Facebook Event Match Quality

What is Event Match Quality?

Event Match Quality (EMQ) is Facebook's scoring system that measures how well your conversion events can be matched to actual Facebook users. The score ranges from 1 to 10, with higher scores indicating better attribution potential.

Key Points:

• EMQ is based on the customer data parameters you send (email, phone, IP address, etc.)
• Higher scores generally lead to better and faster ad attribution and optimization
• The score appears in Facebook Events Manager for each of your conversion events

How Facebook Calculates Event Match Quality

Facebook determines your EMQ score using three main factors:

1. Parameter Completeness

• What it measures: Whether you're sending customer information like email, phone number, IP address
• Impact: More parameters typically = higher scores
• Common parameters: Email, phone, IP address, external ID, click ID (fbc)

2. Data Format Validation

• What it measures: Whether the data you send follows proper formatting rules
• Impact: Correct formatting improves scores, but doesn't verify accuracy
• Examples: Phone numbers in international format (+1-555-123-4567), valid email address structure
• Important: Facebook accepts [email protected] or 555-555-5555 as long as they're properly formatted

The Critical EMQ Limitation

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Here's what most people don't understand:

Facebook's Event Match Quality system does not validate whether your data is real or accurate. It only checks whether you sent the parameter or not.

• Format correctness: Is the email in proper email format?
• Parameter presence: Are you sending the required fields?
• Technical compliance: Does the data meet formatting standards?
• Data accuracy: Facebook doesn't verify if the email belongs to the actual customer
• Real user matching: Fake but well-formatted data can still score 10/10
• Attribution effectiveness: High scores don't guarantee good attribution

Real-World Example

Store A: EMQ Score 9.2/10

• Sends all parameters in perfect format
• Phone numbers: +1-555-555-5555 (fake but formatted correctly)
• Emails: [email protected] (fake but valid format)
• IP addresses: Real IP address but unrelated to the actual user.
• Result: Perfect score, terrible attribution

Store B: EMQ Score 8.1/10

• Missing some parameters
• Phone numbers: Real customer phones in correct format
• Emails: Actual customer emails
• IP addresses: Real user IPs
• Result: Lower score, excellent attribution

Understanding Platform Focus and Specialization

Why Different Platforms Have Different Strengths

E-commerce Platforms (Shopify, WooCommerce, BigCommerce):

• Core Focus: Store management, inventory, checkout optimization
• Strength: Building amazing shopping experiences
• Data Integration: Basic Facebook integration as one of many features

Marketing Automation Platforms (HubSpot, ClickFunnels, GoHighLevel):

• Core Focus: Lead generation, marketing workflows, CRM functionality
• Strength: Marketing automation and customer journey management
• Data Integration: Facebook tracking as part of broader marketing stack

The Integration Reality:
Each platform excels at their core mission. Facebook data integration is typically a secondary feature, which means:

• Integration depth varies based on platform priorities
• Data formatting follows platform conventions, not necessarily Facebook's optimal requirements
• Updates happen on platform development schedules

Where Data Integration Specialists Come In

This is where specialized data integration solutions add value:

• Core Focus: Data extraction, formatting, normalization, and quality optimization
• Expertise: Understanding Facebook's specific requirements and optimizing for them
• Purpose: Acting as the bridge between your platform's data and Facebook's attribution system

Platform-Specific Data Characteristics

What Different Platforms Typically Provide

Shopify Integration:

• Available Data: Customer email, phone (when collected), order details, basic event timing
• Formatting: Follows Shopify's data standards
• Strengths: Consistent data structure, reliable event firing
• Considerations: Limited to Shopify's integration approach

WooCommerce Integration:

• Available Data: Customer information, order data, customizable through plugins
• Formatting: Varies by plugin implementation
• Strengths: Flexibility through plugin ecosystem
• Considerations: Data quality depends on plugin choice and configuration

ClickFunnels Integration:

• Available Data: Form submissions, purchase events, funnel step data
• Formatting: Optimized for funnel tracking
• Strengths: Streamlined for conversion funnel analysis
• Considerations: Focus on funnel metrics rather than detailed customer data

GoHighLevel Integration:

• Available Data: CRM data, lead information, comprehensive customer profiles
• Formatting: CRM-optimized data structure
• Strengths: Rich customer data from CRM integration
• Considerations: Data structure optimized for CRM workflows

What Your EMQ Score Means

Score Ranges and Interpretation

8.5-10.0: Strong Parameter Presence

• Most required parameters are being sent
• Data follows proper formatting conventions
• Platform integration is providing comprehensive data

7.0-8.4: Good Foundation

• Core parameters present with room for optimization
• Some formatting or parameter opportunities
• Solid base for data quality improvement

5.0-6.9: Parameter Gaps

• Missing key customer information parameters
• Formatting optimization opportunities
• Potential for significant improvement through data optimization

Below 5.0: Limited Data

• Major parameter gaps
• Formatting issues present
• Priority candidate for data integration enhancement

Platform-Specific Benchmarks

Shopify Stores

• Purchase Events: 8.2-8.7 average
• Add to Cart: 7.8-8.2 average
• View Content: 7.5-7.9 average

WooCommerce Stores

• Purchase Events: 7.8-8.2 average
• Add to Cart: 7.4-7.8 average
• View Content: 7.1-7.5 average

ClickFunnels

• Lead Events: 7.0-7.4 average
• Purchase Events: 7.8-8.1 average

GoHighLevel

• Lead Events: 7.8-8.1 average
• Purchase Events: 8.1-8.3 average

How to Check Your Event Match Quality

In Facebook Events Manager

1. Go to Facebook Events Manager
2. Select your pixel
3. Click on "Datasets" in the left sidebar
4. Choose your pixel from the list
5. Click on individual events to see their EMQ scores
6. Review the "Event Quality" tab for detailed insights

Using Facebook's Dataset Quality API

For businesses managing multiple pixels or requiring programmatic access, Facebook provides the Dataset Quality API. This requires technical implementation and appropriate permissions.

