What is Server to Server Conversion Tracking

(a.k.a. cookie-less tracking or S2S conversion tracking or post back URL conversion)
It's a way to track conversions without the necessity to modify the thank you or confirmation page. 
Please note that setup is not easy and only experts should be using this method.

Pros and Cons

S2S conversion tracking  does not use cookies but stores information server-side (in the merchant server). After the conversion happens the merchant server sends info to ClickMeter. With conversion to conversion tracking cookies may be cancelled by the customer, denied from their browser or expire after a certain period and conversions can still be recorded.   Furthermore you do not need to place a piece of code (the conversion code or pixel) in the merchant website making server to server conversion tracking the most precise. 
On the other end you need a merchant that's organized to manage postback URLs. You need to understand how they manage it; we suggest reviewing their instructions to learn how to configure it on the merchant side. Most large and organized merchants and affiliate merchants are familiar with S2S conversion tracking and setup up should be quite easy. 

How does Server to Server conversion tracking work 

 

 

How to Setup Server 2 Server conversion tracking with ClickMeter

A) SETUP YOUR CLICKMETER TRACKING LINK

It is like setting up a simple ClickMeter tracking link associated with a conversion, the only difference is that you need to add a parameter to the destination URL:

• Create a new conversion code:
  http://support.clickmeter.com/entries/29483473-How-to-track-conversions-video

• Create a new tracking link and associate the conversion with it:
  http://support.clickmeter.com/entries/28297963-How-to-create-a-new-tracking-link-video
  IMPORTANT: Be sure to change the destination URL so that it will contain this parameter: "<param>=[s2sidentifier]"
  In order to pass to Merchant the [s2sidentifier] value you need to substitute "<param>" in the destination URL with the appropriate name of one of the parameters provided by the Merchant (refer to merchant guidelines).
  Will be something like: http:// amazon.com/Web-Marketing?s1=[s2sidentifier]

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B) SET THE POSTBACK URL MERCHANT SIDE

At this point you need to "tell" the merchant which URL needs to be "called" after the conversion happens. This URL is called: "postback URL":

• Find the S2S conversion code snippet
  (REPORTS >> CONVERSIONS >> Click on the conversion you need to track >> click on the edit button (top right of the page). The code you need is inside the section "Server to Server conversion (postback URL)" and will be something like:
  http:// conversions.clickmeter.com/s2s?clickId=<insert>&id=A531F18FCECC4DEB9B2C3994556FBF41&val=<insert>&com=<insert>[&param=...]

• Copy this Postback URL, modify it and place it in the Merchant site following Merchant specific guidelines (contact your merchant/partner for further info).
  **Following the list parameters and how to set them up

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Please note: while the setup of the tracking link (TL) should be done for every new TL you create the Postback URL and conversion creation need to be done just once.

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**List and setup rules for ClickMeter postback parameters

• clickId (mandatory)
  Represent the [s2sidentifier] value we generate every time someone clicks on your tracking link.
  This code is "passed" to the Merchant website through the landing page. The Merchant stores this code in order to communicate with ClickMeter servers after the conversion happens. You need to use the appropriate variable placeholder (follow the merchant guidelines for that since every Merchant use its own standard): In the postback URL example that follows (in green) we are using "#S1#" (this is the placeholder) in order to refer to the actual value of parameter “s1” we used in the tracking link destination URL to store S2S identifier.
  
  
• id (mandatory)
  Is an identifier generated by the system. It's important you do NOT modify it!
  
  
• val (mandatory)
  Is the value you may need to associate to each conversion. Eg.: 20. This can be added manually just once in the moment you create the postback URL or dynamically merchant side using their placeholders variables (refer to merchant guidelines). If you do not need to assign a value to your conversions then just use "0" as the value.
  
  
• com (mandatory)
  Represent the commission value of a conversion. For example how much you owe the affiliate that was responsible for the conversion. It works exactly as for the "val" parameter explained earlier.
  
  
• comperc (optional)
  Represent the commission value of a conversion, but expressed in % of the value (can be used only if com is set to 0). This permits you to use a % to calculate it based on the value if the S2S server doesn't support basic operations. For example if you set it to 10 how much you owe the affiliate that was responsible for the conversion will be the 10% of the value ("val") of the conversion.

• param (optional)
  You can then add as many custom parameters inside the "param" argument as you want to the postback URL. We suggest to split them by using the ";" separator or some other valid urlencoded char

The final result will be something like:
http:// conversions.clickmeter.com/s2s?clickId=#S1#&id=A531F18FCECC4DEB9B2C3994556FBF41&val=1&com=0.5&param=myCustomParam%3Dxyz

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Important note:
We understand that setting up S2S conversions is not that easy and we recommend you ask for help from an expert and/or technical person in your company. It's equally important that you follow the merchant/partner guidelines and possibly contact them directly. If you need more help from our side please do not hesitate to contact us.

Keywords for this article:
Server to server conversions, cookie-less conversion tracking, merchant side conversion tracking, postback url, s2s,