In today’s day and age, the internet is a powerful tool that we can use to find almost any information in mere seconds. However, within every website that we browse and every app that we install, we leave traces behind of our buying and browsing habits. This comes in the form of cookies, devices ids, and other trackers. It is this very information that marketers use to implement targeted advertising on consumers. For example, a consumer that has a history of visiting sports websites would be more likely to buy a ticket to a sporting event. Marketers can tell who these consumers are through trackers such as cookies. Today I will be breaking down some common online trackers – their similarities, differences, etc.
Cookies
Cookies are the originals. They were the first online trackers before any other forms of tracking even existed, but they are usually only used for desktop.
Example of an Amazon Cookie
session-id-time 954242000 amazon.com/ session-id 002-4135256-7625846 amazon.com/ x-main eKQIfwnxuF7qtmX52x6VWAXh@Ih6Uo5H amazon.com/ ubid-main 077-9263437-9645324 amazon.com/
Amazon stores a main user ID, an ID for each session, and the time that the session started in the browser. Most sites simply store a user ID.
First-Party Cookie
This is the simplest type of cookie. A user goes to a publisher’s site, and the site drops a cookie to track that the user has gone to the site. It also tracks things such as the user’s chosen webpage language and the country that they are in when viewing the site.
Third Party Cookie
This type of cookie is used for ad retargeting and behavioral advertising. Using this type of cookie, advertisers can track not only the initial site that a user starts on, but every site thereafter that they visit. This will allow advertisers to build profile from the user, and ultimately they will be able to serve a tailored ad that is more likely see a conversion.
Session Cookie
As the name suggests, these cookies only last for a single session. As soon as the user exits the browser, these cookies disappear. These cookies are mostly used for saving login information and ensuring faster page loads.
Persistent Cookie
These cookies can be used for a very long time, up to 20 years! This is usually used by publishers as a way to understand user experience. The cookies will allude to what site aspects that users prefer, and the publishers can use this information to improve their website.
Secure Cookie
These cookies are only transmitted through HTTPS and they are mostly used in situations where additional security is required. Examples include online checkout pages, online banking, and logins to sensitive information.
Device IDs
Cookies don’t work as well on mobile as compared to desktop. The solution – device IDs. These are trackers for mobile devices. Each device has an internal tracker (device id) that is associated with it, and marketers can use these in a similar way that cookies are used for desktop.
IDFA and IFA
The device IDs used for IOS products. IDFA and IFA represent the same thing, and they stand for “Identification for Advertisers”. They are a direct successor for UDID (unique device identifier).
Sample IDFA number: 6D92078A-8246-4BA4-AE5B-76104861E7DC
Google AID and AAID
This is for Google and Android products. It simply stands for Google Advertising ID.
Sample Google AID number: 38400000-8cf0-11bd-b23e-10b96e40000d
Persistent IDs
This is a new type of ID that is not based off of cookies or device IDs, but rather logins. Because of this is concrete data that is gathered from logins it is considered deterministic instead of probabilistic. This means more accurate data and more closely tailored ads targeted to the consumer. Unlike device IDs and cookies, which are best used on either desktop or mobile but not both, persistent IDs can be used on either. This is because logins can be tracked on both web and mobile. One downfall of persistent IDs is that they are not yet widely accepted. Cookies have a much higher standard of acceptance across the industry at the moment. In time, the more advanced tracking method that is persistent IDs will replaced cookies.
Sources
- https://digiday.com/media/know-cookies-guide-internet-ad-trackers/
- https://computer.howstuffworks.com/cookie1.htm
- https://www.finjanmobile.com/mobile-device-ad-tracking/
- https://digiday.com/marketing/wtf-persistent-id/
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