Third-Party Analysis Tools

Various tools can analyze your Event Match Quality and provide benchmarking:

• Platform-specific analysis tools
• Marketing analytics platforms
• Specialized data integration solutions

Why High EMQ Scores Don't Always Mean Good Attribution

The Data Accuracy Challenge

Even with high EMQ scores, attribution can suffer due to:

Test or Development Data:

• Placeholder information like [email protected]
• Default values used across multiple records
• Development environment data mixed with production

Data Source Limitations:

• Server IP addresses instead of customer IPs
• Business contact information instead of customer details
• Incomplete customer information collection

Multiple Data Sources:

• Different systems sending conflicting information
• Duplicate events from multiple integrations
• Inconsistent data formatting across sources

The Role of Data Integration Specialists

What Data Integration Solutions Provide

Data Extraction:

• Retrieving customer information from your platform
• Accessing real-time event data
• Connecting to multiple data sources when needed

Data Formatting:

• Converting platform data to Facebook's optimal formats
• Standardizing phone numbers, emails, and other parameters
• Ensuring consistent data structure

Data Normalization:

• Cleaning and validating customer information
• Removing test or invalid data
• Standardizing data across different sources

Quality Optimization:

• Monitoring data quality over time
• Identifying and resolving data issues
• Optimizing for Facebook's specific requirements

How AnyTrack Approaches Data Integration

Our Focus: We specialize in the data layer - extracting, formatting, normalizing, and optimizing the customer data that flows from your platform to Facebook.

Our Process:

1. Extract: Pull customer data from your platform in its native format
2. Format: Convert data to meet Facebook's specific requirements
3. Normalize: Clean and standardize information for consistency
4. Optimize: Continuously monitor and improve data quality
5. Guarantee: Ensure you're sending the highest quality data possible

Our Expertise: While platforms excel at their core functions (e-commerce, marketing automation, CRM), we focus exclusively on making sure the data handoff to Facebook is as clean and effective as possible.

Troubleshooting Common EMQ Issues

"My Score is Lower Than Expected"

Common Causes:

• Platform data not formatted to Facebook's preferences
• Missing parameters that Facebook recommends
• Customer information not being collected at key touchpoints
• Data timing issues affecting event matching

Data Integration Solution:
A specialized connector can extract the available data from your platform and optimize it for Facebook's requirements, often improving scores significantly without changing your platform setup.

"High Score But Poor Attribution"

Common Causes:

• Data formatting meets requirements but isn't accurate
• Multiple data sources creating conflicts

Data Integration Solution:
Focus on data accuracy and validation, not just format compliance, ensuring that well-formatted data is also real customer information.

"Score Fluctuates Unpredictably"

Common Causes:

• Inconsistent data collection on your platform
• Variable data quality based on customer behavior
• Platform updates affecting data availability

Data Integration Solution:
Continuous monitoring and normalization can smooth out data quality variations and maintain consistent performance.

Best Practices for Data Quality

Understanding Your Data Source

Platform Data Assessment:

• Identify what customer information your platform collects
• Understand the format and structure of available data
• Recognize the timing of when data becomes available

Optimizing Data Flow

Data Integration Approach:

• Ensure real customer data (not test data) reaches Facebook
• Optimize data formatting for Facebook's requirements
• Implement proper data validation and cleaning
• Monitor data quality continuously

Realistic Expectations

Platform Capabilities:

• Work with the data your platform provides
• Focus on optimizing available information rather than forcing unavailable parameters
• Understand that different platforms will have different data strengths

When to Consider Data Integration Solutions

Signs You Could Benefit from Specialized Data Integration

Performance Indicators:

• EMQ scores below platform benchmarks
• High scores but poor attribution performance
• Inconsistent data quality over time
• Multiple data sources that need coordination

Business Impact:

• Attribution discrepancies affecting campaign optimization
• Difficulty correlating Facebook performance with actual results
• Need for better data transparency and control

What to Look for in Data Integration Solutions

Core Capabilities:

• Platform-specific data extraction expertise
• Facebook optimization specialization
• Data quality monitoring and alerts
• Transparent reporting on data improvements

Integration Approach:

• Works with your existing platform setup
• Focuses on data optimization, not platform replacement
• Provides clear before/after performance metrics
• Maintains data security and compliance standards

Conclusion

Event Match Quality is an important metric, but understanding its limitations is crucial:

1. EMQ measures data format compliance, not accuracy
2. Different platforms have different data strengths based on their core focus
3. Data integration specialists can optimize the connection between your platform and Facebook
4. Focus on data quality improvement rather than score optimization alone

Key Takeaways:

• Your platform excels at its core mission - let it focus on that
• Data integration specialists can bridge the gap to Facebook's requirements
• Quality data matters more than perfect EMQ scores
• Continuous monitoring and optimization drive the best long-term results

The goal isn't to change your platform or compromise its core functionality - it's to ensure the best possible data quality in the handoff to Facebook, maximizing your attribution accuracy and advertising performance.

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Related Resources:

• Facebook Event Match Quality Explained: How to Improve Your Score
• Check Your Facebook Match Rate
• Facebook's Official Dataset Quality API Documentation

Need Help with Data Integration?
If you're looking to optimize the data quality between your platform and Facebook without disrupting your core business operations, specialized data integration solutions can help bridge that gap effectively.