Edward Upton, Founder & CEO at Littledata, was recently featured on the Ecommerce Coffee Break Podcast. Watch the interview above as he discusses how to use server-side tracking on ecommerce sites and the changes it has brought to the ecommerce world. In this episode, you'll learn: How to use server-side tracking on ecommerce sites What's the difference between first and third-party cookies The benefits of server-side tracking How to choose the suitable attribution model for your business Still, have burning questions after tuning in? Explore our recently published white paper on First-Party Data, "A World Without Cookies" where our experts share about these new changes to data and tracking.

Littledata’s team is 100% remote, with hubs across London, New York, and Romania. We have plenty of video calls to keep our global team connected on a regular basis, but at our core we love to spend time working, planning, and learning together in person. And that is exactly what we did in Barcelona, Spain in early October.  At these regular company offsites, we bring everybody together to share ideas and get to know each other. Meetings take a variety of forms. Sometimes they look organized, planned, and presented, and sometimes – personal favorite – they look like a cold pint by the pool soaking up the sun and getting “to the point” of things. Our teammates are based in different parts of the world with various backgrounds and skill sets that drive healthy debate and problem-solving. So, what was the aim of this offsite, you ask? Setting the stage for growth Setting the stage for what is next for Littledata and planning for the future success of the 2000+ brands that use Littledata with other top Shopify and BigCommerce connections like Google Analytics, Recharge, Segment, and Klayvio. Littledata has continued to develop its offerings, products, and resources to help DTC brands be inspired by data and grow their brands. This takes detailed ambition for how and what we will do—much of which comes from our in-person conversations.  Making work fun In our downtime, you can find team members playing games around the hotel, grabbing a company-sponsored massage, exploring the local scenery, doing lite yoga, and more. The venue for each offsite is totally different, but the common thread is togetherness and enjoying the culture the teams have built.  When asked Natalie Upton, Head People and Operations at Littledata, why we make this investment each year she said, "When we invest in in-person offsites, it pays off. We genuinely see our offsites being an excellent learning opportunity as well as bonding as a team and having fun. We have a very curious team, and in-person offsites help us to build confidence in our company's journey. Offsites at Littledata build the DNA of our culture and, in turn, help us to grow faster." Learn and share In the first half of the week, we held several 45-minute learning sessions conducted by team members from different departments. We call this the “Unconference,” inspired by the great times our team has had at MeasureCamp meetups around the world. The learning and discussion sessions covered specifics about our product and roadmap, new challenges on the horizon, sales and marketing, and insights to better understand the current industry happenings.  Littledata has been fortunate to have team members who have both grown with the company and uprise of ecommerce analytics, as well as new joiners who bring fresh ideas to the table. Embracing an always-learning mentality has helped Littledata separate in the quality of the product and customer experience. This has not happened by accident but through the constant pursuit of excellence and education about the ecommerce industry.  You might be visiting us for the first time so in a nutshell, Littledata is a top-rated Shopify app that provides accurate data for modern DTC brands—once you log in to your Shopify account it literally takes ten minutes to set up we start tracking and sending data to top destinations, like Google Analytics or Segment. This removes a huge barrier for brands to have proper attribution for data analysis and building their audiences—saving time and money.  We geek out on the data. However, we are a creative bunch full of new ideas and willing to take on new challenges and long term bets. Working in technology, our team always has an eye on the changing landscape and what data or tactics can lead our customers down the road to success faster. An example of this was discovered on a call with one of our amazing customers, Flux Footwear, who went from zero to six figures using Littledata and Segment Twilio to launch their brand.  Meeting in person to celebrate and learn from these success stories is crucial to our culture and motivates our teams for what is next. Post meetings, you will often see unplanned pods of team members reviewing code, looking at campaign outlines, or talking about any core projects — this is where we truly thrive as a team and working together. Sounds fun, right? We are always looking for the right people to join our team  Littledata has an evolving need as we grow for problem solvers and solution finders. You might be thinking this sounds like a great place to work. It is! Whether or not you see an open position that fits your skillset, we’re always on the lookout for motivated team members to join us on this journey to be inspired by data.  Want to be a part of a workplace that goes beyond the regular 9 to 5 and offers something more? Somewhere to grow professionally and personally, surrounded by teammates who make you feel at home wherever you are in the world? Check out our open positions and apply to become part of the special culture we’ve fostered at Littledata!

