So your B2B marketing team wants to move beyond pageviews and see what really counts—like demo requests, qualified leads, or product signups. Tracking custom goals is the only way you’ll know if your tests in Intellimize are actually bringing in the right kind of results, not just more clicks. But if you’re new to Intellimize, or just tired of vague documentation, this guide is for you.
This walkthrough covers what to measure, how to set up custom goals, what can trip you up, and what matters (and what doesn’t). You’ll get honest advice, not just “best practices.”
Why Custom Goals Matter (and Where People Mess Up)
It’s easy to track obvious stuff—like form submissions or button clicks. But in B2B, the sales cycle is long and a “conversion” might mean a lot of things: a whitepaper download, a pricing page visit, or someone sticking around long enough to be worth a sales follow-up. The default goals in Intellimize aren’t built for your business’s quirks.
Common pitfalls: - Only tracking “easy” goals (like any form submit), which don’t tell you much. - Setting up too many goals and drowning in noise. - Not involving sales or ops, so you miss what actually matters.
Pro tip: Talk to sales and ops before you set anything up. Ask what a “good” lead looks like, not just what the marketing team thinks.
Step 1: Decide What to Track (and What to Skip)
Before touching any settings, get clear on your goals. For B2B, common custom goals include:
- Demo request submissions (not just any form)
- Contact sales form fills (filter out newsletter signups)
- High-intent page visits (e.g., pricing, product details)
- Account creation
- Whitepaper or report downloads (if these correlate with your sales funnel)
- Qualified lead events (from your CRM, if you can sync them)
What to ignore: - Vanity metrics (like “time on site” or “pages per session”) - Low-value form fills (newsletter signups, unless your sales team loves them) - Clicks on social icons
Checklist before you start: - Is this action tied to pipeline or revenue? - Will you actually use this data to make decisions? - Can you track it reliably (i.e., is there a thank-you page, or unique event)?
If you can’t answer “yes” to all three, skip it.
Step 2: Prep Your Site (Don’t Skip This)
Custom goals only work if you can measure them. That usually means:
- Unique thank-you pages: Easiest way to track a form submission.
- Custom event triggers: For actions that don’t go to a new page (think modal pop-ups or AJAX forms).
- Consistent naming: Your dev, ops, and marketing folks should agree on what “demo_request_submitted” means.
If you use Google Tag Manager (GTM): - Set up triggers and tags for each goal event. - Double-check that events fire only when you want them (not on error submits or partial fills).
No GTM? - You’ll need dev help to fire custom events on the right actions.
Pro tip: Run through your funnel yourself. Submit a test demo request; see if you land on a unique page or if an event fires. Don’t trust that “it should work”—verify it.
Step 3: Set Up Custom Goals in Intellimize
Now you’re ready to get into Intellimize and set things up. The interface changes from time to time, but the basics haven’t shifted much.
3.1 Add a New Goal
- Log in to your Intellimize dashboard.
- Go to your website project (if you have more than one).
- Find the “Goals” or “Conversion Goals” section—usually under “Settings” or in the left-side menu.
- Click “Add Goal” or “Create Custom Goal.”
3.2 Choose Your Goal Type
You’ll get a few options: - Pageview: Tracks visits to a specific URL (great for thank-you pages). - Click: Tracks clicks on a button or link (use this if there’s no thank-you page). - Custom event: Lets you track JavaScript events you fire yourself (for more complex stuff).
For most B2B forms: Use Pageview if you can. It’s simpler and less prone to breaking. If you have a fancy single-page app or pop-up forms, you’ll need a custom event.
3.3 Define Your Goal
- For Pageview: Enter the exact URL (e.g.,
/thank-you-demo-request). Use “contains” or “equals” logic to avoid false positives. - For Click: Use a unique CSS selector or element ID. Test this in your browser’s inspector to be sure.
- For Custom Event: You’ll need to fire a JavaScript event, usually something like: javascript window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; window.dataLayer.push({event: 'demo_request_submitted'});
Or, if Intellimize provides their own API, use that. Check their docs for the latest syntax.
Naming: Be specific. “Demo Request - Thank You Page” beats “Form Submit.”
3.4 Test Your Goal
- Use Intellimize’s “Test Goal” tool if available.
- Submit a real form or trigger the event yourself.
- Watch for the goal to register in the dashboard.
- If you don’t see it, check your GTM, event code, or page URL. Typos and wrong selectors are the most common culprit.
Pro tip: Set up test goals first, then switch them to “live” once you know they work.
Step 4: Connect Your Goals to Experiments
A goal you never use doesn’t help anyone. Tie your custom goals to the actual tests you’re running.
- When you create a new experiment, pick your custom goal as the primary conversion event.
- If you’re running multiple experiments, don’t track too many goals at once. One or two per test is plenty.
What to watch out for: - If you have two goals that can fire at the same time (like “visited pricing page” and “submitted demo request”), pick the one that matters more. - Don’t get greedy and add every possible micro-conversion; it’ll just muddy your results.
Step 5: QA and Troubleshooting (the Most Skipped Step)
Most tracking fails here—not in setup, but in “it looked right, but it’s not working.”
Checklist: - Submit sample forms and check if the goal logs in Intellimize. - Use browser dev tools: Look at the Network tab or console for your custom events. - Watch for “double-counting” (e.g., if a thank-you page can be refreshed and fire again). - Check that ad blockers or privacy extensions aren’t nuking your tracking.
If you use Salesforce, HubSpot, or Marketo: - Consider sending conversion events to those platforms too. That way, you can compare numbers and spot mismatches.
Pro tip: Set a recurring calendar reminder (monthly or quarterly) to re-run your tests. Form changes or site redesigns break tracking all the time.
Step 6: Make the Data Useful
You’ve set up tracking, but that’s not the end. Now, make sure the right people see—and act on—the data.
- Dashboards: Set up a board in Intellimize (or your BI tool) to show goal completions over time.
- Alerts: If your conversions tank or jump, set up an alert. Don’t wait weeks to notice.
- Share with sales and ops: They’ll spot patterns or problems you might miss.
Don’t: - Obsess over daily fluctuations. Look for trends over weeks or months. - Forget to tie your experiments to real pipeline or revenue numbers. Conversion rate is nice; closed deals are better.
What to Ignore (and Why)
There’s a lot of noise in A/B testing and CRO circles. Here’s what you can safely skip:
- Overly complex multi-step goals. If you need to explain it in a paragraph, it’s too convoluted.
- “Micro-conversions” that don’t map to pipeline. Like hovering over a button or scrolling 80% down the page.
- Chasing “industry benchmarks.” Your business isn’t average, and neither are your buyers.
Focus on what actually helps your team get better leads and close more deals.
Summary: Keep It Simple, Iterate Often
Setting up and tracking custom goals in Intellimize isn’t rocket science, but it does take a little planning and some real-world testing. The key is to only track what matters for your business, make sure it actually works, and check in regularly. Don’t get hung up on tracking every possible action—pick the few that move the needle, and improve as you go.
Stay skeptical, keep it simple, and let the data guide your next move.