To set up conversion tracking in Google Ads for leads, create one conversion action per lead path (form, booking, call, and an import for leads qualified later), set each one's value, count, window and primary status, and install the Google tag. Then trigger every action once to prove it records, in the order below.
Before you create actions
Check 1: Are auto-tagging and call reporting on?
gclid parameter, have your developer allow URL parameters first (auto-tagging manual).Create one action per lead path
Check 2: Does each form and booking have its own website action?
Check 3: Do calls have their own actions?
Check 4: Is there an import action for leads that qualify later?
Set what each action counts
Check 5: Does each action carry a value?
Check 6: Is Count set to One on lead actions?
Check 7: Is the click-through window longer than your lead cycle?
Check 8: Are only the actions you bid on primary?
Install the tag
Check 9: Is the Google tag on every page, installed one way?
Test each action
Check 10: Does Tag Assistant verify each website action?
Check 11: Does an ad click swap your site number?
gwcc cookie before retesting.Check 12: Does each action show a healthy status?
After every action records
Compare a week of Google Ads conversions with your CRM's leads and account for the gap. Then feed the leads your CRM qualifies into the check 4 import, so bidding learns which clicks became customers. That loop is what I build in marketing analytics.
Tags
Frequently asked questions
Should a lead conversion action count one conversion or every conversion?
For form, booking and call actions, One. Google then counts one conversion per ad click and describes that setting as the choice when you care whether a lead was generated rather than the number of sales. Website and import actions default to Every, and a change to Count applies only to future conversions.
How do I test Google Ads conversion tracking without clicking my own ad?
For website actions, launch Tag Assistant from the action's status in Goals > Conversions > Summary, trigger the form or booking on your site and select Finish. Google shows the action as verified about 30 minutes later. A test visit that did not come from an ad adds no conversion to reports, because Google records conversions only after an ad interaction. Checking the forwarding number on your site does need a real ad click, which you pay for.
What conversion window should I use for leads in Google Ads?
One longer than your leads take from ad click to conversion, which the time lag report in attribution reports shows. Google's default click-through window is 30 days, you can set 1 to 90 days depending on the conversion source, and Google recommends at least 7. A conversion after the window is not recorded, and a change applies only going forward.
Which conversion category should a booked appointment use in Google Ads?
Book appointment, one of Google's lead categories next to Submit lead form, Request quote and Contact. Calls set up under Conversions from phone calls use Phone call lead, and an import of leads your CRM qualifies or closes later can use Qualified leads or Converted leads.