What Is the Meta Pixel & What Does It Do? - Instapage

The Meta Pixel, also known informally as the Facebook retargeting pixel, is a snippet of code you can insert into the back end of your ... Features Services Platform InstapageOverview Integrations Security Products LandingPages Personalization Experimentation AdMap® Collaboration PageSpeed Solutions ByChannel ForSearchAds ForSocialAds ForDisplayAds ByUseCase ForLeadGen ForEcommerce Customers Pricing Resources ResourcesLibrary LandingPageExamples WhatisaLandingPage? Blog Login GETSTARTED Features Platform InstapageOverview Integrations Security Products LandingPages Personalization Experimentation AdMap® Collaboration PageSpeed ByChannel ForSearchAds ForSocialAds ForDisplayAds ByUseCase ForLeadGen ForEcommerce Customers Pricing ResourcesLibrary LandingPageExamples WhatisaLandingPage? Blog Login GETSTARTED Beyonditsmassiveaudience,there’snoshortageofreasonsFacebookisanadvertiser’sdream:engagingadtypes,helpfulintegrations,andlaser-focusedtargetingamongthem. Arguablythemostcompelling,though,hasnothingtodowiththosethree.It’snotimmersiveCanvasadsortheabilitytotargetprospectsdowntothecarintheirdrivewaythathasadvertiserssplurgingonFacebookads;it’stheretargetingabilityoftheMetaPixel. WhatistheMetaPixel? TheMetaPixel,alsoknowninformallyastheFacebookretargetingpixel,isasnippetofcodeyoucaninsertintothebackendofyourwebsite.Likeothertags,ithelpsdriveanddecodekeyperformancemetricsgeneratedbyaparticularplatform.Specifically,theMetaPixelhelpsbusinesseswithaFacebookpagedetermineandimprovetheROIfromtheworld’sbiggestsocialnetwork.Here’show… ThecapabilitiesoftheMetaPixel TheMetaPixelcantrackandboostROIforbusinessesontheplatform,butsocanalotoftools.Beforegoingintomoredetail,let’snaildownexactlywhattheMetaPixelcando: UsethepixeltobuildCustomAudiences ThisisoneofFacebook’smostpowerfultargetingcapabilities.Insteadofbuildingyouraudiencewiththesocialnetwork’sself-serveadtool,youhavetheoptiontolettheMetaPixeldoitforyou.Itmakesthewholeprocessfaster,easier.Butevenbetter,itaddstotheeffectivenessofyouradvertisingcampaignstoo. Theseaudiencesaren’tdefinedbydemographicsorinterests;they’recreatedfrompeoplewhohaveengagedwiththepagethatyourpixelison: Asaresult,they’remorerelevantthananythingyoucouldbuildfromageneralgroupofFacebookusers.They’repeoplewhohavealreadyshownaninterestinyourbusiness. UsethepixeltobuildLookalikeAudiences Customaudiencesaregreat—tailoredandrelevant.Butwhataboutwhenyouwanttoexpandyourreachbeyondtheonesvisitingyourwebsite? That’swhatLookalikeAudiencesarefor.ByinstallingtheFacebookretargetingpixel,youcanuseyourcustomaudiencesasastartingpointfornewaudiencesthatFacebookwillautomaticallygeneratetobesimilartotheoriginal. Thatmeansinsteadofmakinganeducatedguesstocreateanewtargetinggroup,youcanreachidealprospectsliketheonesinyourcustomaudience,andyoucandoitfasterthanever. Usethepixeltotrackandimproveconversions Ifthere’sonefundamentalreasonthatallFacebookadvertisersshoulduseaMetapixel,it’stotrackconversions.Installingoneonkeypost-clicklandingpageswillinformyouofwho’sconverting,whichpagesthey’revisiting,andhowmuchROIyourcampaignsaredelivering. Thatway,you’llhavedatatoinformnextstepsforimprovement,likeahypothesisforA/Btesting.Atthetest’sconclusion,you’llhaveabetterideaofwhichtacticsareworkingandwhicharen’t. UsetheMetaPixelforremarketing TheMetaPixelisversatile.Itcan: Enhancerelevancebyservingadstocustomaudiencesmadeupofvisitorstoyourwebsite. Boostadreachbycreatingaudiencesfromacustomaudienceofwebsitevisitors. Trackkeyperformancemetricsthatmattertoyourbusiness. Improveconversionsonkeypost-clicklandingpages. Lookingatallthosetogetherwiththeeyesofanadvertiser,you’reprobablythinking,“theMetaPixelisoneofthemostpowerfulretargetingtoolsontheinternet.”Andyou’reright. Aquickretargetingrefresher