How Server-Side Tracking can increase your ROAS by over 20%
Why you need Server-Side Tracking
Feb 2024
5 min read
Mustafa Ahmadi
Server-side tracking can improve your Meta ad performance by 20% or more, by feeding 99% of conversion events back to Meta.
This increased tracking tells Meta that your ads are converting better than your competitors. In turn, Meta reduces your CPMs, which increases your ROAS.
In this short article, I go into a little more detail.
Two ways Meta can track users on your site
Using a Meta Pixel - A piece of code on your website that tracks users and feeds that data back to Facebook.
Server-side tracker - A piece of code on your server that tracks users and feeds that data back to Facebook.
The key difference is that server-side tracking is unaffected by iOS 14 changes because the data resides on your servers. Since you own this data, there's no need to obtain consent from Apple to track it or send it to Facebook.
Importance of Server-Side Tracking
Facebook, with the help of the pixel, can track how much each Facebook user spends online. It uses this data to rank its users: the more a user spends, the higher they rank.
To determine which ads appear in the feed of high-ranking users, Facebook uses an auction system. However, unlike traditional auctions, the winner is not decided by the highest bid. To maximise user experience and advertiser value, Facebook uses the following formula to decide the winner:
The Estimated action rate is the probability of achieving the desired conversion.
This means that if your goal is conversions, the estimated action rate represents the likelihood of a user (for whom the auction is taking place) purchasing after clicking on your ad.
This implies that a higher estimated action rate can help you win auctions with a lower bid.
Since the iOS 14 update, Facebook receives reduced purchase data from the pixel because the pixel can no longer track users who've opted out of personalised ads. This causes three main problems.
Reduced Estimated Action Rate: Reduced purchase data being sent to Facebook affects your Estimated Action Rate (EAR), ultimately lowering your ROAS.
Retargeting opportunities: Missing data leads to missed retargeting opportunities, further decreasing your ROAS.
Scaling challenges: Inaccurate & missing data makes it hard to increase spend with confidence.
The Solution
Using a platform like Elevar (or other server-side trackers) can help you overcome all the problems mentioned above.
Reduced Estimated Action Rate: Elevar ensures 99% of purchase data is sent back to Facebook, increasing your EAR and ultimately boosting your ROAS.
Retargeting Opportunities: Elevar ensures 99% of website data is sent back to Facebook, ensuring no retargeting opportunities are missed, further boosting your ROAS.
Scaling Challenges: With complete and accurate data, you can scale spending with confidence.
In Conclusion
I hope this has made server-side tracking a little clearer and highlighted its importance in regards to paid ads. Although it presents a challenge, I hope you now see the iOS 14 update as an opportunity to separate yourself from the competition.
I’d like to mention that we're not an affiliate of Elevar. However, we believe they're the best in server-side tracking, and they're priced fairly. We use them for all our clients, along with the 6,000+ other brands they work with, including Skims, Cuts, and Glossier.