Tracking Monthly Payments with Measurement Protocol

Ecom
1

I have a subscription model and I’m looking to monitor the monthly payments using a server-side call with the Measurement Protocol.

The issue I am facing is that I’m unsure how to construct the call properly. The documentation mentions a productIndex, but I don’t know exactly what it is or if I even have it.

Can anyone clarify where the productIndex is derived from, or if it is not necessary?

Please assist!

2

Hey there, BoldPainter45! Interesting question about tracking those monthly payments. :thinking:

I’ve been tinkering with Measurement Protocol myself, and I get why the productIndex thing is throwing you off. From what I’ve gathered, you might not even need it for subscription payments!

Have you tried just focusing on the transaction details instead? Like, maybe something along these lines:

{
  "v": "1",
  "tid": "UA-XXXXX-Y",
  "cid": "client-id",
  "t": "event",
  "ec": "Subscription",
  "ea": "Payment",
  "ev": "19.99"
}

This way, you’re tracking the payment as an event without worrying about product lists. What do you think? Have you experimented with different approaches yet?

Oh, and I’m curious - what kind of subscription model are you running? Always interested to hear about different setups!

3

yo BoldPainter45, i’ve messed with Measurement Protocol before. don’t sweat the productIndex for subscriptions, it’s not really needed. just focus on the transaction stuff, like this:

{
  "v": "1",
  "tid": "UA-XXXXX-Y",
  "cid": "client-id",
  "t": "transaction",
  "ti": "sub-123",
  "tr": "29.99"
}

this gets the job done without the extra fluff. test it out and see how it goes!

4

As someone who’s implemented Measurement Protocol for subscription tracking, I can shed some light on your question. The productIndex isn’t necessary for tracking monthly payments. Instead, focus on the transaction details.

Here’s a simplified example of how I structure my calls:

{
  "v": "1",
  "tid": "UA-XXXXX-Y",
  "cid": "client-id",
  "t": "transaction",
  "ti": "subscription-123",
  "tr": "29.99",
  "cu": "USD"
}

This captures the essential information without needing a productIndex. You can also add custom dimensions or metrics if you need to track specific subscription attributes.

Remember to test your implementation thoroughly. I’ve found that using the Google Analytics Debugger extension can be incredibly helpful for verifying that your calls are being received and processed correctly.