Shopify is the world’s leading eCommerce platform builders, while Facebook is the most popular social media platform ever. Together, they create a marketing powerhouse, allowing business owners to create online stores and promote them to the right consumers.
If you have a Shopify store, and run campaigns on Facebook, that’s potentially a good strategy, but you’re still not making the most out of this experience. Because there is a way to integrate the two, and it’s done with the help of the Facebook Pixel.
Below, we’ll talk about why you should install the Facebook pixel, and how to do it for your Shopify store.
How the Facebook Pixel Works
The Pixel is essentially a piece of code Facebook advertisers can generate and add to their website to let the social media platform track certain actions or events. As it stands, Facebook can only track users while they remain on the platform but loses them after they click on an ad link.
To create a Facebook pixel, you need to go to your Facebook Ads Manager, search for the Pixel page and generate your code. Then, you can copy-paste the pixel code on your website and let Facebook start tracking data.
How to Add the Pixel to Your Shopify Store
Shopify makes it very easy for people to set up online stores, so thankfully installing the Facebook pixel code is a fairly simple process you can do in just a few steps:
- Open your Shopify admin and go to your Online Store Preferences;
- You have a dedicated Facebook Pixel section you can open;
- Enter your Facebook pixel id if you don’t have any pixel integrated. If you want to change your id, click Change before you paste your new Facebook pixel id;
- Click save
Then, you can re-visiting the Facebook Ads Manager to see if the pixel is working (it may take a few minutes). If not, check the Facebook Pixel Helper for common mistakes.
How to Leverage the Pixel
After you’ve added the Facebook pixel to your Shopify store, it’s time to learn more about what to do with it.
The pixel will start collecting data, but you need to tell it what kind of data to focus on, and then know how to leverage it. Let’s look at some amazing things you can do with your Facebook pixel.
1. Create Events
When someone does something on your site, the pixel considers that an event. You may have different events you want to track, some even on a specific page only, and you’ll be happy to find out the Facebook pixel can accommodate your wishes.
There are two main types of events:
- Standard events – a list of predefined events such as add to cart, purchase events, leads, etc.
- Custom events – you need to create custom events if the predefined list doesn’t contain the specific action you want to track.
You can create these events in your Events Manager, then copy-paste the event code on the specific page where you want Facebook to track those actions.
2. Create Custom Audiences
When you add the Facebook pixel to your online store, it will track all website visitors who are simultaneously logged on Facebook, even if they did not end up on your site from the social media platform.
You can then leverage that list of visitors to create a custom audience, and run Facebook campaigns targeting them. You have the benefit of these users visiting your website before, and therefore having some brand recognition.
Or, you can create a custom audience with people who’ve bought a specific product, then target them with an offer they may be interested in, such as a discount for a complimentary product.
3. Create Lookalike Audiences
Facebook gathers a lot of information on its users, and Facebook advertisers can use that to their advantage. From your custom audience, you can generate a lookalike audience to reach new potential customers.
These new customers are lookalikes, meaning they have similar interests, age, gender, or location to your existing customers.
Grow Your Business with Us
Shopify stores can easily add the Facebook pixel and run improved marketing campaigns, but don’t overlook the importance of a well-thought-out Facebook advertising strategy. We can help you create an effective plan, specifically designed for your business’ needs, that will increase your reach and conversions.
Get in touch for a strategy session with Australian Internet Advertising’s social media marketing team now to learn more about what it takes to grow your shopify ecommerce website with Facebook ads.