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In legacy iframe and image Floodlight tags, src, type, and cat tell Campaign Manager 360 which Floodlight configuration, conversion group, and activity a request belongs to. They are required whatever the counting method. The parameter that changes how conversions are counted is ord. A constant ord=1 is correct only for a unique counter that also sends a changing num value. For a standard counter, a leftover ord=1 departs from Google’s documented setup and can cause matching conversions to be de-duplicated, so each access to the Floodlight-enabled page needs a unique ord value.
What src, type, and cat identify
Each legacy Floodlight tag carries three identifiers that answer different questions about the conversion:
srcidentifies the Floodlight configuration. In Google’s legacy example, this value is the advertiser ID.typeidentifies the conversion group.catidentifies the conversion activity.
The type and cat strings are case sensitive in Google’s documentation, so Signup and signup are different values. A typical legacy counter string looks like this, with illustrative values:
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Counting methods at a glance
The value that ord should hold depends on the counting method. Compare the methods below before changing any parameter.
| Tag format and counting method | Required ord value |
num behavior |
|---|---|---|
| Legacy iframe or image, standard counter | A dynamically unique string, inserted on every access to the Floodlight-enabled page | Not stated in the cited guidance for standard counters |
| Legacy iframe or image, unique counter | ord=1, held constant on purpose |
Must change on each request as a cache buster |
| Legacy iframe or image, per-session counter | A session identifier | Not stated in the cited guidance |
| Legacy iframe or image, sales tag | The order ID | Not stated in the cited guidance |
| Google tag | Managed by the tag; no manual value needed for cache busting | Managed by the tag; no manual value needed for cache busting |
Google’s Campaign Manager 360 Help describes these as the counting patterns for legacy tags, and its Google tag guidance states that the tag handles cache busting itself. Values that fit one pattern are wrong for another, which is why the counting method must be settled before the parameter is edited.
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Choosing ord for each counting method
Standard counter
A standard counter must count each visit to the Floodlight-enabled page as a separate activity. Google’s guidance puts the responsibility on the advertiser to insert a unique string into ord each time the page is accessed. A fixed ord=1 here is the most common leftover, and it is the case where de-duplication risk is greatest.
Unique counter
A unique counter is the one legacy setup where ord=1 is expected. The constant value is intentional, and the changing num value is what keeps browsers from serving a cached request instead of sending the conversion. If num is fixed, the constant ord is no longer the only problem.
Per-session counter
A per-session counter uses a session identifier as ord. Replacing that identifier with 1 or with a fresh random value on every request changes what the counter measures, so the session ID should stay in place unless the implementation is being redesigned.
Sales tag
A sales tag uses the order ID as ord. The order ID is what keeps a purchase from being counted twice and what ties the conversion to a specific transaction, so it should not be replaced with a generic value.
What a leftover ord=1 does to conversions
Google’s Campaign Manager 360 Help, in its guidance on iframe and image tags for Floodlight, states:
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“Conversions with the same value for
ord=(provided the floodlight conversion, user ID, floodlight configuration ID, and conversion timestamp also match up) will be de-duplicated.”
The same guidance adds that if ord is not unique, only the first conversion for each user per day is recorded. It also says that, to count each visit to the Floodlight-enabled webpage as a separate activity, the advertiser is responsible for dynamically inserting a unique string as the value of ord= each time that webpage is accessed.
Two points follow from this. First, de-duplication depends on four things matching at once: the conversion, the user ID, the configuration ID, and the timestamp. A constant ord=1 does not guarantee that every repeated request is discarded. Second, the risk is structural. A standard counter with a constant ord is set up in a way Google’s documentation does not describe, and the results can undercount repeat visits, most visibly where users return on the same day.
Diagnosing a leftover ord=1
- Identify the tag format. Look at the tag as it is served on the page or in your tag container. A tag built from an iframe or image URL with
src,type, andcatis a legacy tag. A tag generated as a Google tag is not. - Confirm the counting method in the Floodlight activity configuration in Campaign Manager 360, and check that the tag matches it. A tag and an activity configured for different methods will not behave as intended.
- If the method is a unique counter and the tag reads
ord=1, check thatnumchanges on each request. If it does not, browsers may cache the request, so the constantord=1is not the only issue. - If the method is a standard counter, replace the constant
ord=1with a dynamically unique value generated on every access to the Floodlight-enabled page. - If the method is a per-session counter, confirm that
ordholds the session identifier, not1. - If the method is a sales tag, confirm that
ordholds the order ID for each transaction. - If the tag is a Google tag, look for manual
ordornumoverrides in the implementation. Google’s documentation says cache busting is automatic, so a manual value is unnecessary for that purpose. Remove it unless the override serves a documented, deliberate purpose. - Check the result over a test period. After a change, compare conversion counts for the affected activity against an expected pattern of repeat visits before drawing conclusions about the fix.
When counters are set up in Google Tag Manager
Google Tag Manager provides a Floodlight Counter tag, documented under Floodlight Counter tags in Google Tag Manager Help. That tag ships with preset values. Check those values against the counting method for the activity before overriding them. A preset that is correct for one counter type can be wrong for another, so the same diagnosis applies: identify the method first, then set ord to match it.
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- Google Campaign Manager 360 Help, “Use iframe and image tags for Floodlight”: legacy tag examples, field definitions, counting behavior, and
ordde-duplication rules. - Google Campaign Manager 360 Help, “Use the Google tag for Floodlight conversions”: current Google tag guidance and automatic cache busting.
- Google Campaign Manager 360 Help, “Migrate your Floodlight implementation to the Google tag”: parameter mapping and counting-method migration.
- Google Tag Manager Help, “Floodlight Counter tags”: the Floodlight Counter tag and its preset values.
These pages document the parameter rules described here. Google updates its help pages over time, so check the current version of each page before making changes to a live implementation.
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