Tracking Pixel: What It Is, How to Set It Up, and How It Works
A tracking pixel is a special code created for analyzing email opens. People receive a large number of emails daily, as organizations strive to keep their customers informed about current events. But the more such emails are sent, the less likely they are to be opened.
To know whether email messages are being opened or not, companies use tracking in email marketing. They use pixels to determine consumer engagement.
What is an email tracking pixel
An email tracking pixel appears as a 1x1 pixel image added to an email. Typically, these are invisible images in the .gif or .png format.
Tracking pixels are usually placed in the top or bottom of an email.
The tracking element records whether or not the pixel has been loaded. To do so, all the components of the email (except for the text) must be loaded in order to add the pixel.
Tracking pixels are popular in online marketing, as companies need to know if their messages are being read by their customers. They are not used in personal correspondence.
Pixels are added through a marketing or sales email address that collects data on clicks and views. Tracking pixels can be manually embedded, but it can take a lot of time.
What email pixels track
Email pixels are used to measure:
the number of people who opened the email;
the click-through rate of the advertising offer and how interesting it is to users.
Pixels also indicate the geolocation of the people who viewed the email. Companies analyze geographical factors to expand their reach beyond certain groups.
Where tracking pixel is applied
Pixel tracking is used in any business field. It performs the following functions:
monitoring user behavior on a website;
recording the date and time of website views;
tracking the duration of each session;
evaluating the effectiveness of advertising;
improving ad targeting;
personalization in newsletters.
Pixel tracking shows what products are of interest to the consumer. How to set up pixel on the site You can also set up a tracking pixel on a website. There are 3 ways to implement a pixel on a web resource, which differ in the action that sends information about the client.
Tracking data after specific actions. The client is assigned a personal ID containing information about their activity on the online resource. Everything depends on what the client does: clicks on a link or navigates to another page.
Sending data on page reload. In this method, the pixel is designed to obtain information about the pages that the user has visited.
Sending data when clicking on a link. Here, the pixel informs about the user's interest in links placed on the website pages.
The principle of operation of tracking pixel
When a visitor opens a website, they receive a unique identifier, which is added to the client database. Usually, it is stored for no longer than a month.
When the user leaves their contact information on the website, their data is supplemented with new information.
As a result, marketers can create a "map of desires and interests" of the visitor, and use it to make personalized offers. This leads to an increase in conversions.
Conclusion
Tracking pixel is a useful tool for marketing purposes. It determines whether customers open emails, links, advertising offers, and more. By analyzing the data received and applying it correctly, the company increases its revenue and competitiveness.