# Ensure GDPR Compliance using Consent Mode

Consent Mode is an impact.com feature (currently in beta) that helps you maximize tracking and attribution in regions where tracking requires user consent. The regions mainly affected by this are in EMEA — or more specifically, the European Economic Area (EEA).

#### Why is tracking harder in countries where GDPR applies?

Under GDPR, companies like impact.com are not allowed to track a user until that user has explicitly provided tracking consent. Usually, that consent is given via a popup such as the one below.

<div data-with-frame="true"><figure><img src="https://4048883401-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FwMLlMoFBtKJa8ptd3zaw%2Fuploads%2Fgit-blob-f05e67ed26b539118c051439b5a8cdab7f82c30b%2F4c64fc0f527938407657a2ad60bd68f07be136fe6807bc026fde9bd51198313a.png?alt=media" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

If a user is in a GDPR country and does not select **Accept All**, impact.com can’t track them. That means that no clicks on the partner's site or app can be registered, and there is no way to tell if that user eventually converted. A [2023 study](https://www.advance-metrics.com/en/blog/cookie-behaviour-study/) found that only 25% of users select **Accept All**, on average, and only a tiny fraction select to customize their cookies. Most users either reject all cookies or ignore the banner entirely.

#### Is anything trackable without consent?

Yes! If the user clicks on a *loyalty* or *rewards* offer that requires tracking in order to deliver the promised reward, you have the legal right to track that user journey. The user is expecting to get their reward (such as cash back), and you have to be able to track the actions to verify that the reward was earned.

Even though you have the right to track those reward clicks, they are not currently tracked by default. That’s where Consent Mode comes in. Consent Mode lets impact.com track unconsented rewards clicks and any resulting conversions, to credit those conversions to the appropriate partners. The partner, in turn, can then deliver the promised rewards to their users.

#### Why use Consent Mode?

Often, when a conversion is not tracked due to a lack of consent, the user complains to your partner, who submits an action inquiry with you and/or impact.com. It takes the support team's time and efforts to ultimately discover that the initial click was not tracked because the user did not provide consent, and that’s why the user never got paid or rewarded.

| Persona      | Without consent mode                                                                                        | With consent mode                                                                                    |
| ------------ | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Brands**   | You are missing out on valid conversions and thus underreporting the value of your program.                 | You see higher conversion volumes in your impact.com program.                                        |
| **Partners** | End up not getting credit for all the conversions they drive and thus missing out on revenue.               | Make more money and get fewer support tickets & complaints.                                          |
| **Users**    | Are not consistently receiving their expected rewards after clicking a loyalty offer and making a purchase. | Have a better experience with loyalty/rewards sites, since they get their rewards more consistently. |

#### How does Consent Mode work?

Consent Mode gives partners a simple way to mark any given link as a *rewards link* (making it exempt from the normal consent requirements). When a partner adds `im_rewards=1` to their tracking link, impact.com knows to track that user journey, ignoring consent status.

**How can you or your partners start using Consent Mode?**

{% tabs %}
{% tab title="Brand" %}
You will need to make a slight change to your integration, which means you will need to get help from your integrations team to help with a JavaScript update. This [Integration Guide for Consent Mode](https://integrations.impact.com/impact-brand/docs/integrate-consent-mode-on-impactcom) will get them on the right track, and the impact.com technical support team can help where needed.
{% endtab %}

{% tab title="Partner" %}
The partner needs to append the `im_rewards=1` parameter to any tracking links that correspond to a loyalty or rewards offer. That parameter is only available to Loyalty/Cashback partners and tells impact.com that the link is a rewards link, thus exempt from the normal consent requirements and that the user journey should be tracked regardless of consent status.

Read more about [Implementing Tracking for Rewards Programs](https://app.gitbook.com/s/b2rE79d9UhOKZQLgzSqx/what-would-you-like-to-learn-about/platform-features/tracking/tracking-links/link-parameters/implement-tracking-for-rewards-programs) as a partner.
{% endtab %}
{% endtabs %}

**Can you explain Consent Mode with a flowchart?**

Yes! Let's take the example of 1000 clicks. In GDPR countries and when consent is required, impact.com will track and attribute only the clicks for which the user provided consent. In this example, 40% of clicks don’t become attributable. In reality, this can be as high as 80-90%.

<div data-with-frame="true"><figure><img src="https://4048883401-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FwMLlMoFBtKJa8ptd3zaw%2Fuploads%2Fgit-blob-34f39833153ceec67cceb1bd379db18c7c469234%2F8570d32ea0268d71c61fdeaa9a5ba1058b398fe5f0619f0b15f100cb962481ae.jpg?alt=media" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>

With Consent Mode, impact.com can categorize those 1000 clicks into three groups:

| Click group                    | Example                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    |
| ------------------------------ | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Consented Clicks**           | Out of 1000 clicks, 500 are consented. These clicks yield 50 consented actions, all accurately tracked in impact.com's reporting. See the example diagram below.                                                                                                                                                           |
| **Unconsented Rewards Clicks** | <p>Rewards clicks are a distinct category because they represent a service requested by the user and don’t require consent for tracking.</p><p>200 clicks from rewards programs, translate into 20 rewards actions, also fully tracked with Consent Mode. See the example diagram below.</p>                               |
| **Unconsented Clicks**         | Here’s where it gets interesting. From 300 unconsented clicks, impact.com can model an additional 10 actions. Consent mode collects additional signals to allow impact.com to model these actions accurately. This soon-to-come modeling capability will provide even greater transparency. See the example diagram below. |

Thanks to Consent Mode, the reporting reflects 70 tracked actions from consented and rewards clicks. With the upcoming consent modeling feature, impact.com will begin modeling actions from unconsented clicks too. This will allow you to see how many valid actions were not tracked due to nonconsent.

<div data-with-frame="true"><figure><img src="https://4048883401-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FwMLlMoFBtKJa8ptd3zaw%2Fuploads%2Fgit-blob-ce0aa5b5d4d77ded32c39714feb3aae8ae5b2e96%2F571e143511d37545e117eca68d6b0b64b4c6afbe18a213157ab0fd68ad221656.jpg?alt=media" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure></div>
