Article Overview

Part 1: Introduction

In today's digital world, online advertising is an important component for businesses to promote their products and services and attract potential customers. However, ad blockers and the new iOS tracking ban pose challenges for businesses using online advertising. Ad blockers block advertisements on websites, preventing potential customers from being reached. The iOS tracking ban, implemented by Apple in April 2021, further restricts businesses from collecting and using certain types of data from iOS users without their explicit consent. This can hinder businesses' ability to optimize their advertising campaigns and increase the conversion rate. In this blog post, we will address these challenges and explore how server-side tracking can provide a solution. We will discuss what server-side tracking is, how it is implemented, and the benefits it offers.

Part 2: Ad Blockers and the iOS Tracking Ban as Challenges

Ad blockers are programs or extensions that block advertisements on websites. Many internet users utilize them to remove ads they find disruptive. However, this can pose a problem for businesses using online advertising, as the ads are not displayed, thus failing to reach potential customers. Apple's new iOS tracking ban, which took effect in April 2021, presents another challenge. It prohibits businesses from collecting and using certain types of data from iOS users without their explicit consent. This restricts businesses' ability to optimize their advertising campaigns and increase the conversion rate, as they no longer have access to specific data. These challenges can make it difficult for businesses to successfully execute their advertising campaigns and reach potential customers. In the following sections, we will explore how server-side tracking can offer a solution to these challenges.

Part 3: What is Server-Side Tracking?

Server-side tracking differs from client-side tracking, where data is sent to external services like Google Analytics. Instead, server-side tracking stores the data on its own servers. This provides businesses with full control over data usage and allows them to comply with applicable privacy laws. Server-side tracking enables businesses to capture detailed information about user interactions with their website, including page views, click rates, and conversion data. This information can be used to optimize advertising campaign performance and increase the conversion rate. There are various tools that can be used to implement server-side tracking, such as Google Tag Manager (GTM) and Facebook Conversion API. However, it is important to ensure that the implementation complies with applicable privacy laws and that only authorized individuals have access to the collected data.

Part 4: Implementation of Server-Side Tracking

The implementation of server-side tracking is a process that can be divided into several steps:

1. First, the requirements that the business has to optimize advertising campaign performance and increase the conversion rate need to be defined.

2. Select a platform or tools to be used for data capture and storage. Examples of such tools include Google Tag Manager (GTM) and Facebook Conversion API.

3. Code implementation on the website. The selected tools need to be integrated into the website's code to enable data capture.

4. Testing and optimization. Once the implementation is complete, the data needs to be tested to ensure its accurate capture and to optimize advertising campaign performance.

It is important to note that the implementation of server-side tracking must comply with applicable privacy laws. Businesses should ensure they obtain the necessary consents from their users before collecting and processing data.

Part 5: Advantages of Server-Side Tracking

Server-side tracking offers a range of advantages for businesses that utilize it. Some of the key benefits include:

• Control over data: Storing data on their own servers grants businesses full control over data usage and allows compliance with privacy laws.

• Increase in conversion rate: By capturing detailed information about user interactions with the website, businesses can optimize advertising campaign performance and increase the conversion rate.

• Identifying issues: Storing all data on their own servers can enable businesses to detect and resolve website issues early on.

• Scalability: Server-side tracking allows businesses to scale their data capture and analysis to meet the growing demands of their operations.

• Improved data security: Storing data on their own servers enables businesses to enhance data security and ensure that only authorized individuals have access.

Overall, server-side tracking offers a variety of advantages for businesses utilizing it. It allows them to optimize advertising campaign performance, identify website issues early on, and enhance data security. It is an important method that should be considered to achieve optimal results in online marketing.

Part 6: Conclusion

Ad blockers and the iOS tracking ban have demonstrated that controlling and utilizing user data is becoming increasingly complex. However, server-side tracking provides a solution to overcome these challenges while optimizing advertising campaign performance.

Unlike client-side tracking, which involves sending data to external services, server-side tracking stores the data on its own servers. This grants businesses full control over data usage and enables compliance with applicable privacy laws.

Tools like Google Tag Manager (GTM) and Facebook Conversion API facilitate the implementation of server-side tracking, but it is important to ensure that the implementation complies with applicable privacy laws and that only authorized individuals have access to the collected data.

In this blog post, we have addressed ad blockers and the iOS tracking ban, and how server-side tracking can provide a solution to overcome these challenges while optimizing advertising campaign performance. Server-side tracking is a crucial aspect in online marketing and should be considered to achieve optimal results.