Meta Ads

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What Gets Synced

• Campaign, ad set, ad stats
• Spend, impressions, clicks
• CPM, CPC, CTR
• Conversions reported by Meta

• Purchase events with revenue
• Lead gen events
• Signup/registration events
• Add to cart, begin checkout events
• Page view events
• Custom events you configure

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How It Works

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Conversion Flow

User clicks Facebook ad on mobile
Meta appends fbclid to URL
URL: https://yoursite.com/?fbclid=IwAR123...

DATALYR tracking script captures:
- fbclid: IwAR123...
- _fbp cookie (browser ID)
- _fbc cookie (click tracking)
Stores in visitor profile: anon_abc123

User views products, adds to cart
User completes purchase: $99.99

DATALYR sends server-side conversion:
- Event: Purchase
- Value: $99.99
- fbclid: IwAR123 (from Day 1)
- Enhanced matching: email, phone (hashed)
- Deduplication with browser pixel

Meta receives conversion
Matches fbclid to original ad click
Attributes $99.99 to Facebook ad campaign
Updates campaign performance metrics

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Setup

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1. Connect Meta Account

1. Navigate to Settings → Sources in DATALYR
2. Click “Connect” next to Meta Ads
3. Log in to Facebook/Meta account
4. Select Business Manager and ad account
5. Grant permissions:
   • Read ad insights
   • Manage ads
   • Access Conversions API
6. Click “Authorize”

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2. Select Primary Ad Account

1. DATALYR shows all accessible ad accounts
2. Select your primary ad account for conversions
3. Select the Meta Pixel to use for CAPI events
4. Click “Save”

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3. Configure Conversion Events

1. Go to Settings → Conversion Rules
2. Map your events to Meta standard events:
   • purchase → Purchase
   • add_to_cart → AddToCart
   • begin_checkout → InitiateCheckout
   • signup → CompleteRegistration
   • lead → Lead
3. Set conversion values (optional):
   • Use order total for purchases
   • Fixed value for leads
   • LTV for signups

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4. Verify Integration

1. Click a Meta ad (use test ads if available)
2. Complete a conversion on your site
3. Go to Meta Events Manager
4. Check “Test Events” tab
5. Verify conversion appears with CAPI badge

1. View conversion in DATALYR Event Stream
2. Verify fbclid is present
3. Confirm conversion sent to Meta (check logs)

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Meta Conversions API (CAPI)

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Why CAPI Matters

• iOS 14+ tracking restrictions
• Ad blockers prevent pixel loading
• Cookie consent requirements
• Browser privacy features

• Server-side tracking (no browser required)
• Bypasses iOS tracking restrictions
• Immune to ad blockers
• More accurate attribution
• Better event matching

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How CAPI Works

// Meta Pixel fires client-side
fbq('track', 'Purchase', {
  value: 99.99,
  currency: 'USD'
});

// DATALYR sends to Meta Conversions API
POST https://graph.facebook.com/v23.0/{pixel_id}/events
{
  "data": [{
    "event_name": "Purchase",
    "event_time": 1727634645,
    "event_id": "evt_123",
    "event_source_url": "https://example.com/checkout",
    "action_source": "website",
    "user_data": {
      "em": "hashed_email",
      "ph": "hashed_phone",
      "fbp": "_fbp_cookie",
      "fbc": "_fbc_click_cookie",
      "external_id": "user_456"
    },
    "custom_data": {
      "value": 99.99,
      "currency": "USD"
    }
  }]
}

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Deduplication

• Browser pixel: fbq('track', 'Purchase', {...}, {eventID: 'evt_123'})
• CAPI: event_id: 'evt_123'
• Meta deduplicates if event_id matches

// DATALYR uses consistent event IDs
Browser Pixel Event ID: evt_order_123_1727634645
CAPI Event ID:         evt_order_123_1727634645

Result: Meta counts as ONE conversion (not two)

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Enhanced Matching

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Customer Data Sent

• Email address
• Phone number
• First name
• Last name
• City, state, zip code
• Country

// Original data (NEVER sent in plain text)
email: "[email protected]"

// Hashed with SHA-256 before sending
em: "b4c9a289323b21a01c3e940f150eb9b8c542587f1abfd8f0e1cc1ffc5e475514"

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Browser IDs

• First-party cookie set by Meta Pixel
• Identifies browser/device
• Format: fb.1.{timestamp}.{random}

• Contains fbclid from ad click
• Tracks which specific ad was clicked
• Format: fb.1.{timestamp}.{fbclid}

• Appended to URL by Meta ads
• Unique identifier for each ad click
• Used for attribution and conversion matching

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Attribution

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Cross-Device Attribution

User clicks Facebook ad on mobile
fbclid captured: IwAR123
Visitor ID: anon_mobile_456

User purchases on desktop
Different visitor ID: anon_desktop_789
BUT same email: [email protected]

DATALYR links:
1. anon_mobile_456 → [email protected]
2. anon_desktop_789 → [email protected]
3. Finds fbclid from anon_mobile_456
4. Sends conversion with original fbclid

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Attribution Windows

• 7-day click attribution
• 1-day view attribution

• 30-day attribution window (default)
• Configurable per workspace

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Event Mapping

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Standard Events

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Custom Events

// Track custom milestone
datalyr.track('trial_started', {
  plan: 'pro',
  trial_days: 14
});

// Maps to Meta custom event
Event Name: trial_started
Custom Data: {plan: 'pro', trial_days: 14}

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Advanced Features

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Action Source

User converts on website
action_source: "website"

User converts in iOS/Android app
action_source: "app"

User purchases in store
action_source: "physical_store"

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Limited Data Use (LDU)

// DATALYR automatically sets LDU for California users
{
  "data_processing_options": ["LDU"],
  "data_processing_options_country": 1, // USA
  "data_processing_options_state": 1000 // California
}

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Test Events

1. Enable test mode in DATALYR
2. Create test conversion
3. Check Meta Events Manager → Test Events
4. Verify data is correct
5. Disable test mode for production

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Troubleshooting

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Conversions Not Appearing in Meta

1. Integration is connected and active
2. Meta Pixel ID is correct
3. Event has fbclid or _fbp cookie
4. Event is within attribution window (30 days)
5. Check Events Manager for errors

• Missing fbclid: User didn’t come from Meta ad
• Duplicate event IDs: Check deduplication
• Invalid user data: Email/phone must be hashed

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Low Match Rate

1. Send email with every conversion
2. Include phone number when available
3. Send full address data (city, state, zip)
4. Ensure _fbp and _fbc cookies are captured

Meta Events Manager → Data Sources → Your Pixel → Match Quality

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Attribution Discrepancies

• Attribution windows differ (DATALYR: 30d, Meta: 7d)
• View-through attribution (Meta counts, DATALYR doesn’t by default)
• Conversion time differences (DATALYR uses event time, Meta uses ad time)

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Data Privacy

• All emails, phones, names are SHA-256 hashed
• No plaintext PII sent to Meta
• GDPR and CCPA compliant
• Opt-out respected

// Before hashing
Email: "[email protected]"

// After hashing (sent to Meta)
em: "b4c9a289323b21a01c3e940f150eb9b8c542587f1abfd8f0e1cc1ffc5e475514"

// Meta matches hash to their users without seeing email

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Next Steps

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