DV360 Event Tracking (Floodlight Activities) | OpsBlu Docs

DV360 Event Tracking (Floodlight Activities)

Configure Floodlight conversion activities for Display & Video 360 campaign measurement.

Floodlight Activity Types

Counter Activities

Used for tracking non-transactional conversions where each occurrence is counted equally.

Use cases:

  • Form submissions
  • Newsletter signups
  • PDF downloads
  • Video views
  • Account registrations
  • Contact us clicks

Configuration:

  • Counting method: Standard (count every conversion) or Unique (count once per user per day/week/month)
  • No revenue value required
  • Custom variables for segmentation

Sales Activities

Used for tracking revenue-generating conversions with transaction values.

Use cases:

  • E-commerce purchases
  • Subscription sign-ups with payment
  • Lead generation with assigned value
  • Booking confirmations

Configuration:

  • Revenue tracking enabled
  • Transaction ID for deduplication
  • Custom variables for product details
  • Order value dynamically passed

Creating Floodlight Activities

In Campaign Manager 360

  1. Navigate to Advertiser → Floodlight → Activities

  2. Click New Activity

  3. Configure activity settings:

    • Name: Descriptive name (e.g., "Purchase - Standard")
    • Group: Select appropriate activity group (or create new)
    • Type: Counter or Sales
    • Tag String: Unique identifier (lowercase, no spaces)
    • Counting Method: Standard, Unique, or Transactions

  4. Set attribution windows:

    • Click lookback: 30 days (default)
    • Impression lookback: 1 day (default)
    • Customize based on business needs

  5. Configure custom variables if needed

  6. Save and generate tag code

Event Configuration Examples

E-commerce Purchase

// Floodlight sales activity for purchase
gtag('event', 'conversion', {
  'allow_custom_scripts': true,
  'value': 149.99,
  'transaction_id': 'ORD-2024-12345',
  'u1': 'electronics',        // Category
  'u2': 'headphones',          // Product type
  'u3': 'returning_customer',  // Customer type
  'send_to': 'DC-XXXXXXXX/invmedia/purchase0+standard'
});

Lead Form Submission

// Floodlight counter activity for lead
gtag('event', 'conversion', {
  'allow_custom_scripts': true,
  'u1': 'contact-form',       // Form type
  'u2': 'enterprise',         // Lead tier
  'u3': 'north-america',      // Region
  'send_to': 'DC-XXXXXXXX/invmedia/lead0+unique'
});

Newsletter Signup

// Floodlight counter activity
gtag('event', 'conversion', {
  'allow_custom_scripts': true,
  'u1': 'monthly-newsletter',
  'u2': 'homepage',
  'send_to': 'DC-XXXXXXXX/invmedia/signup0+standard'
});

Video View Completion

// Floodlight counter for video engagement
gtag('event', 'conversion', {
  'allow_custom_scripts': true,
  'u1': 'product-demo',      // Video type
  'u2': '100',               // Percent viewed
  'u3': 'embedded',          // Player type
  'send_to': 'DC-XXXXXXXX/invmedia/video0+standard'
});

Custom Variables (u1-u100)

Floodlight supports up to 100 custom variables for enhanced reporting and optimization.

Common Use Cases

Configuration

  1. Define variable in Campaign Manager: Advertiser → Floodlight → Custom Variables
  2. Set variable type: String (text) or Number
  3. Enable for specific activities
  4. Pass value in tag implementation
  5. Use in DV360 for reporting and optimization

Custom Variable Example

gtag('event', 'conversion', {
  'allow_custom_scripts': true,
  'value': 299.00,
  'transaction_id': 'ORDER789',
  'u1': 'shoes',              // Product category
  'u2': 'running',            // Subcategory
  'u3': 'premium',            // Price tier
  'u4': 'mobile',             // Device
  'u5': 'first_purchase',     // Customer type
  'send_to': 'DC-XXXXXXXX/invmedia/purchase0+transactions'
});

Attribution Settings

Click Lookback Windows

  • Standard: 30 days
  • Long consideration: 60-90 days (auto, finance, travel)
  • Short consideration: 7-14 days (retail promotions)

Impression Lookback Windows

  • Standard: 1 day
  • Brand awareness: 7-30 days
  • Direct response: 1 day (default)

Counting Methodology

Standard Counting:

  • Counts every conversion
  • Best for sales transactions
  • Allows multiple conversions per user

Unique Counting:

  • Counts once per user per period (day/week/month)
  • Best for lead generation
  • Prevents double-counting

Transactions:

  • Deduplicates based on transaction_id
  • Required for e-commerce
  • Prevents duplicate orders

Event Validation

Testing in Campaign Manager

  1. Navigate to Advertiser → Floodlight → Test Conversions
  2. Enter test conversion details
  3. Trigger conversion on website
  4. Verify conversion appears in test tool within minutes

Chrome DevTools Verification

  1. Open Chrome DevTools → Network tab
  2. Filter by "doubleclick" or "googlesyndication"
  3. Trigger conversion event
  4. Look for request to ad.doubleclick.net/ddm/activity/
  5. Verify parameters: src (config ID), type (group), cat (activity)

GTM Preview Mode

  1. Enable GTM Preview mode
  2. Navigate to conversion page
  3. Verify Floodlight tag fires
  4. Check variable values are correct
  5. Confirm no errors in debug console

Best Practices

  • Use descriptive activity names and tag strings
  • Implement transaction IDs for sales activities to prevent duplicates
  • Set attribution windows appropriate to your sales cycle
  • Leverage custom variables for granular reporting
  • Test all activities before campaign launch
  • Document all custom variable definitions
  • Use consistent naming conventions across activities
  • Monitor conversion volume to detect tracking issues early
  • Implement consent mode for privacy compliance
  • Review and archive unused activities periodically
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