How do I set up tracking for website conversions?

Setting up conversion tracking to measure dealership website success 

If you want to know whether your dealership website is actually working, you need to track conversions. Whether it’s form submissions, phone calls, or clicks to a digital retailing tool, conversions show you how well your site turns visitors into leads. But how do you set up tracking for website conversions? That’s where Google Analytics comes in. Below, we’ll walk you through setting up conversion tracking to measure dealership website success—and how DealerFire’s SEO team can handle the setup for you. 

What is a conversion? 

In the digital world, a conversion is any action that represents progress toward a business goal. For dealerships, this usually means: 

• Submitting a lead form (e.g., schedule a test drive or get an e-price) 
• Clicking to call the dealership 
• Starting a financing application 
• Using an online payment calculator or trade-in tool 

The more you can measure these actions, the more you understand what’s working—and what’s not—on your website. 

Step 1: Make sure Google Analytics is installed 

Before you can track anything, you need Google Analytics installed on your website. DealerFire websites come with Google Analytics set up by default, but you’ll want to double-check: 

1. Open your dealership website. 
2. Right-click and choose “View Page Source.” 
3. Look for a line with “Google Tag” or “gtag.js.” 

If it’s there, you’re good to go. If not, contact your website provider. 

Step 2: Identify what actions you want to track 

What matters most to your dealership? 

• Is it getting more leads? 
• Do you want more phone calls? 
• Are you promoting online shopping tools? 

Choose a few key actions to focus on first. These are your conversion goals. 

Step 3: Set up Goals or Events in Google Analytics 

Google Analytics 4 (GA4)—the current version of Google Analytics—tracks conversions a bit differently than the older version. 

Here’s how to do it in GA4: 

A. Set up a custom event (if it’s not tracked by default) 

1. Log into Google Analytics. 
2. Select your property. 
3. Go to Admin > Events > Create Event. 
4. Click “Create” and define your event. 

Example: If you want to track form submissions that go to a “thank-you” page, your event might look like: 

• Event name: form_submission 
• Matching condition: page_location contains /thank-you 

B. Mark the event as a conversion 

1. Go to Admin > Conversions. 
2. Click “New Conversion Event.” 
3. Enter the same event name (e.g., form_submission). 

Now, every time someone completes that action, it will be counted as a conversion. 

Step 4: View your conversion data 

After setup, give it a few days to collect data. 

You can view conversions by: 

• Going to Reports > Engagement > Conversions in GA4 
• Adding conversions to custom reports or dashboards 
• Using UTM tracking for marketing campaigns to see which ones drive the most leads 

Need help? DealerFire SEO analysts can do it for you 

Setting up Google Analytics and conversion tracking can feel overwhelming, especially with constant changes to the platform. That’s where we come in. 

DealerFire SEO analysts specialize in tracking the data that matters most to your dealership. We’ll: 

• Audit your website for existing conversion paths 
• Set up or refine Google Analytics tracking 
• Define and configure high-value goals 
• Monitor performance and optimize based on real results 

We make sure your site isn’t just getting traffic—it’s getting the right traffic that leads to sales. 

Ready to turn more visitors into customers? 
Contact your DealerFire SEO analyst today and take the guesswork out of conversion tracking.