What is the Facebook Pixel and why do you need it?

How do you set up Facebook ads to show to people who have already visited your website? After all, this is the audience that is interested in your product/service, which means the chances of a sale are higher. The Facebook Pixel helps you do this.

So what is a Facebook Pixel?

A Facebook pixel is a piece of JavaScript code that is placed on all pages of a website. When a user visits a website's pages or performs any action on them, the pixel sends information about this to Facebook as an event that has occurred on the website.

In other words, the data collected by the pixel helps to track site visits, shopping cart actions, application submissions or site views (conversions).

You can also add a visitor to your remarketing list or create a LAL audience (a similar audience to your remarketing list) and show them ads on Facebook and Instagram.

In order for the pixel to record actions, you will need to set up events.

What data the pixel collects

1. views of all pages and key pages, e.g. catalogue, product pages, etc;
2. search queries
3. adding a product to the basket, favourites, wishlist, etc;
4. starting the checkout process
5. adding payment information during checkout;
6. completing the order, making a purchase;
7. submitting an application form, obtaining a trial version of the product, etc;
8. completing registration.

How the pixel works

In order to monitor visitors' actions, a pixel establishes a connection between a website user and their profile on Facebook or Instagram. The pixel uses both first-party and third-party cookies - small snippets of code stored in browsers. All data about user activity on the website is sent to Facebook for analysis.

Following the release of the new iOS 14.5, advertisers will need to obtain permission from users of applications from the AppStore to track data. If the user opts out, the pixel will not be able to collect their data.

What you can do with the information collected by the pixel

What you can do with the information collected by the Facebook pixel:

1. Run retargeting

Retargeting allows you to show ads to users who have already visited your website but have not made a purchase. To do this, you need to create audience segments. The definition of audience segments varies depending on their behaviour on the website, for example, users who have added a product to their cart but not made a purchase, viewed three pages in the catalogue, submitted an enquiry, etc.

2. Attract new users to your site

Attract new users to your website who have similar characteristics to your existing audience. This is achieved by creating a look-alike segment based on data collected from your existing audience using a pixel.

3. Analyse the performance of advertising campaigns

Analyse the performance of advertising campaigns. By setting up event monitoring, you can get an idea of how users behave after interacting with ads and determine whether they take the desired actions.

4. Improve advertising strategies

Improve your ad strategies. You can adjust bids by increasing or decreasing them for specific audiences that interact with a pixel.

How to create and install a Facebook Pixel

Important: To set up a Facebook Pixel, you must have your own website and be able to modify its code. If you are using a third party, you can email them instructions on how to install the pixel.

To install the Facebook pixel on your website, go to the Events Manager, click on the green plus sign, select Connect Data Sources and choose Internet as the source type. Then click on Facebook Pixel and select Connect. Next, give the pixel a name, enter the URL of your website where you want to install it and click Next. After these steps, the pixel will be created and will appear in your Data Sources section.

Now you need to insert the pixel into the code of your website.

There are three ways to do this:

1. Manual. To manually install the Facebook pixel, first select the newly created pixel in the Data Sources section and then click Continue Pixel Setup. From the available installation options, select 'Install code manually'. Then copy and paste the pixel code into your website at the end of your section, before the closing tag.
2. Through affiliate integration. To install a Facebook pixel through an affiliate integration, first select the pixel you want and choose the 'Use an affiliate' setup method. Then select your affiliate from the list provided and follow the instructions provided by Facebook. For example, you can use Google Tag Manager to set the pixel code.
3. By sending instructions via email. This method is useful if you have a programmer working with your website code. First, select the pixel you want and start setting it up. Then select the Send instructions option. Enter the email address of the person responsible for editing the website code and click Send.

It is important to use the same pixel on all pages of the website to ensure consistent tracking. Once the pixel has been added to the website, you can start setting up events. This can be done manually or by using special tools that make the process easier.