Conversion
Conversion
Also called goal completion.
Conversion is a counted completion of a chosen business action: a purchase, a signup, a booking. The act is the conversion, not the rate.
How it is measured
Define the action, fire one event when it is done, and count events in the period. The event should come from a confirmation, not a button press, so failed attempts do not count.
In Tarsier a conversion is a custom event that you list as a goal. Events never alter visitor, visit or bounce counts, so a conversion appears beside your traffic, not inside it.
Worked example
A yoga studio sells a 10-class pass online. In March it records 74 passes, 61 from the website and 13 entered by the front desk. The website number is the conversion count the tracker sees.
The owner counts only the 61 as web conversions and runs the 13 as a separate desk line.
How it differs
A conversion is the completed action. Conversion rate divides conversions by a chosen denominator. A goal is the definition. A macro-conversion is the primary one and a micro-conversion is a step toward it.
Common errors
Counting form submits that fail validation. Counting button clicks instead of confirmations. Double-firing on a refresh of the thank-you page. Calling every event a conversion. Omitting offline orders.
In practice
Write down the single action your site exists for and fire an event only after it is confirmed. Test it once with a real order.