server-side articles | Bettersteps

All articles tagged: server-side

Analytics news: September 2026

September brought some genuinely interesting and useful features. On the Google side there are AI-generated summaries of published versions in GTM and improved hostname-based traffic filters in GA4, and Stape released a nice new solution: AI traffic detection.

Adam Brzostek

Oct 8, 2026Reading time: 3:00

server-side

Analytics news: August 2026

We're back from the summer break with a triple dose of news: June, July and August together. Google mostly made more announcements than real changes in that time, but we've summed them up. Starting with this issue, the series gets a separate section on server-side and marketing APIs.

Adam Brzostek

Sep 1, 2026Reading time: 6:00

server-side

Consent Exception Tracking: understand it and set it up yourself

Can you recover 100% of your traffic data and still fully comply with GDPR and the guidelines of regulators such as CNIL? Yes. The answer is Consent Exception Tracking (CET), a model that shifts the focus from "tracking people" to "measuring events". No cookies, no fingerprinting, and NO CONSENT required. This article is a practical guide to building your own independent analytics system that keeps working even when a user clicks "Reject all".

Adam Brzostek

Apr 20, 2026Reading time: 12:00

server-side

TikTok Events API: a complete guide to implementing it yourself (2026)

A complete guide to the TikTok Events API and how to set it up yourself with server-side GTM.

Adam Brzostek

Apr 1, 2026Reading time: 12:00

server-side

Meta Conversions API: a complete guide to implementing it yourself (2026)

If you run Meta campaigns and don't want to burn through your budget, the Meta Conversions API is no longer a nice extra. It's a must. This guide shows you, step by step, how to implement CAPI on your own website. It's a complete walkthrough that comes with ready-made JSON files for GTM.

Adam Brzostek

Mar 22, 2026Reading time: 10:00

server-side

From a leaky bucket to an armored data pipeline: the IMPEST case study

This is a story about how the right technology, properly configured, can help a business scale and prevent data loss as restrictions keep tightening. In this case study, Impest used server-side tracking to improve Google Analytics vs CRM data match by almost 30% and recover over 20% of conversions in Meta Ads.

Adam Brzostek

Jan 28, 2026Reading time: 6:00

server-side

Mapping a custom subdomain to your tagging server in Google Cloud Platform (Cloud Run)

Mapping a subdomain to your tagging server takes server-side tagging a step further. You get a first-party context, which means more secure and, above all, longer-lasting cookies. As a result, your data is more accurate and your ads target users more precisely, which should translate into lower ad spend. This article walks you through the setup step by step.

Adam Brzostek

Jan 28, 2025Reading time: 5:00

server-side

Meta Conversions API: what, why and how? A step-by-step guide

For Meta Ads, the Meta Conversions API is the answer to the limits of client-side tracking. In this article you'll learn what it is, how it works and why it's worth implementing, and we'll debunk a few myths about it along the way.

Adam Brzostek

Oct 22, 2024Reading time: 4:00

server-side

Server-side GTM setup pitfalls on Google Cloud Run

If you use server-side tracking on Google Cloud Run, or are thinking about it, this article will help you avoid a few early pitfalls that are easy to fall into during setup.

Adam Brzostek

Sep 23, 2024Reading time: 4:00

server-side