Direct-to-consumer (DTC) brands continue to innovate worldwide, and we know that by 2023 both large and small DTC brands will bring in over $150 billion in the United States alone.  While these brands bring value via their products, many today go the extra mile in their mission to support the environment, healthy lifestyles, or other social causes. Intelligent buyers want more out of brands than a good product—they want to find their tribe.  But how does your tribe find you? Littledata has seen consumers unite behind brands like Grind, Rothy's, and Flux Footwear, bolstering support, sales, and awareness. What do these brands have in common? Besides offering high-quality products and an unmatched user experience, they are all purpose-driven brands who have taken a data-driven approach to audience building and ecommerce growth marketing. And to do that they have built a modern data stack. Step One: Finding the data In today’s increasingly crowded market, DTC brands need to find a way to set themselves apart from the rest. Appealing to consumers' ethos, values, and lifestyles is one of the most effective ways we’ve seen. [tip]Brands use first-party data, collected directly from their customers and websites to re-engage their ideal customers using Google Ads or Facebook Conversions API.[/tip] So how do DTC brands dial in on these values to help navigate company decisions?  We believe all good business decisions are backed by a healthy dose of data discovery—understanding the ins and outs of how customers engage with your brand online and their key demographics.  Finding a single source of truth for that intel is crucial for developing user personas and personalized content for your customer.  One important source of truth is how consumers interact with a brand's ecommerce storefront, but it can seem overwhelming to try to get accurate data about what’s really going on with online shoppers. Our friends at Twilio Segment say it best, “Investing in data quality will improve trust in your data, reduce time spent navigating and validating data, and ultimately allow your business to grow faster.”  Customer data from Shopify or BigCommerce stores can be reported directly in Google Analytics neatly and accurately. This brings to the surface marketing attribution, shopping behavior, checkout experiences, and how subscription customers engage with ecommerce stores.  [tip]Littledata now offers a connection to Google Analytics 4 while running in parallel with Universal Analytics.[/tip] These metrics give way for technical leaders and ecommerce managers to make data-driven decisions that drive personalization. Shopify encourages merchants to drive more personalized emails using analytics. Reviewing how customers engage with your website, from what channel, and their demographics can help brands improve email campaign performance. Step Two: Data-driven personalization Personalization lets the customer know brand care, and when 308 billion emails are sent every day it's important to stand out with unique and targeted emails.  [tip] First-party data is information collected directly from customers or website visitors. This could be on your website, in your app, or through channels such as email and text/SMS. Learn more in our new White Paper: A World Without Cookies [/tip] We’ve seen this first-hand at Littledata, and the issues have become even more urgent during the pandemic and the recent economic downturn. “For purpose-driven brands in particular, organic channels such as email and SMS marketing aren’t just optional – they’re the key to unlocking rapid growth with limited budgets and more brands competing for conscious consumers,” says Littledata co-founder and CMO Ari Messer. Littledata’s customers use apps like Klaviyo and Attentive for customer communications, and we help them get the data they need to turn those channels into personalization superstars. “For purpose-driven brands in particular, organic channels such as email and SMS marketing aren’t just optional – they’re key to unlocking rapid growth” Data for business growth is no longer something that needs to be overly complex or left only in the hands of data scientists. With both no-code and low-code solutions, most customers can access and implement the Littledata app in about 10 minutes. Littledata has meticulously developed a no-code tracking solution that brings you the most accurate and needed data (including custom dimensions for LTV) that your team can use to reach new heights and continue to make an impact.  "We launched our shoe brand utilizing Littledata's integration and data layer. While they handled our ata we were able to focus on other parts of the business. We're a little over a year old and with the help of Littledata, we've gone from generating 6 figures of revenue in our first 2 quarters to doing 6 figures a month. They've been our central tool for linking Google Analytics, Facebook CAPI, and Shopify" —Flux Footwear, Co-Founder Benjamin Loschen Customers today are more educated and motivated by brands—how they buy influences the things they care about. Brands who understand these motivations and can pinpoint opportunities. They can connect behavioral data to marketing tactics and campaigns. Then when brands step back and look at customer LTV and AOV, they can see which customers are the most engaged and re-target them more granularly. Focusing on the product they are selling but also on the impact and mission they are contributing to by being a loyal customer of that brand.

