Server-Side Tracking vs. Pixel Tracking - Which is Better?
A variety of shopping services are turning to server-side tracking as a means to enhance their data collection procedures. While it needs more technical knowledge than normal GTM and may introduce additional costs, it can lead to greater accuracy and more trustworthy information


Pixel monitoring uses a piece of code to register conversions on your web site. It's very easy to establish and much less vulnerable to advertisement blockers.

1. More accurate data
The standard technique of tracking conversions on an internet site, making use of pixels, is having trouble with changing browser privacy policies. This implies that the data being sent to Google Ads, Facebook Business Manager and various other systems is much less precise than it must be.

Server-side monitoring is an extra safe and secure alternative that helps to bypass these restrictions, as it's loaded from your own domain and treated as first-party code, implying it's less likely to be affected by ad blockers or other safety and security steps. This offers a lot more precise data and a much more total photo of individual trips throughout channels.

Additionally, this kind of tracking enables companies to track conversions outside of the website, such as phone calls and in-store gos to, which can be challenging for pixel-based tracking. This flexibility gives online marketers more ownership over the information they send out, and makes it less complicated to follow numerous information legislations. It's likewise a great deal less susceptible to fraudulence, as it's harder for illegal stars to control the system by altering the postback URL.

2. Better control over information.
Server-side monitoring enables companies to collect and enhance data before sending it to third-party analytics/advertising systems. This boosts information completeness and accuracy, which can help marketing experts make even more educated advertising decisions.

Traditional pixel monitoring relies upon JavaScript tracking codes that are put in site visitors' browsers. These tracking codes are usually obstructed by ad blockers, which can result in data collection disturbances and unreliable results. Server-side tracking makes it possible for organizations to bypass these restrictions and offer accurate, regular data that is less at risk to disturbance.

This kind of tracking additionally enables companies to track conversions that happen beyond the site, like phone calls and in-store acquisitions. This is very important because brand-new personal privacy policies such as Apple's Intelligent Monitoring Avoidance (ITP) limit the shelf life of cookie-based monitoring pixels to 7 days. This is an essential reason why S2S is extra trustworthy for services looking for to adapt to these adjustments.

3. Less vulnerable to scams
Server-side tracking makes it possible for services to manipulate information payloads prior to it gets to third party endpoints, boosting safety and privacy. This is specifically crucial as different internet browsers and platforms significantly alter how they take care of cookies. For instance, in iOS 14, Safari will just provide first-party cookie data and will certainly not allow pixel-based monitoring. Utilizing server-side tracking, you can bypass these restrictions and continue to track conversions that took place outside of your internet site.

Furthermore, server-side tracking allows you to capture customer information directly by yourself servers. This eliminates dependancy on third parties, which can be vulnerable to breaches and personal privacy infractions.

A server-side radar is a set of instructions that tells your web site's server what occasions to record. This information is then sent to analytics devices like Google Analytics and Facebook Company. It's additionally utilized to cause event-based ads, such as retargeting. On the other hand, pixel tracking is an alternate method that utilizes a small piece of code on your page to gather information from users.

4. Much easier to implement
Server-side monitoring is an information collection process that takes place on the site's very own cost-per-click (CPC) optimization server, bypassing web internet browser limitations. This indicates that data gathered by the website/app is first sent out to the server where it's refined and afterwards forwarded to analytics devices like Google Analytics or Facebook Pixel.

The advantage of this method is that it lowers the scope of information monitoring and gives companies extra control over transmission, making it typically a lot more dependable. Because of this, it's much less prone to information obstacles caused by things like a busted connection or an active advertisement blocker being installed.

With OWOX BI's Server-Side Tracking, your organization can collect real-time conversion data similarly that you would with pixels or a cookie, but this is after that passed straight to your marketing and advertising tools on the web server. This permits you to have more precise information and aids ensure compliance with personal privacy regulations such as GDPR. Additionally, it additionally prevents the monitoring constraints enforced by browsers and ad blockers.