AEP & Google Part A: Data Collection

Adobe & Google – often described as frenemies, some would argue they are like water and oil. However, there has always been a necessary co-existence given Google’s ad tech footprint namely Google Ads – paid search, Youtube and display and video ads.

With Adobe Experience Platform, Adobe is adopting Bruce Lee’s “be water” philosophy by integrating with more of the Google stack than ever before so the business can get the best of both worlds.

In this multi-part blog series, we will review all the integration points from the Google stack: Google Marketing Platform, Google Cloud Platform, Google Ad Manager

Data Collection (A)

Use case

You already have Google Tag Manager (GTM) implemented as your client-side tag manager. This would normally mean that you also track your website data via the Google Data Layer.

Although these integrations are available, it is not specifically recommended to use with new implementations. However, these integrations can be considered in a phased approach with the time of value in mind.

So what?

Assuming that the data collection with Google Tag Manager covers the requirements for AEP use cases, then this may:

• Decrease implementation time and hence time to value
• Decrease developer resources
• Decrease testing effort

Avoid if

• Google Tag Manager is not a long-term solution
• The existing implementation of Google Tag Manager is incomplete or has a huge backlog
• User governance and permissions need to be centralised i.e. Google users vs. Adobe users with SSO

1. Google Tag Manager & Adobe Experience Platform

GTM does not have a productised Adobe Experience Platform (AEP) “Tag” the following options would have to be implemented using GTM’s “Custom HTML Tag”

1. Deploy the AEP Web SDK to send the event data to the AEP Edge. The Web SDK is also known by its codename Alloy.js.
2. Compared to implementing via the Adobe Tags, implementing with GTM will require javascript knowledge to make use of the Web SDK functions.
3. The main advantage here is the GTM Triggers and GTM Variables can be re-used for the data collection to AEP.

<script>
alloy("sendEvent", {
  "xdm": {
    "commerce": {
      "order": {
        "purchaseID": {{GTM Variable For purchaseID}},
        "purchaseOrderNumber": "VAU3123",
        "currencyCode": "USD",
        "priceTotal": 999.98
      }
    }
  }
});
</script>

2. Google GTM Data Layer & Adobe Experience Platform

With this option, we are using GTM and Adobe Tags side by side. Adobe has developped a GTM Data Layer Extension in Adobe Tags to act as a UI friendly bridge for the existing GTM Data Layer to speak to AEP.

The following functions are productised in the UI:

• Configuration of data layer name
• Instantiation of the Google Data Layer Helper object
• A data element to fetch event, computed state, or raw data layer values
• A rule event to catch different types of data layer activity
• An action for pushing JSON to the data layer
• An action to reset the data layer to the computed state

This Extension is an excellent option to leverage the GTM Data Layer if the business is sticking with GTM in the short to medium term.

If you ever had doubts about GTM, this option will help preview a world using Adobe Tags. Other than the Data Layer, the rest of the configuration is done the Adobe way.

More info on this Adobe Tags Extension here

The Adobe Way

Adobe does offer an end-to-end architecture for each part of the data collection chain.

1. Developers to implement the Adobe Client Data Layer to link the Application Layer to make the data conducive for consumption by the Tag Manager.
2. Adobe has published structures (XDM Field Groups) that can act as a starting point for data collection design.
3. Data collection specialists/analytics team members to implement the Rules to selectively collect the data from the data layer to pass to AEP.

Photo by Daniel Olah on Unsplash