Maximizing client opportunity by transforming data collection for the Cookie-less future

Photo by Ricardo Gomez Angel on Unsplash

The Challenge 

As your fractional CTO, Quarry doesn’t just solve problems – we identify opportunities for growth. This project exemplifies how we help clients maximize their existing strengths.

Chrome’s deprecation of third-party cookies represented a significant shift in web analytics, particularly given Chrome’s dominant market share. While other browsers have already made this change, Chrome’s transition marks a crucial turning point for organizations relying on traditional data collection methods.

The existing analytics setup depended heavily on client-side vendor libraries loaded directly in users’ browsers. This approach not only faced compatibility issues with the coming changes but was already causing performance degradation through heavy third-party script loading. More concerning, the multiple collection points created inconsistencies in data collection and increased exposure to potential security vulnerabilities.

The Solution 

Quarry migrated eligible vendors to server-side collection through Google Tag Manager’s server-side capabilities. This approach restructured the data collection architecture, transforming multiple client-side collection points into an optimal single data stream.

The new architecture uses client-side GTM solely to stream data to a server-side GTM container, employing GA4 tags as an efficient data conduit. 

This server-side container then becomes the central hub for dispatching data to all vendors, providing complete control over data distribution while minimizing client-side performance impact.

A real-world example: Facebook began flagging the client’s advertising account. The issue arose from latitude and longitude parameters in search flow URLs – a common design pattern for location-based search functionality. While these parameters were not PII (Personally Identifiable Information) in any way whatsoever, Facebook’s strict PII collection policies flagged them as a potential issue. Our server-side implementation allowed us to transform this data before transmission, stripping sensitive parameters without disrupting core functionality.

The new architecture also enabled the setting of first-party cookies with extended lifespans, replacing the previous seven-day limitation with a full 12 months of cookie lifetime. This improvement provides significantly better user journey analysis while maintaining strict privacy controls.

The Results 

The migration to server-side collection delivered immediate and significant improvements to site performance by removing client-side vendor libraries. 

Beyond performance gains, the new architecture ensures complete consistency in data values across all vendors – a crucial advantage over traditional client-side collection where different vendor libraries could produce varying results.

The centralized data stream provides greater control over data governance, allowing precise filtering of sensitive information before it reaches vendors. This approach not only prevents PII exposure but also ensures that vendors receive only the minimum necessary data for their functions, enhancing overall privacy protection, and preventing leakage of high-value data to vendors at no cost.

Perhaps most importantly, the new architecture future-proofs the client’s analytics infrastructure against upcoming browser changes. By moving vendor collection server-side, the solution eliminates dependence on third-party cookies while providing more reliable and consistent data collection.