Every number in contentgrove comes down to two events: a click and a conversion. Knowing exactly what makes each one count explains the rest of your setup.
What counts as a click
A click is recorded the moment someone clicks one of your tracking links. contentgrove counts it server-side at the short-link redirect, before your landing page even loads.
Because the click is tied to the link itself:
- Every tracking link counts clicks — whether it’s an offer link or an affiliate link. You don’t need an offer to count clicks.
- The click is recorded even if your tracking script isn’t installed on the destination page. The script is what later links a click to a conversion, not what counts the click.
Obvious bot traffic is filtered out, and clicks are only recorded while your subscription is active.
What counts as a conversion
A conversion needs an offer. An offer defines your landing page and, most importantly, your thank-you page — the page a visitor reaches after completing your action, such as a purchase, signup, or booking.
A conversion is counted when both of these are true:
- The visitor previously clicked a link tied to that offer, within the last 30 days.
- They reach a page that matches the offer’s thank-you page rule.
A tracking link on its own only counts clicks. To count conversions and revenue, the link must point to an offer that has your landing and thank-you page URLs set up. Without an offer, contentgrove never records a conversion. See Set up offers. How contentgrove matches your pages
When you set up an offer, you choose a match type for each URL. This is how contentgrove decides whether the page a visitor is on counts as your landing or thank-you page.
Which to choose
- Thank-you page — this is the match that determines conversions, so it matters most. Use Includes for flexibility, or Starts with to target a specific page. Avoid an overly strict Exact match, a common reason conversions don’t record.
- Landing page — Starts with is usually best, because it still matches when tracking parameters are appended to the URL.
After setting up an offer, test the whole flow: click a tracking link, complete your action, and confirm both the click and the conversion appear in your dashboard. If the conversion doesn’t show, your thank-you page match type or pattern is probably too strict.