Chancesareyouknowtheideabehindretargeting,butthere’snoharminarefresher… Whenprospectsarriveatyourwebsiteforthefirsttime,they’reprobablynotgoingtobuywhatyou’reselling.Heck,theymightnotevendownloadanebookorclaimaconsultationevenifit’sfree. Whatthey’lldoisprobablyabandonyourpageanddosomemoreresearch,maybewaitaroundforabetterofferfromsomewhereelse… Andatsomepointtheymightreturntoyourwebsiteoftheirownaccord.Ormaybetheywon’t. Butasanadvertiseryoudon’twanttoleavethatdecisiontochance.Inatimewhenpeoplearebusierthanever,youwanttostaytop-of-mindwithanadthatsays“Hey,rememberthatcourseyouwerethinkingaboutpurchasing?Comecheckitoutagain.” That’sretargeting,alsoknownasremarketing.WiththeFacebookretargetingpixel,youcanservedynamicadstoaudienceswhotakeactionsthatindicatethey’reinterestedinyourproductsandservices.Itworkslikethis: HowtheMetaPixelworks FortheMetapixeltowork,itneedstobeinstalledontheback-endofalltherelevantpagesyouwanttotrack,createaudiences,andremarketwith.Ifyou’reusingFacebookadstodrivevisitorstoaclick-throughpost-clicklandingpagewhereyousellacourse,youmightwanttoinstallitonthatpage,thefollowingcheckoutpage,andthe“thankyou”pageafterthat.Here’swhy: Generally,you’llhavethreedifferentgroupsofpeopletotrackinthiscampaign. Thethreegroupsofpeople Group1:Peoplewhoclickthroughtoyourpost-clicklandingpagebutdon’tprogresstothesalespage.Thesepeoplewillclickonyourad,evaluateyourpost-clicklandingpage,anddecidethey’renotreadytobuy.TheMetaPixelonthatpagewilladdthemtoanaudiencethatyoucantargetwithatailoredFacebookadthatattemptstodrawthembacktothatpost-clicklandingpage. Group2:Peoplewhoclickthroughthepost-clicklandingpagetothesalespagebutdon’tsubmitapayment.Thesearepeoplewholikedtheideaofyourcoursebutgotspookedbythecreditcardfieldonthenextpage.TheMetapixelonthecheckoutpagewilladdthesepeopletoanaudienceaswell.YoucantargetthemwithadynamicFacebookadthatattemptstodrawthembacktothecheckoutpage.Youknowthesepeoplearefurtherdowninthefunnel,somaybeasmalldiscountorone-time-offerwillpushthemovertheedgetoyour“thankyou”page. Group3:Peoplewhomakeitallthewaythroughthecheckoutprocesstoyour“thankyou”page.TheMetapixelonyour“thankyou”pagewilladditsvisitorstoanotherlist,whichyoucanexcludefromyourothertargetinggroupstoensureyou’renotreachingpeoplewithFacebookadsforanofferthey’vealreadyclaimed.Youcanalsocreateanentirelynewcampaigntocross-sellthemonanothercourseoradd-on,orevenusethisgrouptocreatealookalikeaudienceofyouridealcustomertofindmorepeoplelikelytopurchaseyourproductorservice. Thepixelworksautomatically Andmaybethebestpartaboutitallisthatit’sdoneautomatically.Onceyou’veimplantedtheMetapixelonyourrelevantpost-clicklandingpages,audienceswillbecontinuouslyupdatedaspeoplevisitdifferentpages. Anaudiencewillbetargetedwithadstoreturntoyourcheckoutpageuntiltheyproceedpastthecheckoutpagetothe“thankyou”page.Oncethey’vedonethat,they’llbeaddedtoanewgroupofpeoplereceivingadsforadd-onsandotheroffers. Allthisfromonepixel? Ifyou’vebeenanadvertiseronFacebookforanextendedperiodoftime,you’llrememberthedayswhenyouneededtwodifferentpixelstodoallthis.Therewastheconversionpixel,andthecustomaudiencepixelandeachhaditsownjob: Today,though,they’vebothbeenreplacedbytheMetaPixel,whichdoesthejobofthetwoandmore.Andit’sjustaseasytofindandinstallastheolderpixels. WheretofindtheMetaPixel Asanadvertiser,gettingtheMetapixelallsetupisprettystraightforward.Ifyou’renotaFacebookadvertiseryet,you’llneedanaccounttodoso.Learnaboutgettingsetuphere. Ifyou’realreadyanadvertiserwithanaccountonFacebook,followthesefeweasystepstosetupyourpixel. Step1:NavigatetothepixelstabinyourAdsManager. Step2:Select“createapixel.” Click“Create”intheboxthatappearsandyou’redonecreatingthepixel.Pieceofcake.Nowit’stimetoinstallit. AddtheMetaPixeltoyourwebsite Onceyourpixeliscreated,allittakesisafewmorestepstogetitfullysetup.Whatthosestepsaredependonyourroleandknowledgeofawebsite’sback-end. Ifsomebodyelseadjuststheback-endofyourwebsite… You’llwanttosendtheinstallationinstructionstohimorher.That’seasilydonebynavigatingtothepixelstabinyourAdsManager,selecting“Setuppixel”andthen“Emailtoadeveloper.”Instructionsonhowtoinstallthepixelwillbesentstraighttotheemailaddressesyouspecifyonceyouhit“send.” Ifyouupdateyourwebsite’sback-end