The Challenge
A fast-growing B2B SaaS startup serving European customers faced a frustrating tradeoff: their cookie consent banner was hurting conversions, but removing it would mean non-compliance with GDPR. Analytics data showed that 40% of visitors were rejecting or ignoring consent, leaving massive gaps in their product analytics.
The marketing team couldn't accurately measure campaign performance. The product team was making decisions based on incomplete funnel data. And the constant consent banner friction was contributing to higher bounce rates on their signup pages.
Key Requirements
- Eliminate consent friction: Remove cookie banners entirely without violating GDPR
- Complete data accuracy: Track 100% of visitors, not just those who consent
- Real-time analytics: See current user activity without delays
- Conversion tracking: Accurately measure signup funnels and feature adoption
- Minimal performance impact: Page speed was critical for their PLG motion
The Solution
We implemented Databuddy's cookieless analytics platform, replacing their existing GA4 + cookie consent setup with a privacy-by-design solution that requires no consent banners because it doesn't use cookies, fingerprinting, or persistent identifiers.
Architecture Overview
- Databuddy Cloud: Managed analytics platform with EU data residency
- 3KB tracking script: 65x smaller than GA4, zero impact on Core Web Vitals
- Session-based tracking: Privacy-safe session identification without cookies
- Real-time dashboard: Live user counts, active sessions, and event streams
Implementation Process
Day 1: Setup and Integration
Databuddy setup took under 30 minutes. We added the 3KB script to their Next.js application, configured custom events for their key user actions (signup, onboarding steps, feature activation), and set up conversion goals.
Day 2: Funnel Configuration
We built conversion funnels matching their existing GA4 setup: visitor → signup → onboarding → activation → paid conversion. We also configured session replay for qualitative insights into user behavior, with automatic PII masking.
Day 3: Dashboard and Training
We configured real-time dashboards for the product and marketing teams, set up Web Vitals monitoring (LCP, FID, CLS), and trained the team on Databuddy's interface. The cookie consent banner was removed the same day.
Results
Within the first month after removing the consent banner and switching to Databuddy:
- 30% increase in signup conversion: Removing consent friction had an immediate impact on funnel completion
- 100% visitor tracking: No more data gaps from consent rejection—every visitor is tracked accurately
- Zero GDPR concerns: Cookieless architecture means no consent required under GDPR legitimate interest
- Improved page speed: 3KB script vs 45KB for GA4 improved their Lighthouse scores
- Real-time visibility: Marketing can see campaign impact immediately, not 24-48 hours later
Technical Details
How Databuddy achieves cookieless tracking:
- No cookies: Zero first-party or third-party cookies stored
- No fingerprinting: No browser fingerprinting or device identification
- Session-based: Sessions are identified through privacy-safe, non-persistent methods
- Server-side processing: All data processing happens server-side with automatic anonymization
- Ad-blocker resistant: First-party data collection isn't blocked by privacy tools
"We spent months trying to optimize our consent flow. Turns out the best consent experience is no consent experience. Databuddy gave us better data AND better conversions—we should have switched sooner."
Why Cookieless Matters
The shift to cookieless analytics isn't just about compliance—it's about better data:
- No consent bias: Cookie consent creates selection bias—privacy-conscious users opt out, skewing your data toward less privacy-aware segments
- Higher accuracy: When you track 100% of visitors instead of 60%, your funnel metrics actually reflect reality
- Future-proof: As browsers continue restricting cookies and tracking, cookieless analytics will become the standard