Google adds YouTube to suite of ad tools tracking retail sales

YouTube unveils their new paid subscription service at the YouTube Space LA in Playa Del Rey, Los Angeles, California, United States October 21, 2015. REUTERS/Lucy Nicholson

Google is giving advertisers a slew of new ways to measure online spending and tie it to consumers’ offline purchases, including the addition of Google’s huge video service, YouTube, to its feature that tracks retail store visits. 

The Alphabet Inc unit announced the moves to shore up its lead in digital ads on at its annual spring marketing event in San Francisco. This year, Google continued to package its channels once kept separate for advertisers. The company is introducing Google Attribution, a tool for marketers to track shoppers as they bounce among devices and Google properties, such as search, websites and video.