IfyouuseatagmanageroraCMS,Facebookoffersintegrationsthatallowforanevenmorestreamlinedinstallation.Findthemhere. Ifyou’regoingtoinstalltheMetapixelyourself,first,you’llneedtolocatetheheadercodeofthewebsite.Here’sanexamplefromFacebook: Then,copyandpastethecodeintothebottomportionoftheheader,abovetheclosingtagasshownabove. Andlastly,toensureyourMetapixelisworking,clickthe“SendTestTraffic”buttonandwaitafewminutes.Ifyougetnoresponse,checktoensureyou’veinstalledyourpixelcorrectly.Ifyou’restillhavingtrouble,contactFacebooksupport. Onceyou’vecompletedtheprocess,yourpixel’sreadytogo.Butifyouwantto,youcanpowerituptodoevenmore. TakeyourMetapixeltothenextlevel Togetevenmorefromyourpixel,youcansetupeventstofigureouthowyourprospectsarebehavingonyourwebsite.Theseevents,likewhensomeonemakesapurchase,clicksabutton,etc.willgiveyourconversionscontext. You’llhavetoaddanadditionalpieceofcodetotheback-endofyourwebsite,butonceyoudo,yourFacebookreportswillletyouknowdetailedinformationaboutthebehaviorofyourvisitorsandhowit’saffectingyourcampaignROI.Andyoucantieyourpixeltofireonthosebehaviorsand,thencreateremarketingcampaignsbasedonthoseevents. Step-by-stepbreakdown Here’showtodoit: 1:Navigatetothe“Pixels”tabinAdsManager. 2:Select“SetUpPixel.” 3:Click“ManuallyInstallTheCodeYourself.” 4:ClickContinue. 5:Select“InstallEvents” 6:Choosetheeventyouwanttotrackbyhittingthetogglenexttoit. 7:Basedonthekindofeventyouwishtotrack,chooseTrackEventonPageLoadorTrackEventonInlineAction. PickTrackEventonPageLoadistheactionyouwanttotrackissomeonelandingonapage,likea“thankyou”pageorthepost-clicklandingpageafteraclick-throughpost-clicklandingpage. SelectTrackEventonInlineActioniftheactionyouwanttotrackissomeoneclickingsomething,likeabuttonorlink. 8:Decidehowyouwanttotrackyouractionwithparameterslikeconversionvalueorcurrency.Whenthesearespecified,theMetapixelwillletyouknowhowmuchyou’reactuallygeneratingwithaparticularcampaign,ad,post-clicklandingpageinlivereports. 9:Onceyou’vedeterminedyourparameters,Facebookwillspitoutaneventcode.Pasteitonthebackendoftherelevantpage,ensuringyoudon’tmodifythepixelcodeyou’vealreadypastedintotheheaderofyourwebsite. Forpageloadevents:pastethecodejustundertheclosingheadersectionofthepage(youshouldfindthatrightaftertheopeningtag). Forinlineactionevents:addtheeventcodebetweenscripttagsnexttotheactionyouwanttotrack(likeabutton). Tolearnmoreaboutgettingyourpixeltofireduringanevent,checkoutthisFacebookresourcefordevelopers. Makesureyourallyourpixelsareworkingandrunyourcampaign Tobesureyourpixelisworking,it’srecommendedyouinstallMeta’sPixelHelperforChrome.Todothat,navigatetotheGoogleChromestoreandsearch“MetaPixelHelper.”Thenjustclick“AddtoChrome”and“Addextension.” Now,whenyouclickthe“PixelHelper”iconintheaddressbar,you’llbeabletoseeifthereareanypixelsonthepage,andifthey’reworkingcorrectly: IftheMetaPixelHelperfindsnoissues,you’rereadytobegindrivingtraffictoyourpost-clicklandingpages.Buildthosepost-clicklandingpagesbetterandfasterwiththeweb’smostrobustpost-clickautomationplatform. GetVisualExamplesofAllMajorAdFormatsonGoogle,Facebook,LinkedIn,andMore. Reviewadspecs,learnbestpractices&seeexamples.Allinoneplace. IWANTTHEGUIDE SubscribetotheInstapageBlog Getthelatesttrends,tactics,andthoughtleadershipforadvertisingconversionandpost-clickautomation. Youwillonlyreceivequalitycontent. by TedVrountas TedVrountasisacontentwriteratInstapagewhohatesmostmarketingcontent.Asahumanamongmarketers,hisgoalistowritewordspeopleactuallywanttoread. Readytoturnmoreadclicksintoconversions? Trytheworld'smostadvancedlandingpageplatformtoday.Scheduleaproductdemotolearnmore. GET STARTED SubscribetotheInstapageBlog Getthelatesttrends,tactics,andthoughtleadershipforadvertisingconversionandpost-clickautomation. Youwillonlyreceivequalitycontent. SUBSCRIBEME Weusecookiestogiveyouthebestexperienceonourwebsite,deliverourservices,personalizecontent,andtoanalyzetraffic.Bycontinuingtouseourwebsiteyouagreetoallowouruseofcookies.ToknowmorepleaserefertoourCookiePolicy. Gotit close