In recent years, the reliability of client-side tracking (traditional GTM or GA4 tags embedded directly in websites) has been steadily declining due to cookie restrictions and Safari’s Intelligent Tracking Prevention (ITP).
For marketers responsible for ad tracking and conversion attribution, the issues of “data not being captured” or “conversion counts not matching” have become everyday challenges.
To address this, more companies are turning their attention to Server-side Google Tag Manager (sGTM).
However, because of the high technical and cost barriers, adoption has so far been limited to large enterprises or advanced engineers.
That’s where Stape comes in — offering server-side tracking solutions and hosting for sGTM.
Why Is sGTM So Difficult?
Traditionally, setting up sGTM required manually building a server environment on Google Cloud Platform (GCP) — configuring Cloud Run, IAM, SSL certificates, domain settings, and more.
This setup process typically involves:
- Creating a Cloud Run service
- Deploying the Tag Manager container
- Connecting with the domain (CNAME / A record)
- Managing HTTPS certificates
- Configuring firewall and load handling
In other words, simply knowing how to use GTM was far from enough — deep infrastructure knowledge was required.
For small businesses and marketers, this setup was impractical, and outsourcing it often resulted in high maintenance costs.
How Stape Changes the Game
Stape eliminates these infrastructure hurdles by providing hosting for sGTM as a SaaS solution.
Once you create an account, everything can be done directly in the browser:
- Create a Server container (just a few clicks)
- Connect it with your Web container
- Add a CNAME record to your DNS
- Publish and test
No GCP or terminal work required — and since the core GTM mechanism remains Google’s own, the interface feels completely familiar.
Stape also provides a Logs tab and a request visualization tool, allowing even non-technical users to manage operations and verify data flow with ease.
Benefits of a SaaS-Based sGTM
The true value of Stape lies not only in how easy it is to set up, but also in how much smoother ongoing operation becomes.
- Automatic SSL & Certificate Management No more manual renewals or re-issuance — Stape handles it automatically.
- Scalable Infrastructure Handles traffic surges automatically with cloud-based scaling. Perfect for ad campaigns or seasonal spikes.
- Click-to-Enable Add-ons Features like CookieKeeper and Custom Loader can be activated with a single click — no manual code or server tweaks required.
- Security & Stability Stape supports multiple data-center regions (EU, US, Asia), allowing users to comply with data-residency requirements and ensure optimal response times.
The Japan region is also supported, ensuring low latency and compliance with domestic data policies.
Basic Implementation Flow
| Step | Description |
| 1 | Register with Stape and create a new Server container |
| 2 | Connect it with your Web container and set up event forwarding |
| 3 | Add your own subdomain (e.g. sgtm.example.com) via DNS |
| 4 | Test with Preview mode |
| 5 | Publish to production |
From “Building” to “Operating” — The Next Standard
The goal of sGTM is not just more accurate measurement — it’s to build a sustainable foundation that balances analytics, advertising, and privacy.
SaaS-based platforms like Stape outperform manual GCP setups in three key areas:
- Implementation speed
- Ease of maintenance
- Lower total cost of ownership
In other words, if you can operate GTM, you can now operate sGTM — thanks to Stape connecting the once-separate worlds of marketing and engineering.
Reliable Data Is the Foundation of AI Analytics
Google Analytics 4 will soon include AI-driven insights, making data analysis accessible to everyone.
However, no matter how advanced the AI, it can only work with accurate data. If cookie loss creates gaps in your dataset, your AI outputs will inevitably be flawed.
sGTM provides the clean, consistent data layer required for reliable AI analytics.
Even the best algorithms can’t fix bad data — so sGTM is the foundation of AI-ready measurement.
Consultation and Setup Support
As an official Stape Partner, mare interno provides implementation and optimization services for Japanese businesses — including sGTM setup, Safari ITP countermeasures, and conversion accuracy improvement.
If you’ve ever thought:
- “I want to try sGTM, but it seems complicated.”
- “GCP setup feels too technical.”
- “We’re losing conversions on Safari or iOS.”
We can help design and manage your Stape setup to fit your specific business environment.
https://stape.io
Final Thoughts — Stape as the Gateway to Server-Side Tracking
At mare interno, we provide consulting and analytics support that bridges both measurement and advertising perspectives.
SaaS-based sGTM platforms like Stape are the perfect entry point to server-side tracking.
By combining them with solutions like Cookie Keeper and Custom Loader, you can achieve long-term measurement stability and full control over first-party data.
In the next article, we’ll focus on Cookie Keeper — and how to maintain cookie lifetimes to stay resilient against Safari ITP.
Would you like me to prepare the same text formatted for publication on the English version of your website (with headings and meta description)?
