Within the next couple of years, third-party cookies will be phased out. Currently, cookies as a tracking tool are approaching an uncertain future. If companies fail to prepare and introduce an alternative, this change will cause issues with tracking the website visitors’ data.
Therefore, it is a good idea for companies to begin preparations for this change. Google has already announced that they wish to phase out third-party cookies. This development means that it is important to look into new methods for tracking website visitors when they invest in new digital solutions.
There are many different types of third-party cookies. Some are necessary for development, while others are important for marketing and analyses. The biggest issues with third-party cookies are that they do not provide the full picture and the security of this tool is not great. These are the two main reasons for the departure of third-party cookies.
Take charge of your data
Therefore, our advice is for you to approach data ownership in a new way. A wide variety of tools provide the same possibilities for identifying, following, and communicating with the individual user. This technology is cookie-less. The data is logged into a server in a data tool as opposed to being stored locally with the user.
We believe that cookie-less is a secure alternative with many benefits. Today, the customer journey often happens through a variety of devices and from different locations throughout the day. Therefore, the largest data-analysis firms are now working on developing sustainable non-cookie methods. A cookie-less method provides more precise tracking of your users and the complete customer journey.
Just to mention a few, Microsoft, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn are tracking platforms that are slowly phasing out cookies. They are very aware of the previously-mentioned issues but most do not offer cookie-less tracking yet. However, there are already good alternatives on the market.
Important tools during the transition period
Cookie technology is not quickly or easily replaceable, and the technology still provides much valuable information. Locally shared and flash-based versions of cookies do help applications load and servers log information on cookies.
You need to keep first-party cookies – which will be directly saved on the visited website – in order to not lose valuable knowledge during this transition period to cookie-less tracking.
