As the digital landscape continues to evolve, so too does the need for greater transparency and compliance with data privacy regulations. In response to these growing demands, Microsoft Advertising is rolling out significant updates to its Universal Event Tracking (UET) Consent Mode. If you’re an advertiser with end-users located within the European Economic Area (EEA), Switzerland, or the UK, these changes will impact how you track conversions and optimize your campaigns. Here’s everything you need to know to stay compliant and maintain your campaign performance.

What is Microsoft Advertising UET Consent Mode?

First introduced in 2020, Consent Mode was designed to help advertisers ensure their tracking activities align with GDPR and other digital data policies. It communicates a user’s cookie consent status to tracking systems, allowing only the compliant data to be collected and used.

With the recent launch of Consent Mode V2 in late 2023, Microsoft Advertising is enhancing its focus on end-user consent, particularly in response to the Digital Markets Act. Starting soon, advertisers will need to ensure they’re meeting these updated consent requirements, or risk losing critical tracking and reporting functionality.

Why Does This Matter?

Failure to provide the necessary consent signals to Microsoft through your UET configuration could have serious consequences for your advertising efforts. Without these signals:

• Conversions may not be tracked: This means you won’t have accurate data on how well your campaigns are performing.
• Campaign optimization could suffer: Features that rely on conversion data, such as bid strategies and Performance Max campaigns, will be less effective.
• Audience segments won’t be created: This can hinder your ability to target specific groups of users, leading to a less efficient ad spend.

The bottom line? Without addressing these changes, you may face long-term challenges in campaign performance and data accuracy.

What Should You Do Next?

To ensure compliance and maintain the effectiveness of your campaigns, you’ll need to make some adjustments to your UET tag.

Here are two ways to do this:

1) By adjusting your UET cookie access based on consent status. 

You’ll need to add code to every page on your website to set your default consent setting, and add a separate code to update the setting once the user has provided or denied consent. 

Default setting snippet: 

Update consent settings snippet:

For more information, visit the UET help page.

2) Through the Transparency & Consent Framework (TCF) for UET (only if you have one in place). 

Microsoft integrated with IAB TCF v2.0 so consent signals can be passed directly or via a Consent Management Platform (CMP). This solution requires the following code snippet to be added above your UET tag:

For more information, visit the UET help page.

Conclusion

These upcoming changes to Microsoft Advertising Consent Mode are crucial for ensuring your campaigns remain compliant and effective in a rapidly changing digital environment. By taking the necessary steps to update your UET configuration, you can avoid data loss, maintain accurate reporting, and continue optimizing your campaigns for success.

Don’t wait until the last minute—review your current setup, implement the necessary changes, and ensure your campaigns are ready!