/53-tracking-setup-global

name: 53-tracking-setup-global
description: "Use when conversion TRACKING must be set up or fixed before spending — Meta Pixel and Conversions API, Google Ads conversions with Enhanced Conversions, GA4, TikTok Pixel and Events API, server-side GTM, consent mode for GDPR and CCPA, UTM conventions, iOS ATT attribution windows, and a pre-launch verification checklist. Trigger on 'tracking setup', 'pixel setup', 'CAPI', 'GA4 events', 'conversions are not being recorded', 'Meta and Shopify numbers do not match'. Also use when launch is imminent and nothing has been verified. Not for — auditing a live account broadly, see `21-ads-audit-global`; analyzing data once it flows, see `13-data-analysis-global`; the campaign hierarchy, see `52-account-structure-global`."
metadata:
  version: 1.0.1
  category: performance
license: MIT
triggers:
  - "tracking setup"
  - "pixel setup"
  - "conversions API"
  - "CAPI"
  - "GA4 setup"
  - "server-side tracking"
  - "consent mode"
  - "UTM convention"
  - "conversion tracking not working"
output: "File .md — tracking setup checklist per platform, consent plan, UTM template, event mapping, CRM/offline conversion plan, pre-launch verification checklist, and a troubleshooting table"
related:
  - product-marketing-context-global
  - 52-account-structure-global
  - 54-media-plan-global
  - 21-ads-audit-global
  - 12-landing-page-brief-global
  - 13-data-analysis-global

Tracking Setup (Global)

Ads without verified tracking is driving blind. **Hard rule: do not launch ads until tracking verifies green.** Every dollar spent before verification is unmeasurable. Set it up correctly the first time — changing events mid-campaign destroys historical comparability.

> Full per-platform install steps and the consent mode parameter reference: read `references/platform-tracking-setup.md`.

Information gathering

Ask up to 4 questions:

1. **Which ad platforms and objective?** Meta / Google / TikTok / LinkedIn / YouTube — lead (form or message) / purchase / traffic? 2. **What runs the website or landing page?** Shopify / WordPress / Webflow / Framer / custom — and is there access to edit the head tag or install GTM? 3. **Which markets receive traffic?** This decides the consent requirements: EU/UK means GDPR and ePrivacy, California means CCPA/CPRA, other US states have their own opt-out laws. 4. **Where does the sale actually close?** On site (pixel-measurable) or offline via sales calls, demos, or DMs (needs CRM/offline conversion import)?

Principles

1. **No green, no launch.** Verification comes before spend, every time. 2. **Consent is part of tracking, not a legal afterthought.** In the EU/UK, tags must not fire before consent. Getting this wrong risks fines and, on Google, loss of remarketing audiences. 3. **One installation method only.** GTM plus hardcoded tags equals duplicate events and doubled phantom conversions. 4. **Client-side plus server-side, deduplicated.** Browser-only tracking loses a large share of events to ad blockers, ITP, and iOS ATT. Send the same event from both sides with a shared event ID. 5. **Consistent UTMs.** Define the convention once, before anyone builds a link. GA4 cannot repair inconsistent casing or naming after the fact. 6. **Measure to revenue, not to lead.** If 1,000 leads produce 10 sales, you must be able to tell whether the failure is in ads or in sales. That requires CRM or offline conversion import. 7. **Expect platform numbers to disagree.** Ads managers use different attribution windows and modeled conversions. Pick one source of truth for decisions and use the others as directional.

Workflow

1. Choose the measurement architecture

| Layer | Purpose | Minimum | |-------|---------|---------| | Client-side pixel/tag | Fast setup, on-page events | Meta Pixel, Google tag, TikTok Pixel | | Server-side API | Recovers events lost to blockers and ITP | Meta Conversions API, TikTok Events API, Google Enhanced Conversions | | Analytics | Cross-channel truth, funnel analysis | GA4 with key events configured | | Consent layer | Legal gate in front of everything above | CMP plus Google consent mode v2 | | CRM / offline | Connects leads to actual revenue | CRM with source fields, offline conversion import |

Server-side GTM is the recommended container for anything beyond a simple store: it centralizes event forwarding, improves data quality, and keeps first-party cookie lifetimes usable under ITP.

2. Consent management (do this before any tag fires)

This is a first-class requirement, not an optional extra.

**EU / UK — GDPR and ePrivacy:**

• Install a certified consent management platform. Meta requires a CMP for EU traffic; Google requires a Google-certified CMP for EEA/UK traffic to keep personalized advertising and audience features.
• Implement **Google consent mode v2**. The four signals are `ad_storage`, `analytics_storage`, `ad_user_data`, `ad_personalization`. Default them to `denied` for EEA/UK before the banner is answered, then update on consent.
• Non-essential tags must not fire before consent is granted. Consent must be as easy to refuse as to accept, and withdrawable.
• Keep a consent log — which user, which choice, when, which policy version.

**California — CCPA/CPRA (and comparable US state laws):**

• Provide a visible opt-out of sale/sharing of personal information.
• Honor the Global Privacy Control browser signal as a valid opt-out.
• On Meta, apply **Limited Data Use** for California traffic.

**Email and SMS:** CAN-SPAM in the US and GDPR in the EU require documented opt-in for marketing sends and a working unsubscribe. Any list uploaded as a Custom Audience or Customer Match list must have that consent on record — see `14-email-marketing-global`.

Record the decision in the output file: which CMP, which regions gated, who verified.

3. Install per platform

Full step-by-step checklists live in `references/platform-tracking-setup.md`. Summary of what must exist:

| Platform | Cl