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Ads & Conversion APIs

Criteo OneTag: The Setup

Retargeting lives on product context. OneTag in the browser stays the default path; server-to-server is the exception.

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Event setup at a glance

Browser tag
Criteo OneTag
Server-side API
Events API (server-to-server)
Recommended path
Browser tag only
Deduplication
No

Identifiers

Recommended for match qualityemail (SHA-256)customer_id

Event mapping

E-commerce

viewItemviewListaddToCarttrackTransaction

Consent constraints

  • Retargeting without marketing consent is a non-starter; OneTag hangs entirely on the CMP signal.
  • Hashed emails for identity matching need the same consent basis.

Consent-aware routing assumed. Privacy fit depends on the concrete setup; the legal assessment stays with your privacy team (legal review required).

Implementation methods

  • OneTag via GTM Web with product IDs from the dataLayer
  • Feed and events have to speak the same product IDs

Debugging checklist

  1. Criteo OneTag Verifier
  2. GTM preview mode

Common mistakes

  • Product IDs in the event do not match the feed, retargeting runs on the wrong items.
  • trackTransaction without a dedup concept on page reloads.

Runs on (our setups)

Google Tag Manager Server-Side

A fit when

  • Retargeting with a large product catalog and a maintained feed.
  • E-commerce with clear product IDs in the dataLayer.

Not a fit when

  • The product feed is unmaintained; retargeting then only amplifies errors.
  • Consent rates are so low that retargeting reach barely materialises.

What this destination is about

Criteo is the feed platform on this list: what decides the outcome is not event volume but whether product IDs in events and catalog feed line up. A clean OneTag setup in the browser beats a half-finished server path here.

Where Criteo sits against the other platforms is on the ad platform hub.

For a self-run QA pass: the Consent Mode audit checklist, the CMP QA template, and the consent mapping worksheet.

Sources

Related services

Topical context

  • Criteo OneTag setup
  • Criteo retargeting tracking
  • Criteo GDPR

Do your conversions actually arrive in the ads platforms? The Paid Media Tracking Audit settles it.

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  • Q01
    Why no hybrid path for Criteo?

    Because the payoff is smaller here: Criteo lives on product context in the browser, and the S2S path without a validated dedup concept adds more risk than signal. We re-check that per project.

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