Targeted ads have become essential for modern brands who want to find buyers in their niche and attract them with unique, engaging messaging. There's a wide range of content and delivery formats you can try, too. Video ads, carousel ads, dynamic product ads, user-generated content—the sky is the limit on how creative brands can leverage social ads to drive reach, conversions, and revenue. Just check out Facebook’s Ad Libary to see what we mean.   But, due to many well-documented changes to third-party data, users of these ads have had to adapt to a new digital landscape and adjust the way they collect buyer data. In this guide, we will walk you through how to set up a Meta Facebook Manager Account and create ads using Meta's new first-party data solution—the Facebook Conversions API. Follow these simple steps below and you'll be ready to start tracking customer behavior and put that data to work for your Shopify store. How to set up Meta Facebook Ad Manager Step 1: Create your Meta Business Account Head over to Meta’s Business Suite and set up your account by clicking “create account” if you have not already done so using your Facebook login. This will allow you to request and manage page permissions to create a Facebook Ad Account. You will need to have permission to the page to connect your store to Facebook Ads Manager.  Step 2: Connect a Facebook Ads account to your Meta Business Account Now that you’ve connected your business page from the dashboard, you can add, request access to, or create an ad account. This is where you'll create ads for your business, monitor spending, and execute your overall ads strategy. Step 3: Add Google Analytics to your Shopify store Next, you'll need to set up reporting to see the effectiveness of your ads. There are a couple of ways to add Google Analytics to your Shopify store, but we'll be sharing a solution here that both works for store owners of any expertise level and is one of the fastest—using the Littledata Shopify to GA connection. [tip]Don’t have a Littledata account yet? Sign up here for a free 30-day trial on us![/tip] Setup for using Littledata's Shopify to Google Analytics is as easy as signing up, installing the app from the Shopify app store, and following the self-serve onboarding flow to add Littledata's tracking script to your store. We have a complete detailed guide you can follow as well. Once you’ve connected, you will be able to see the following applicable events in your Facebook Ad Manager Account:  Great job! You are on your way to starting to run your ads based on accurate data from your Shopify store. Next, we'll set up the Conversions API to run those powerful dynamic ads. How to set up Facebook's Conversions API on your Shopify store Once you're set up in Ad Manager, have Littledata installed, and have your reporting ready in Google Analytics, adding the Conversions API only takes a few steps. First, you'll add the connection from the Littledata dashboard and approve the change to your plan. CAPI uses a combination of client-side and server-side tracking to increase event match quality and Facebook Pixel attribution, so the next step is to enter your Facebook Pixel ID into the app. Finally, in your Business Manager account under the Events Manager section, you'll generate an access token to include with your Pixel ID and finalize the connection. And voila! You're ready to start running dynamic ads and reach your ideal customers using Facebook CAPI. Conclusion Social ads might be changing in our new cookie-less world, but by leveraging the power of server-side tracking and first-party data through tools like Facebook's Conversions API, you can still gain crucial insights about your audience and create ads that will delight them. Now that you know how to get your Meta Business Manager and Facebook Ads accounts up and running, plus how to set up the new Facebook Conversions API, the only next step is to make sure you have the best possible reporting for your data so you can make decisions based on a single source of truth. Try Littledata free for 30 days to see the difference it makes having a truly accurate data layer for your store, plus access to connections that help you manage subscriptions, paid ads, headless setups, and more. [subscribe]

We're excited to announce that Littledata launched today on Product Hunt, a community where people find great apps and tools. While Littledata is not by any means a new product, we’ve built something pretty special and powerful over the last several years we can't wait to share—accurate ecommerce tracking in Google Analytics 4. [tip]Get the scoop on the rise of GA4, the sunsetting of Universal Analytics, and what we recommend to make the switch.[/tip] Recently when we surveyed an audience of about 40 Shopify stores, only 16% said they had enabled GA4 and will be ready for the sunsetting of Universal Analytics this July. We’ve now made it our mission to help more ecommerce stores set up a GA4 property and build out the next steps for their data layer. Our promise to you is no code, accurate data, courses on ecommerce like GA4, and top-notch customer service. Product Hunt will help us bring more visibility to Littledata's data platform—but we could use your help. Jump into our launch to share your experience with Littledata and check out what we have going on. [tip]Need some help setting up your GA4 property? Book a demo with our analytics experts and they'll show you how in just a few clicks.[/tip]

