As modern marketing makers and experts in web tracking, we rely on qualified data for a successful digital marketing strategy and do not limit ourselves to tracking results. Cookieless tracking and thus the cookieless world is coming – and with it a change in the matter-of-factness with which data is currently collected using various tools.

In the cookieless world, web tracking and user identification no longer take place exclusively via cookies. It is the vision of a future that website publishers and companies already have to deal with today. Instead of using traditional cookies as the primary tool for data collection, alternative technologies and approaches will be used to track user behaviour and offer personalised services.

Cookieless Tracking: Ende der 3rd Party Cookies Ende 2024

Google has announced that it will stop supporting third-party cookies in its Chrome browser, which has a market share of almost 24% as of September 2024, by the end of 2024, after Safari and Firefox have already taken similar measures.

Google’s decision will have an impact on the tracking of advertising and marketing campaigns and on most websites. It is currently a much-discussed topic, particularly with regard to measuring the success of advertising and marketing campaigns, including aspects such as retargeting and conversion optimisation.

What is the difference between first and third party cookies?

First-Party-Cookies

First-party cookies only contain information about the current website and are only accessible to the website operator. They are stored locally, are mainly used for user convenience and are often necessary for use, which is why they cannot be adjusted or deactivated. Later, only the operator itself has access to these cookies. The most common data includes, for example, website settings such as the browser language, meta data (e.g. cookie expiry time), login information entered or personal data sent via web forms. Search form entries can also be saved so that they can be quickly reused later.

What insights do we gain?

– Cookies are small data trackers used by browsers such as Chrome, Safari and Firefox – They store data about the users of the site. These can be used in various ways: – First-party cookies allow the website to recognize users and remember personal data such as user names, language settings, items in the shopping cart or login status.

What advantage does this have for website operators?

– The website becomes more elegant and easier to use. Users visit your website again – The data obtained helps you to improve the user experience and to understand exactly what your website needs in order to ensure optimal service – First-party data has a long life expectancy as it cannot be blocked or removed by external software such as ad blockers – Acceptance of and trust in third-party cookies is increased (advertisements)

Third-Party-Cookies

Third-party cookies are cookies that are not generated by the website operator, but by third parties – e.g. via advertisements, targeting pixels or similar. They collect all relevant marketing information such as age, origin, gender or user behavior. These cookies are a powerful tool in online marketing, especially in the area of personalized advertising

What insights do we gain?

– Third-party cookies are created by a domain other than that of the website you are currently visiting; this also applies to the usual website tracking methods – Third-party cookies allow a website to display content from other websites – such as display ads, social media buttons or embedded videos – They collect information about users’ interests or preferences. The data collected can then be used to show you similar ads on other websites

What advantage does this have for website operators?

– Technically easy to implement; third-party providers do the u0022worku0022 – Visitors see more relevant advertising that encourages interaction. The relevant advertisements are not hosted on your own server

Impact of the abolition of 3rd party cookies

The question of what impact Cookieless World can have on the essential functionality of website tracking is often neglected. Only through comprehensive tracking of your company website can valuable and necessary insights be gained. This allows you to track how users move around your website, which pages they look at intensively, whether they use the various offers of your company – but also at which points users drop out, which content is not used and whether implemented conversion optimisations bring the desired success.

To summarise: Website tracking provides important information about
– whether a website is working,
– whether it is interesting and relevant for users,
– whether and where conversions are being generated,
– how your website can be improved to achieve your company’s marketing goals.

There is an urgent need for action here in order to avoid losing valuable insights and jeopardising investments already made in digital platforms. What measures must website operators take to ensure data protection-compliant behaviour in a cookieless world? One of them is definitely not to stop tracking.

Cookieless Tracking DSGVO-Konform

The end of third-party cookies will be offset by the rise of alternatives in privacy-orientated tracking. It’s important that businesses take effective steps today to plan, test and optimise their strategy to ensure their website is prepared for the end of third-party cookies. Regardless, it is important that websites convey trust and transparency without compromising revenue and opt-in rates as users become more aware of their privacy.

Companies should take these 5 steps now

1. Identify

Identification of all interfaces where third-party cookies are used.

2. Create transparency

Compliance with cookie guidelines and ensuring transparency.

3. Integration

Integration of consents across multiple devices.

4. Brand sharpening

Building trust and expanding the credibility of your brand with first-party data.

5. The result

More control and choice for your customers – thanks to the right data.

Fingerprint tracking

The best-known alternative to tracking without cookies is fingerprint tracking. In this case, not only is user data collected using cookies set in advance, but certain software and hardware features are also identified. These include, for example, the end devices used (incl. model), operating system, IP address or browser used (incl. version). This results in the characteristics for a digital fingerprint, which can be used to identify returning users and address them across browsers.

Google Analytics 4

An alternative option is to use Google Analytics 4 (GA4), which is already equipped for the future of cookieless tracking. We recommend this tool not only because of its estimated market share of over 80 per cent. GA4 compensates for the lack of cookies with artificial intelligence, focussing in particular on tracking via user and device IDs and therefore the user themselves – in contrast to the previous focus on the browser session. However, the user’s consent is still required so that website operators can analyse and evaluate surfing behaviour.

Cookieless World: reconciling data protection compliance and performance marketing

The cookie-less world represents a new era of web tracking and data protection. The end of third-party cookies is forcing the advertising industry to offer alternative methods for personalised advertising and user experiences. User privacy is of great importance, so finding the right balance between personalised services and data protection will be a challenge for both companies and regulators. While the cookieless world promises users more control over their data, it is also changing the landscape of marketing and advertising in the digital age.

As a web analytics agency, we are happy to assist you at any time with all topics relating to data-based marketing, Cookieless World, reporting and tracking.

#Specialist article

Cookieless World – Why tracking is essential for companies

Roman Swoboda

07. December 2023

6 min reading time