Data tracking is a big part of A/B testing. As a user-focused app, ABConvert implements a well-designed tracking system to help our merchants track their A/B testing results without placing any code.
How we track data
Currently, we track data by the following ways:
Webpixel
ABConvert script
Webhook
Webpixel
Shopify has provided us with an API to collect its events, and you can find the list here.
In ABConvert, we collect four events in Webpixel:
page_viewedproduct_added_to_cartcheckout_startedcheckout_completed
Our analytics are session-based for price test and shipping test and visitor-based for URL redirect test/template test/theme test.
The session will be the same as Shopify's, and it will last 30 minutes. Each event will only be recorded once in a session.
The visitor is counted once for a purchasing journey. Each event will only be recorded once for a visitor.
The Webpixel will be created once a test is created, and it will remain as is if there are active tests.
You can find the Webpixel in Settings → Custom Events → ABConvert
ABConvert script
In addition to Webpixel, we use a script to track data that we can't get from Webpixel.
Here is the event and the script table:
Event | Script |
Sessions/ Product view in price test/ content test | Price test/ content test |
Staying time in url redirect/template test | Url redirect test/ Theme test |
Also, the ABConvert script is used to manage users' groups for A/B test , so in order to let webpixel work, please make sure the script is on the theme when you are testing. You can find it in theme.liquid with abconvert as a prefix.
Webhook
Currently, we only use Webhook for price test order events, and we will soon migrate it.
Troubleshooting
When you find that your data is not coming in, you can check the following things:
If the Webpixel is enabled.
If the ABConvert script is on the theme.
For stores that use a third-party page builder, there might be a different file to register snippets other than theme.liquid. Please contact support for help.
Also, there are reasons that may cause the Webpixel event not to fire:
Add to cart not using
/cart/add.jsAPI.Using checkout page other than Shopify’s.
Third-party app blocking the event sending.
Why is my analytics different than Shopify’s
In this article, we explain the fact that we track the data on our own, and it’s not directly imported from Shopify. So there might be some differences.
The most common causes of the analytics differences are:
Path wise data in Shopify vs Store wise data in ABConvert
Order from other sales channel other than Online store
1. Comparing path data in Shopify directly with our dashboard
This mostly happens in the URL redirect test. Some users will take a look at the session and other data in a certain path in “Sessions by landing page” and compare it with ABConvert’s analytics dashboard.
However, the comparison might not be meaningful since Shopify records sessions only on the landing page, while our analytics track the following user behavior.
2. Multiple sales channel contribute to orders
ABConvert only records analytics if it happens on the Online Store sales channel.
For orders from:
Shop
Subscription renew
Pinterest
Etc (non-online store source)
It won’t be recorded. Moreover, if there are post-purchase upsell apps, we might not record it as well.
If you have concerns about your order data, please reach out to our support team. We can export the order ID of the test for you to verify it.
Conclusion
This article explains how ABConvert tracks data. If you have any feedback or questions, feel free to reach out to us via [email protected] or through the support chat.