TMH #8: Server-side Tagging and the Vegas Rule with Simo Ahava

Technical Marketing Handbook

In this episode, Simo Ahava revisits Server-side Tagging, a topic discussed with Adam Halbardier in episode 5 of this podcast.

This time, we take a look at some of the misconceptions around server-side tagging, especially when it comes to what users perceive to be its best qualities.

Simo tackles ad blocker and consent circumvention, the idea of getting data back, the lack of transparency to what happens in the server, and he also shares some ideas for how to solve some of these problems.

Server-side tagging is still quite new, especially in Google’s offering. Its reputation is extremely fragile, as the temptation to do malicious things with it is pretty potent.

It’s important to share education and to evangelize its redeeming qualities rather than focus on how to get more data at the expense of the user’s right to control their data use.

Listen to the episode using the player or find it in your favorite podcast service.

Topics

• 00:00:00 – Introduction
• 00:01:32 – Benefits of Server-side Tagging.
• 00:02:40 – Example of a problem that Server-side Tagging solves.
• 00:05:00 – How Server-side Tagging mitigates the issues with client-side tagging.
• 00:06:30 – The Vegas Rule of Server-side Tagging.
• 00:07:47 – The Vegas Rule explained.
• 00:08:43 – The lack of visibility to what happens in the server.
• 00:10:07 – Ad blocker circumvention.
• 00:12:55 – The technological difficulty of respecting ad blockers.
• 00:13:56 – The technological difficulty of respecting consent preferences.
• 00:16:18 – Solutions for overcoming the Vegas rule.
• 00:17:34 – The narrative of Server-side Tagging needs to change.
• 00:19:02 – Does Server-side Tagging solve for iOS / iPadOS releases?
• 00:20:15 – Just because you can do things in the server, doesn’t mean you should.

Notes and references

• TMH #5: Tag Management with Adam Halbardier
  
• TMH #2: Ad Blockers with Pete Snyder
  
• EasyPrivacy list
  
• AppTrackingTransparency framework
  
• App Store privacy policy
  

The post TMH #8: Server-side Tagging and the Vegas Rule with Simo Ahava appeared first on Simmer.