What are the hidden costs of server-side tracking solutions?

hidden costs developer maintenance tco total cost

Quick Answer

GTM solutions hide massive costs: developer setup ($5K-24K), monthly maintenance ($750-1,500), emergency fixes (rush rates), infrastructure scaling, and platform API updates requiring reconfiguration. Client-side tracking hides opportunity cost: 30-40% data loss equals wasted ad spend. WordPress-native eliminates both.

Full Answer

Visible cost (monthly subscription) is the tip of the iceberg. GTM solutions require: initial developer setup (50-120 hours), ongoing maintenance when things break, updates when Facebook/Google change APIs, infrastructure scaling as traffic grows, and emergency fixes when tracking fails on peak sales days. Client-side only has different hidden costs: 30-40% data loss means algorithms train wrong, ROAS suffers, and you waste 5-15% of ad spend on misattribution.