google Cloud Service account and who has access to the Google Ads account.

  5. Enter the Google Ads Customer ID: A Google Ads Customer ID is a unique identifier assigned to each advertiser or business that uses Google Ads. It helps Google track and manage accounts, campaigns, and billing information. Find the Google Ads Customer ID at top-right when logged into Google Ads. Enter the ID without hyphens.

  6. Enter the Google Ads Conversion Action ID: A unique identifier associated with a specific conversion action in Google Ads, representing an action you want your visitors or users to take. For example, make a purchase, submit a contact form, or sign up for a newsletter. After the conversion action appears in Google Ads, click it to visit the details page (path: /conversions/detail). The URL has a parameter ctId=. Copy the value of that parameter as the Conversion Action ID.

  7. To send events ingested by Amplitude to Google Ads, toggle Send Events to Enabled. Expand the Select and filter events panel, and select which events to send. Amplitude recommends sending only the events you need in Google Ads, rather than selecting All Events.

  8. Map the gclid Amplitude property to the GCLID property in Google Ads. This is the Google Click identifier.

  9. Save when finished.

Set up tracking conversion in Google Ads

  1. In Google Ads, click Goals.
  2. Click New conversion action (or + Create conversion action).
  3. On the Select conversion goal screen, choose Conversions offline.
  4. Choose an appropriate category for the conversion (for example, Lead or Purchase).
  5. Edit the conversion settings. At a minimum, configure the following:
    • Action optimization.
    • Conversion name.
    • Value.
    • Count.
    • Click-through conversion window.
    • Attribution model.
  6. Click Save and continue.
  7. Click Finish.

This records offline conversions in the Goals section of Google Ads. There may be a delay of up to 60 minutes after metrics stream from Amplitude before they appear in Google Ads.

Troubleshooting

Stuck at the authentication step

If you see ERR_BLOCKED_BY_CLIENT in your browser's console, disable your ad blocker, clear your browser's cache and cookies, and try to add the connection again.

"Error: Invalid Customer ID"

Google Ads requires a customer ID to configure as an integration with Amplitude. For more information, refer to Find your Google Ads customer ID in Google's documentation. Note that Manager Account Customer ID is different from the Customer ID.

Insufficient permissions

Your Google Ads Manager account needs administrator privileges to use Amplitude's Google Ads Event Streaming integration. This permission lets Amplitude add and remove users from specific user lists in Google Ads.

For more information, refer to About access levels in your Google Ads Account in Google's documentation.

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