# Ecommerce

The Web Analytics **Ecommerce** page shows what your shop earns: revenue, orders, the average order and the conversion rate. It also shows where shoppers drop out and which products sell.

## Before you start [#before-you-start]

- Install the Web Analytics script on your shop. See [Analytics script](/connect/analytics-script). Without the script, the page shows **Install Web Analytics to see what your shop earns**.
- Verify the domain. See [Verify ownership](/getting-started/domain-setup/verify-ownership).
- In the sidebar, select **Web Analytics** > **Ecommerce**.
- Select the dates in the filter dock. You can also turn on the comparison with an earlier period.

Shop tracking switches on by itself when VitalSentinel recognizes your platform: **Shopify**, **WooCommerce**, **Magento** or **Squarespace**. For another shop, send your own shop events. See [Analytics script](/connect/analytics-script).

## Set up shop tracking [#set-up-shop-tracking]

If Web Analytics never found a shop event, the Web Analytics **Ecommerce** page shows **We found no shop events in this period** with the chip **No shop events yet**. Owners and admins see the platforms as chips, and the link **Send your own events** for a custom store.

1. On the **Ecommerce** page, click your platform, or click **Set up shop tracking**.
2. In the panel **Set up shop tracking**, select **Shopify**, **WooCommerce**, **Magento**, **Squarespace** or **Custom events**.
3. Copy the install snippet.
4. Follow the steps for your platform in the panel to paste the snippet into the head of your shop.
5. On Shopify, also copy the **Shopify custom pixel** and add it in **Customer events**. On Squarespace, also paste the snippet in the order page fields. See [Install on your platform](/connect/platforms#which-platforms-get-ecommerce-tracking).

Owners and admins can open the panel at any time with **Shop setup** in the page header. Use it to add the order step when your shop already sends product views.

When the snippet is on your shop, VitalSentinel recognizes the platform. It then records product views, add to cart, checkout and orders. Events appear within minutes of the first shop visit.

### Outbound clicks without a shop [#outbound-clicks-without-a-shop]

If your site has no shop but readers click links to other sites, the setup page shows a note. It starts with **No shop? You still earn here** and counts the clicks. These are clicks, not revenue. Click **See where readers go** to open [Journeys & Funnels](/web-analytics/journeys-and-funnels).

## Shop summary [#shop-summary]

When shop events arrive, the Web Analytics **Ecommerce** page starts with one sentence. With the comparison on, it says how revenue changed, such as **Revenue is up 14% on the previous period** or **Revenue is down 9% on the previous period**. Without the comparison, no sentence shows, unless the period has no orders.

If the period has no orders, the sentence says **No orders in this period**, or **No orders match these filters** with filters.

A second line can name the biggest leak, such as **Biggest leak: 1,200 viewed a product, only 90 added it to the cart (93% lost).**

If shoppers are active but no order comes through, owners and admins see **Orders aren’t recorded yet**. The banner names the missing step for your main shop platform, for example "Add the Shopify custom pixel to record orders".

Click **Finish shop setup** to open the setup panel on the tab of that platform. If the platform is not known, the panel opens on the Shopify tab. The banner does not show while filters are on. It goes away when the first order arrives. See [Platforms](/connect/platforms).

If your shop reports amounts in more than one currency, a note explains which currency the page uses. If Web Analytics found shop problems, a banner such as **Ecommerce: 2 open issues** shows. It links to [Site Health](/site-health/overview).

## Shop numbers and chart [#shop-numbers-and-chart]

The Web Analytics **Ecommerce** card shows four tiles above a chart. Click a tile to plot it. You can plot one or two tiles.

| Tile | What it means |
|---|---|
| **Revenue** | Money from completed orders, counted once per order |
| **Orders** | Completed orders, counted once per order |
| **Average order value** | Revenue divided by orders |
| **Conversion rate** | Orders divided by visits: the share of visits that ended in an order |

With the comparison on, each tile shows the change. If the comparison period has no data, the tile shows **No data in the comparison period**. If the comparison period uses another currency, the tile says so. The chart can show downtime from Uptime Monitoring.

## Why conversions moved [#why-conversions-moved]

When the comparison is on, the Web Analytics **Ecommerce** page explains why orders or revenue changed. Tiles split the change into **From visits**, **From conversion rate** and **From order value**. The parts add up to the change. A part is not a cause.

The table **What explains the change** shows the segments with the biggest move first. The list **What else happened** shows changes on your site around the dates. If you use filters, a note says **Why conversions moved looks at the whole site**.

For more about this card, see [Conversions](/web-analytics/conversions).

## Where shoppers drop out [#where-shoppers-drop-out]

The Web Analytics card **Where shoppers drop out** shows four steps: **Viewed a product**, **Added to cart**, **Started checkout** and **Bought**. Each step shows how many times it happened and the share lost from the step before. Fix the step that loses the most people.

Each step counts events, not people. Someone who views three products counts three times. **Bought** counts purchase events.

If a step is larger than the step before, it is not a drop. Your platform probably reports a purchase for each product in an order.

## All products [#all-products]

The Web Analytics card **All products** lists each product for the dates in the dock. A product viewed three times counts three times.

| Column | What it shows |
|---|---|
| **Product** | The product name |
| **Views** | How many times the product page was opened |
| **Add to cart** | How many times the product was put in the cart |
| **Add-to-cart rate** | The share of views that ended with the product in the cart |
| **Purchases** | How many times the product was bought |
| **Revenue** | The money this product brought in |
| **Conversion rate** | Of the people who viewed the product, the share who bought it |

Sort by **Add-to-cart rate** to find products that many people view but few buy. These products need a better page or price.

## Items and buyers [#items-and-buyers]

Lower on the page, the tiles **Items and buyers** show:

- **Items sold**: purchase events with items. It counts events, not the quantity in each order.
- **People who viewed a product**, **People who added to cart** and **People who bought**. People count per day, so someone who comes back on another day counts again.

If your platform reports purchases per order and not per product, a note says so. Site-wide revenue and orders are then correct, but per-product purchases show no figure.

## Troubleshooting [#troubleshooting]

### Why does Ecommerce say "We found no shop events in this period"? [#why-does-ecommerce-say-we-found-no-shop-events-in-this-period]

Web Analytics found no shop event. Check that the Web Analytics script is on every page of your shop. If you use a supported platform, tracking switches on by itself. For another shop, send your own shop events. See [Analytics script](/connect/analytics-script).

### Why are per-product purchases empty? [#why-are-per-product-purchases-empty]

Your platform reports purchases per order, not per product. Site-wide revenue and orders are correct. Per-product purchases appear when your shop sends purchases for each product.

### Why does Bought show more than Started checkout? [#why-does-bought-show-more-than-started-checkout]

Each step counts events. Your platform probably reports one purchase event for each product in an order. This is not a drop.

### Why does Ecommerce show more orders than Conversions or Acquisition? [#why-does-ecommerce-show-more-orders-than-conversions-or-acquisition]

Ecommerce also counts orders from visitors who asked not to be tracked. Conversions and Acquisition count only orders from visits with a known source.

## Related [#related]

- [Conversions](/web-analytics/conversions) - goals, orders and where conversions come from
- [Acquisition](/web-analytics/acquisition) - revenue for each campaign
- [Organic revenue](/google-search-console/organic-revenue) - the sales that follow your Google clicks
- [Analytics script](/connect/analytics-script) - install the script and send shop events