As marketers, we are always looking at top tools the pros use—or the ones folks with the little blue checkmarks next to their Twitter handles recommended to the masses. In my experience, while it is crucial to test new tools to help move the needle forward and find new solutions, choosing the right ones can present the biggest challenge. These are the top five tech tools that stand out to me after chatting with merchants, attending conferences, and working in the ecommerce space. Set Up Accurate Tracking Using Littledata (let's start with a shameless plug) Well, you knew this one was coming. Data is not in the WANT category of apps for your Shopify store. It is a NEED. I am all in on making decisions from experience and intuition as a marketer. But you become even more dangerous and equipped when you add accurate data to the mix. Having reliable metrics in your arsenal allows you to tear apart your funnel to see what works and doesn't. Tracking user behavior gives you an up-close look at your customer's needs. Accurate marketing attribution data gives you a predictable revenue forecast using LTV, AOV, and order volume. Before jumping into other apps, set up your tracking in Google Analytics for proper monitoring, reporting, and remarketing. Littledata makes this a breeze taking the average store about 10-mins to set up automatic tracking. [tip]Littledata also offers a 30-day free trial so you can see the difference before you spend a dime![/tip] Master Recurring Orders with Recharge You've probably heard the saying, "it's six times more expensive to win a new customer than to retain an existing one". Many merchants would probably say it's much higher than that. This is where subscription tools like Recharge come into play in a big way. Making it wicked easy for a customer who loves your product to buy it on a recurring basis can help you achieve increased sales and maintain customer relationships. Recharge works with over 15,000 brands and helps them increase LTV and customer engagement while reducing churn—two things we all talk about in the ecommerce ecosystem. They even offer a fancy-free LTV Calculator so that merchants can get an idea of how they can grow their business using subscriptions. Another perk is that Littledata integrates with Recharge! Customer Success Engaging with your customers and providing first-class support is incredibly important for any business. When you are doing it virtually, though, things can be missed. That's why automating your support workflow the best place to start. We recommend our friends over at Gorgias who pride themselves on helping ecommerce brands with their app.     Recently, they worked with popular DTC fashion brand Princess Polly to improve their customer support. Gorgias reports in their recent customer success story that "Princess Polly increased their efficiency by 40%, increased their resolution time by 80%, increased first response time by 95%, and improved one-touch tickets by 15%. This allows the brand to quickly connect with customers on a personal level and strengthen customer loyalty." A foundation built on a great team of people combined with customer success tools can help protect and grow the brand you've worked diligently to create while providing a great customer experience. A solid SMS tool Engaging your prospects and customers using SMS is a must in my opinion. There are many stats on how open rates of SMS far exceed email, but as many marketers know, we use different channels for a range of outcomes and communications. A stat that recently caught my eye was from our friends over at Attentive. Recently they shared a case study reporting a 900% increase in year-over-year SMS-driven revenue for their new client, Thrive Market. The basis for this growth was implementing a few things you can easily try with your ecommerce business: Text to join or sign up Welcome Campaign Free gift with purchase Custom landing pages for direct SMS Check out their integrations page to see how you might be able to leverage their tool for your brand. Drive Reviews for Social Proof Getting reviews can be a huge pain in the neck and often is an afterthought for ecommerce brands. Outlining and creating a “review strategy” is a healthy place to start. Start by asking yourself questions like "What products do I want reviews on?" or "Should I frame the request to highlight a specific product or attribute about the brand?" These are among the most important things to consider when asking for a good review. Once outlined, pair that “review strategy” with Okendo, which is built to capture high-impact customer reviews and showcase them on your site to build trust and drive conversions. These reviews help create social proof, which often means an action taken in light of one seeing the action of another. In this case, a purchase from another would impact the likelihood of someone trusting but then also desiring to make a purchase themselves. Reviews are also an amazing way to secure user-generated content from your customers. Seeing your product in action in everyday life is heartwarming as a merchant, but can also impact those looking to buy—which can lead to better conversion rates. Conclusion The bottom line when it comes to tool selection? Don't stress too much. These are the top tools I've found merchants recommend (and ones I stand by myself), but in the end it's most important to make sure that your tools not only fit your overall product vision, but fit with each other as well. That last point can be a bit of a sticking spot if you aren't using the right connector to bring everything together. Littledata does this very well. In fact, we have a whole case study you can check out to see how apparel brand johnnie-O leveraged our analytics app to do just that.

