We migrated an automotive client's site from Replit to Netlify. Everything looked fine—until our Google Ads spend dropped from $150/day to under $20. Two conversion actions with 2,200+ historical conversions had stopped firing. Here's how we debugged it.
$330K in Conversions Went Dark
And Google started shadow-banning our ads
We migrated an automotive client's site from Replit to Netlify. Everything looked fine—the site was live, forms were working, phone calls were coming in. But after a few days, I noticed something wrong: our Google Ads spend had dropped from $150/day to under $20. Two conversion actions with 2,200+ historical conversions had stopped firing completely.
What Was At Stake
What Broke
Two critical conversion actions stopped working 7 days ago. Both had over 1,000 conversions each—this was the data that made our Performance Max campaigns so effective.
Submit lead form
Page Loadurgent_submit
GA4 ImportThe Hidden Problem
WWW Mismatch
Google Ads expected www.domain.com but primary domain was domain.com. Every conversion silently failed.
Changed Netlify primary domain to www version. Flushed DNS caches. Conversions restored instantly.
Why Performance Max Shadow-Banned Us
This is the part that really hurt. Performance Max uses conversion data to know who to show ads to. Our campaigns had 2,200+ conversions telling Google exactly which demographics and audience segments convert. Then suddenly—nothing.
The Shadow Ban Cycle
Why Performance Max Stalled
PMax Shadow Ban Cycle
- 1
Sends traffic expecting 25% conversion rate
- 2
Gets zero conversion signals back
- 3
Thinks audience targeting is wrong
- 4
Reduces impressions to protect budget
- 5
Eventually stops spending entirely
The Warning Signs I Missed
Phone call conversions were still coming through, so I thought everything was fine. But the form submissions—our highest-value conversions—had gone completely dark.
Campaign Performance Collapse
Warning Signs
Before vs After Break
$100-150/day spend, 400+ impressions, steady conversions
Under $20/day, 100 impressions, zero form conversions
Campaign Performance
The Debugging Journey
I tried quick fixes first. Added new conversion pixels, thinking I could at least get some data flowing. It helped a little, but a new conversion action starting from zero can't replace 2,200 historical conversions. PMax needs that history to know where to spend.
Quick Fix Attempt
Added new conversion pixels. Campaign spent slightly more but still stalled—new actions have no historical data for PMax to optimize against.
Tag Assistant Investigation
Opened Google Tag Assistant to see what was firing. Found zero conversions—not GA4, not Google Ads. Something was fundamentally broken.
The WWW Theory
Working with AI, we realized the conversion was looking for www.pinkslipsnsw.com but the primary domain was pinkslipsnsw.com. Every redirect broke the match.
Recovery Timeline
The Fix
Once we identified the www mismatch, the fix was straightforward—but getting there required some DNS wrestling.
Resolution Steps
Changed Netlify Primary Domain
Switched from pinkslipsnsw.com to www.pinkslipsnsw.com as the primary domain
Enabled IPv6
Turned on IPv6 on Netlify for better DNS resolution
Flushed DNS Caches
Flushed Google Public DNS cache for both www and non-www versions
Updated Local DNS
My computer had cached the old DNS. Changed local DNS to Google (8.8.8.8) to see the updated site
Verified with Tag Assistant
Ran Tag Assistant again—conversion fired immediately. Checked Google Ads: 'Last received: Today'
The AI Advantage
AI helped me see what pixels were firing, trace the code changes, and iterate quickly. When we hit the www theory, we could test it in minutes instead of hours.
— Debugging Session
Debugging With AI
The DNS Cache Trap
GA4 Imports: The 24-48 Hour Problem
One of our conversions was a GA4 imported event. Even after fixing the tracking, I couldn't verify it was working in Google Ads—because GA4 imports have a 24-48 hour delay before they show up in the conversion summary.
GA4 Imported Conversions
- 24-48 hour delay to Google Ads
- Can't verify fix immediately
- PMax gets stale signals
- Debugging is painful
Direct Google Ads Conversions
- Instant feedback
- Verify fix in minutes
- PMax optimizes in real-time
- Tag Assistant shows immediately
GA4 Import Delay
Instant Recovery
The moment the page load conversion fired correctly, everything changed. Google Ads saw "Last received: Today" instead of "7 days ago." Within an hour, impressions jumped from 100 to 400+. The campaign was back.
Recovery Results (Same Day)
The Lesson
After any migration: verify www vs non-www matches your conversion tracking. One mismatch can tank a high-performing campaign in days.
Why AI Made This Possible
This debugging session would have taken days without AI. Having Claude in my console meant I could quickly check what pixels were in the code, trace changes, and iterate on theories. When we hit the www hypothesis, we could test it in minutes.
AI-Assisted Debugging Workflow
Key Learnings
Follow-up Tasks
- Check urgent_submit GA4 conversion status on Dec 3, 2025
- Monitor conversion rates for next 7 days
- Consider replacing GA4 import with direct Google Ads conversion
The Bottom Line
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Google Ads Conversion Tracking Fix
Pink Slips NSW Case Study
How a simple redirect broke $330K worth of conversion data
Historical conversions worth $330K went dark after migration
The Root Cause
www redirect broke the domain match between site and conversion tracking
The Fix Steps
- 1
Identify domain mismatch
- 2
Update conversion settings
- 3
Verify tracking fires
- 4
Wait for data to flow
Before vs After
Zero conversions tracking, algorithm blind
Full visibility restored, PMax learning again
After any migration, verify your domain configuration matches your conversion tracking exactly.
— Jordan James
Key Learning
If using Performance Max, use direct Google Ads conversions—not GA4 imports.
Need Help?
Don't let tracking issues tank your campaigns
Pink Slips NSW
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