Let's talk about the latest marketing update: Google Consent Mode v2. Time is running out, and if you don't set it up by March 2024, your site won't show up in Google Analytics or Google Ads. That means losing access to audiences, remarketing lists, and campaign data. This change currently affects only EU and UK traffic, but even if you don't target those areas, it's worth reading on. Similar rules could reach the US and Canada soon.
So what's new? With v2, Google isn't just asking you to tick a few more boxes. They've added a couple of new parameters to the mix: ad_user_data and ad_personalization. They ensure that only the data you've got a green light for is sent to Google's way, particularly for Google Ads and Google Shopping.
Now, you've got two ways to implement this: Basic and Advanced:
The Basic option is simple: if you get consent, your data is collected. If not, no data is sent. This is how most default CMPs have worked so far.
The Advanced option, which is recommended, offers more flexibility. Even if users say no to cookies, you can still send anonymous signals to Google. This helps you keep some insights in Google Analytics and Ads, so you aren't left without any data.
So, how do we set this all up?
Start with the cookie banner (yep, still required). The critical part is that you'll need a Certified Consent Management Platform (CMP) to handle the requests, ensuring that Google's tags play nicely with your users' choices. The keyword here is Certified. Per official Google documentation, you have to pick one of these CMPs for Google to recognize the requests and play nice with Google marketing. It also means that you can't use (one of my favorites) open-source cookie banners since it's only a client-side solution and not a CMP. Even if you integrate it to work with your GTM container, the solution is not Google-certified. In other words, you can use it with other vendors, but Google won't accept it.
Use Google Tag Manager official CMP templates or, even better, Simo's consent (updated for v2) template to implement logic to load or skip the analytics and marketing tags/scripts. If you're loading the scripts inline and not from the GTM, you should be able to manage those scripts in your CMP admin settings.
Verify that the consent is implemented correctly using Tag Assistant (link)
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If you use server-side tagging, you still need to get user consent. This requirement applies whether you track through the browser or the server. Follow these steps in the provided link.
This certified cookie banner won't come for free. Even though most CMPs offer free plans, those won't be enough (limited monthly pageviews, limited banner design, or functionality). So essentially, you're looking for additional $10-$15/mo expenses, just to comply with the EU and Google regulations.
To recap:
Getting the EU/UK traffic? Implement the consent mode v2 ASAP.
Pick the certified CMP and a plan, configure, and add the cookie banner to your site. Ensure that ad_user_data and ad_personalization attributes are present.
Use GTM templates to implement the tag logic (which scripts get loaded and when)
As always, ping me directly if you have any technical questions!
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