Signal Loss launch: why Google Analytics isn't as useful as it used to be

It's launch week for Q4 and this edition is all about Signal Loss. Whilst demand for accurate reporting data is as high as it has ever been, access to clean and reliable web data is arguably worse than it has been since the launch of the web. To kick things off, we dig into cookie compliance and why Google Analytics (or GA4) isn't anywhere near as accurate as it used to be. Thankfully, we have a few thoughts on what marketing teams can do ahead of planning their 2027 marketing strategies! Chapters 00:00 Introduction and episode overview 00:16 Meet the hosts and episode context 01:03 Series focus on trust and signal loss in Q4 02:12 Setting the scene for tracking challenges in 2026 05:23 Technical overview of web tracking and cookies 07:18 The decline of Google Analytics and cookie compliance 12:03 The rise of third-party tracking and privacy laws 17:30 Browser controls and their impact on tracking 20:46 GA4 and the limitations of cookie-based tracking 23:23 Impact of cookie banners and user opt-in behavior 26:12 Data segmentation and bias in tracking data 30:42 Triangulating data sources for accurate insights 31:41 Design considerations for cookie banners and UX 35:39 The future of cookies and alternative tracking methods 39:55 Google’s evolving approach to privacy and ad targeting 44:48 Emerging AI tools and privacy concerns 46:26 Key takeaways: triangulation and data reliability 47:05 Jargon busting: understanding junk bonds