Book Consultation
Pricing
Cases
Videos
About us
Webinars
Book Consultation
Pricing
Cases
Videos
About us
Webinars
← Back to all videos

Google Tag Manager Server-side Tagging Tutorial: A Comprehensive Guide

facebook-pixelgoogle-analyticsserver-sidegdprprivacyintermediate
4.5/5The video provides comprehensive, well-structured information about server-side tagging in Google Tag Manager with excellent visual explanations and practical demonstrations. The presenter clearly explains both benefits and drawbacks, includes a complete setup walkthrough, and offers valuable timestamps and additional resources. The only minor drawback is that some advanced implementation details are not covered in depth.
Google Tag Manager Server-side Tagging Tutorial - what it is, setup, and more

In this detailed tutorial, Julius from Analytics Mania provides a beginner-friendly introduction to Google Tag Manager's server-side tracking capabilities. The video explores how this technology, introduced in 2020, adds a new dimension to data collection by allowing website data to be sent to a server-side GTM container before being forwarded to analytics platforms like Google Analytics. The tutorial covers several key benefits of server-side tagging, including improved website performance by reducing client-side JavaScript load, better control over data sent to third-party vendors, reduced impact of ad blockers, extended cookie lifespans in Safari (bypassing ITP limitations), and enhanced security for sensitive information like API keys. Julius walks viewers through the complete setup process, demonstrating how to create a server-side container in Google Cloud Platform, configure clients and tags, connect a custom domain, and send data from a website container to the server-side instance. The tutorial also addresses common concerns and limitations, emphasizing that server-side tracking doesn't automatically make you GDPR compliant and requires additional technical knowledge. From our perspective at gdpr-server-tracking.eu, this video provides excellent foundational knowledge about Google Tag Manager's server-side capabilities. However, we believe viewers should know there are alternatives to Google Cloud Platform that offer enhanced privacy benefits and potentially lower costs. Our EU-based server-side GTM hosting solution addresses several concerns mentioned in the video. Unlike Google Cloud, we provide bare metal hosting in Finland with no third-party access via cloud provider subprocessors. Our company and servers are entirely EU-based, eliminating data transfer risks. We also offer additional features for hashing and filtering query parameters and cookies, which further enhances privacy compliance. The video mentions that server costs could reach approximately €120-140 per month on Google Cloud for a medium-sized implementation. Our solution provides a more cost-effective alternative while maintaining high performance and adding privacy benefits that are particularly valuable for businesses concerned about GDPR compliance. For anyone interested in implementing server-side GTM after watching this tutorial, our platform offers the same functionality with added privacy safeguards and competitive pricing - making it an ideal solution for privacy-conscious businesses operating in or serving customers in the EU.

Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about "Google Tag Manager Server-side Tagging Tutorial - what it is, setup, and more"

Server-side tracking in Google Tag Manager allows website data to be sent to a server-side GTM container before being forwarded to analytics platforms, reducing client-side JavaScript load, improving website performance, and providing better control over data sent to third-party vendors. It also helps bypass ad blockers and extends cookie lifespans in Safari.

To set up server-side tracking, create a server-side container in GTM, host it on a cloud platform (like Google Cloud), configure clients and tags, connect a custom domain, and modify your website container to send data to your server-side instance instead of directly to analytics platforms.

Server-side tracking alone doesn't automatically make you GDPR compliant as regulations focus on consent and data handling practices rather than technology. However, using EU-based hosting like gdpr-server-tracking.eu can help with compliance by keeping data within the EU and providing additional privacy features.

Google Cloud hosting for server-side GTM can cost approximately €120-140 per month for medium-sized implementations. EU-based alternatives like gdpr-server-tracking.eu often provide more competitive pricing while adding privacy benefits particularly valuable for GDPR compliance.

EU-based hosting solutions provide enhanced privacy compliance by keeping data within EU jurisdiction, eliminating data transfer risks, and offering additional features for hashing and filtering sensitive data. They can also be more cost-effective than Google Cloud while maintaining high performance.

Yes, connecting your own custom domain is highly recommended for server-side GTM as it keeps tracking in first-party context, which helps bypass privacy restrictions in browsers. The video demonstrates how to configure this through Google Cloud Platform and DNS settings.

Server-side tracking may not be cost-effective for small businesses due to hosting expenses and technical complexity. However, as privacy regulations tighten, even smaller businesses might benefit from more affordable EU-based hosting solutions that simplify implementation while enhancing privacy compliance.

Server-side tracking helps bypass Safari's Intelligent Tracking Prevention (ITP) by setting cookies from the server side rather than client-side JavaScript, which extends cookie lifespans beyond the 7-day limitation imposed by ITP. This improves tracking consistency for Safari users.