AudienceStream: Use Case - Adobe Analytics (SiteCatalyst)

[#1]

Introduction

Tag Vendor: Adobe Analytics (SiteCatalyst) + Adobe Data Insertion API

Adobe References:

• Adobe Data Insertion API: https://marketing.adobe.com/developer/documentation/data-insertion/r-sample-http-get
• Adobe Visitor IDs: http://microsite.omniture.com/t2/help/en_US/mcvid/mcvid_analytics.html
• Adobe Analytics Parameters: http://microsite.omniture.com/t2/help/en_US/sc/implement/query_parameters.html
• More about Adobe timestamps: http://microsite.omniture.com/t2/help/en_US/sc/implement/timestamp.html

Key Attributes:

1. Adobe Analytics Visitor ID: This is the Adobe Analytics visitor ID being used by the specific client implementation. Adobe Analytics has several visitor ID options, so you'll have to verify this on a client-by-client basis. You can verify which visitor ID is being used through Adobe's DigitalPulse Debugger. For the purpose of this article, we will be using the visitor ID from Adobe Analytics's first-party cookie, "s_vi".
2. Timestamp (optional): This only needs to be provided if the Adobe Analytics Report Suite that is capturing data is also configured to do so. Submitting a timestamp to a Report Suite where the feature is not enabled will cause the data to be discarded. Conversely, not submitting a timestamp to a Report Suite where it is enabled will also cause the data to be discarded. Timestamps are typically enabled for Report Suites used for mobile apps and for report suites used specifically for delayed (ie. offline ) data. Once enabled for timestamps, a Report Suite can no longer collect data generated by the JS library. For the purpose of this article, we will be sending data to a Report Suite that does not require timestamps and also receives data from the standard JS libraries. For more information on timestamps, see https://marketing.adobe.com/developer/documentation/data-insertion/c-sequential-data and https://marketing.adobe.com/developer/documentation/data-insertion/c-delayed-data
3. Pagename (also seen as "gn"): A page name given to each request from EventStream or AudienceStream so that you can isolate *Stream related data from other data in Adobe Analytics
4. Props (cXX), eVars (vXX), and Events (ev): The various data points that you want to submit into Adobe Analytics via the AudienceStream connector.

Use Case: Trigger a call to Adobe Analytics's Data Insertion API when a specific set of criteria are met. For this example, we'll be using a simple event (signing up for a newsletter) but AudienceStream will show it's true potential when basing the trigger for the connector on a more complex set of visitor behaviors.

Step 1: Get the Adobe Analytics Visitor ID

Adobe Analytics has several visitor ID options, so you will have to determine which visitor ID is being used in your client's implementation. For this example, we'll be grabbing the visitor ID from the 1st-party cookie, "s_vi", which is the portion in bold:

[CS]v1|2A581B438519146B-40000610000081A1[CE]

In order go get this subset of data from the cookie, you will have to create a Set Data Values extension to parse it out. The code below is: b["cp.s_vi"].split("|")[1].split("|")[0]

Step 2: Store the Visitor ID in AudienceStream

Once the visitor ID is available in the data layer, create a Trait attribute in AudienceStream to store the value. Make sure to check that the visitor ID value in the data layer is both assigned and not an empty string before storing it in AudienceStream.

Step 3: Create Additional Attributes That Will Be Sent in the Adobe Analytics connector

Define any remaining attributes that you may want to send in the Adobe Analytics connector. In this example, the only other attributes are the Flag to determine if the visitor has subscribed to the newsletter and the Badge to determine if all criteria are met for the final Audience.

Newsletter Subscriber Flag

Adobe Analytics Webhook Badge

Step 4: Define an Audience for the Webhook

Create an Audience based on the above badge. Visitor's who have this badge and are in the audience have both a valid Adobe Analytics visitor ID as well has subscribed for the newsletter

Step 5: Configure Connector

For this step, we will be configuring the Adobe Analytics connector where the data will be submitted to a specific API URL.

First, you'll need to configure your Adobe endpoint. Adobe's current documentation shows that URL to look something like the following where you will substitute the {client} and {rsid} values based on your Adobe Analytics configuration:

http://{client}.d2.sc.omtrdc.net/b/ss/{rsid}0

For more information, see: https://marketing.adobe.com/developer/documentation/data-insertion/r-sample-http-get

Next, you'll need to configure the action. You can start mapping your data in AudienceStream to the appropriate variables in Adobe Analytics. For a full list of Adobe Analytics variables, see:

http://microsite.omniture.com/t2/help/en_US/sc/implement/query_parameters.html

The most common variables you will be setting will probably be

• Props (cXX): c5 in the example below
• eVars (vXX): v8 in the example below
• Events (ev): ev in the example below. Note that ev is receiving a static value of event5 and doesn't necessarily have to map to an AudienceStream attribute.

Disclaimer: All the eVars, props, and events are assumed to already be configured in Adobe Analytics and that we're just sending data into active variables. Configuration may and will vary, below is just an example.

Step 6: Act!

You can immediately confirm the data in Adobe Analytics by creating a Real-Time report that monitors the value submitted in s.pageName. In order to create this report, your login will need access to this Adobe Analytics feature.