Setting Up Tracking For: Google Ads/Facebook Ads With GTM/GA4

Summary:

To get the most from your ad spend, you need to know which campaigns lead to actual bookings. This guide shows you how to integrate Google Ads and Facebook Pixel with your existing Google Tag Manager setup on Campspot, so you can track conversion events like purchases accurately.

Content:

• Why We Recommend GTM
  
  

• Step 1: Set Up GA4 with GTM

• Step 2: Connect Google Ads to GA4

• Alternative: Set Up Google Ads Tracking Directly in GTM

• Step 3: Fix Facebook Pixel Misfires

• Bonus: Validate Your Setup

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Why We Recommend GTM 

Campspot recommends using Google Tag Manager (GTM) as the preferred method for implementing Google Analytics tracking. GTM offers a more flexible, scalable, and error-resistant setup compared to placing tracking codes directly into page headers or relying on third-party connectors. It also simplifies updates and allows for more advanced conversion tracking across the reservation flow.

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Set up To Track google Ad Campaign Success

Step 1: Set Up GA4 with GTM 

You need GA4 running before linking your ad platforms. Use either:

• Manual GTM Setup for GA4
• Import GTM Template

Step 2: Connect Google Ads to GA4

1. Open GA4 > Admin > Google Ads Links
2. Link your Ads account
3. Import the purchase event into Google Ads
   • Learn how: GA4 Conversion Setup

Alternative: Set Up Google Ads Tracking Directly in GTM

Use Data Layer Variables in GTM:

• Currency Code: Static value ("USD" or "CAD")
• Transaction Value:
  • Type: Data Layer Variable
  • Name: transactionTotal
• Transaction ID:
  • Type: Data Layer Variable
  • Name: transactionId

Don’t forget to add a Conversion Linker Tag to support cross-domain tracking.

Set up To Track google Ad Campaign Success

To track Facebook Ads performance on your Campspot booking site, we recommend installing the Facebook Pixel using Google Tag Manager (GTM) rather than the built-in field in your Campspot Admin.

🔗 Need help finding your Pixel code? Follow Facebook’s official instructions here, then return to this guide to complete the Google Tag Manager setup.

Step-by-step Setup

1. Get your Facebook Pixel base code

   • Go to Facebook Events Manager

   • Select your Pixel and choose “Install Pixel” > “Manually add Pixel code to website”

   • Copy the entire Pixel base code

2. Add the Pixel to GTM

   • In Google Tag Manager, create a new Custom HTML tag

   • Paste the Facebook Pixel base code into the tag

   • Set the trigger to All Pages

3. (Optional) Set up standard events manually
   Facebook may automatically detect actions like “Purchase,” but we recommend manually defining this for accuracy:

   • Create another Custom HTML tag

   • Use the fbq('track', 'Purchase', {value: ..., currency: ...}) format

   • Set the trigger to fire when a purchase occurs (e.g., based on a transactionId or transactionTotal in the data layer)

4. Publish your GTM container

   • GTM changes won’t go live until you click “Submit” in your workspace and publish the container

5. Validate your setup

   • Use Facebook Events Manager to review what’s being tracked

   • Turn off automatic events if they’re inaccurate, and rely on your manual events

Fix Facebook Pixel Misfires

• Facebook auto-detects events but often gets it wrong (e.g., mistaking "add to cart" for "purchase")
• After installing your Facebook Pixel via GTM, go to Events Manager and manually review detected events

Fix issues by disabling automatic events and setting up manual triggers in GTM.

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Bonus: Validate Your Setup

The following Chrome extensions can help you to validate that your setup is working correctly and guide you on where you may need to make some corrections. 

• Use Facebook Pixel Helper
• Use Tag Assistant and GA4 Debug View to ensure events are triggering accurately