Challenge
Puck News serves over 4 million monthly visitors through a subscription-based model. Their tracking was scattered across hardcoded scripts with no tag management system, no consent handling, and no server-side event tracking for subscription revenue. They needed a complete tracking infrastructure rebuild that could handle their traffic volume while maintaining data accuracy and privacy compliance.
Solution
I designed and implemented their entire tracking architecture:
- GTM Migration: Consolidated all scattered tracking scripts into Google Tag Manager, eliminating hardcoded analytics code from the theme and centralizing tag governance.
- Subscription Funnel Tracking: Built end-to-end event tracking for the subscription lifecycle from sign-up through cancellation, enabling accurate churn reporting and funnel optimization.
- Server-Side Events with Stripe: Implemented server-side conversion tracking through Stripe webhooks, ensuring revenue events are captured with 100% accuracy regardless of browser-based tracking limitations.
- Consent Management: Integrated consent handling through GTM with proper consent mode configuration for privacy-compliant tracking across their international audience.
- BigQuery Integration: Configured Google Cloud Functions and BigQuery for advanced data handling, routing key events directly into the data warehouse for analysis beyond what GA4 reporting provides.
Results
- Accurate Revenue Data: Server-side Stripe events provide a true picture of subscription revenue that browser-based tracking alone would miss.
- Complete Funnel Visibility: Every stage of the subscriber journey is tracked, giving the editorial and business teams actionable data on what drives conversions and what causes churn.
- Privacy-Compliant Infrastructure: Consent management ensures tracking respects user preferences while maintaining data consistency for visitors who opt out of browser-based analytics.