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ADS·Google Ads·warning

Wrong Conversion Counting Method

One or more Google Ads conversion actions use a counting method that does not match the underlying business event. Lead-style actions (form submits, signups) should typically use "One". Count one conversion per click no matter how many times the user submits. Sale-style actions (purchases, transactions) should use "Every". Count every transaction. AdLint flags this when the configured counting method is the opposite of what the category implies.

CL
By Christopher LandaverdeCreator of AdLint · ad-tech tracking specialistUpdated

Why It Matters

Google Ads offers two counting methods: "Every conversion" counts every event (the right choice for sales, where a customer who buys twice should be counted twice), and "One conversion" counts at most one per click (the right choice for leads, where a user submitting the form three times is still one lead). Misconfigured counting inflates or deflates conversion volume in ways that look like real performance change. A lead form set to "Every" doubles or triples lead counts when users retry submissions; a sale set to "One" undercounts repeat purchases from the same click path. Smart Bidding then optimises against the wrong volume signal.

How To Fix It

  1. AdLint flags each action and the recommended counting method.
  2. In Google Ads, open Tools & Settings → Measurement → Conversions and edit each flagged action.
  3. Under Counting, set "One" for lead-style actions and "Every" for sale-style actions.
  4. Annotate the change date. Historical volume will retroactively adjust under the new counting method in some reports.
  5. Re-baseline campaign performance after one full conversion cycle.

Example

Configuration
Lead - Demo Request
Recommended counting: One
Current: Every (counts every form submit even if same user submits 3 times)
For Your Client Report

Google Ads conversion actions with counting methods misaligned to the business event type. Google's conversion counting documentation, "One conversion" is recommended for lead-style actions and "Every conversion" for sale-style actions. Misconfigured counting produces systematically inflated or deflated volume that breaks campaign performance reporting and Smart Bidding signal. Fix: align counting method to the conversion category and re-baseline after one full cycle. Source: support.google.com/google-ads/answer/3438531.

Drop this paragraph into your client deliverable. Sources back to the canonical platform documentation linked below.

References

  1. [1]Google Ads. Choose a counting setting for your conversions

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