When it’s time to think about data, our minds can often turn right to dull spreadsheets, dense reports, and stressful conversations around bottom lines. In reality, data and analytics have actually become far more approachable—and even exciting—in recent years, thanks in large part to the introduction of more intuitive reporting tools. From versatile apps like Google Analytics to specific tracking tools like Facebook’s Conversions API, being able to add precise tools to our tech stacks empowers the inner data geek in all of us. With the right setup, we’re able to learn far more about our buyers and their journeys—whether that be the channels that referred them or how many times they’ve come to our site. We can even track actions taken on our stores too and deep dive into what happens at the mighty check out. Ultimately, all this information helps us evaluate where we can improve the customer experience and understand what we need to do to amplify what’s working within our strategies. How data fuels your store’s growth Today, growth marketing takes many different forms, all with the goal to attract, engage, and delight customers. At its core, generating growth comes down to constantly monitoring and evaluating digital metrics—taking a pulse on the day-to-day so you know your business goals are being met and your customers are being heard. This is where Littledata swoops in to become your team’s ecommerce data platform and a single source of truth. It’s the central piece of your stack that brings everything together, letting you develop and implement sound growth strategies on Shopify and Big Commerce. Growth marketing can only work at its best with accurate and reliable data. An example from the real world Recently, I was chatting with a store owner for a Shopify DTC brand selling baby products. They were doing over $50,000 a month in sales on average in 2021—not a small brand by any means. When I asked about their tech stack and how the company monitors analytics, the owner told me, “(We have) Google Analytics, yes, but I have not learned how to analyze my business. Simple as that.” I shared how data is a journey for every store that helps store owners understand what customers are doing and where to spend to engage them. The store owner replied, “Totally, I was just in Google Analytics, and none of my AOVs match up with my channels. Good to know there are tools at least”. We see this every day from all-size brands—companies need to resolve these unhealthy errors in their reporting. How to fix your analytics Littledata got its start consulting for brands just like the one I spoke with. In doing so, we discovered a major problem with their reporting and analytics. Since then our mission has been to make it ridiculously easy to connect sales, marketing, and customer data. Top DTC brands around the world trust Littledata’s smart connections for accurate ecommerce analytics. Since launching our first Shopify app in 2017, we have empowered thousands of data-driven brands to make better decisions to accelerate growth. We do this not only through our new integrations, tools, and online resources for stores but also by partnering with notable agencies and tech providers around the globe. One area where data can be critical is the notorious checkout. Take, for example, a scenario where you notice many store visitors are reaching the checkout but seem to drop off during the actual completion or conversion point. Might it be helpful to know exactly where these folks are dropping off in the checkout flow? Let’s take a look at the user journey above. The checkout journey starts when a user clicks the checkout button and Littledata’s connector logs the events and labels them in your Google Analytics Destination. Being able to track these steps can be highly insightful into your customers’ behavior, why they drop off, or even for retargeting based on checkout with Adwords. In the end, all this works to help you make the right moves with your check-out flow for both one-off and recurring orders. Tip: Did you know 12 out of every 100 Shopify orders go missing in Shopify’s own analytics? See how to get them back. So what are some basics we can do to get started? How can we really grow our business with data? Do you start with AOV, LTV, CAC, or one of the many other ecommerce acronyms that keep us up at night? Littledata is here to serve you. Just as it did for the store owner I mentioned above, the solution starts with showing you if the data you’re using is valid or a dumpster fire. Here are a few resources to start evaluating and measuring if your data is accurate: Many of our customers start with reviewing their Shopify reporting against Google Analytics—here is an ebook to help you get started on that journey. Subscriptions are paving the way for the hyper-growth of DTC brands. If you’re using Recharge, Smartrr, Bold, or Segment in your stack and want to learn more about attribution to make data-driven decisions, you can learn more here. Bring in the right data from your existing tech stack—check out our integrations and connections. Look at our reviews on Shopify, Big Commerce, and G2. These are responses and insights from real DTC Stores. They might have a helpful perspective or have solved a problem using Littledata that you are facing now. Book a demo with our experts—we’re friendly, experienced, and have helped thousands of store owners just like you! Want to get started right this second? Easy. Jump in with a 30-Day Free Trial of Littledata. Your accurate data awaits you!