Overview
This guide walks you through manually installing the Sona SDK on your website to enable account identification and multi-touch attribution tracking. We recommend installing the SDK directly on your website, since this bypasses ad blockers and ensures more reliable data collection. With this guide you will be ready to confidently implement tracking and start de-anonymizing your website traffic.
When to use this
Choose manual installation when:
You want maximum tracking reliability while bypassing ad blockers.
You have direct access to your website's code.
Before you begin, make sure you have:
A Sona account: access to your Sona account.
Code access: the ability to edit and publish your website's HTML, specifically the
<head>section.A developer if needed: someone on your team who can implement code changes on your website.
Installing the SDK
Follow these steps to add the SDK to your site:
Access your tracking code. Log in to your Sona account and click Settings > General > Tracking Pixel in the left navigation bar.
Optionally, configure a CNAME. This is optional but recommended, since it loads the script from your own website domain instead of a Sona domain, further enhancing reliability.
Choose your tracking configuration. On the Tracking Setup page, select your form capture preference: With Form Capture to have Sona automatically gather form data and send it to your destination, or Without Form Capture for basic tracking without form data collection.
Implement the code. Copy the provided SDK code from the Tracking Setup page, share it with your development team, and place it between the
<head>and</head>tags on every page you want to track. Once implemented, Sona automatically begins tracking events and visitor data.
Best practices
Why manual installation matters: the Sona SDK is extremely lightweight, only 2KB, and designed for optimal performance. Manual installation keeps ad blockers from interfering with your tracking, giving you the most complete and accurate data.
CNAME benefits: setting up a CNAME loads the tracking script from your own domain, which improves performance and accuracy while reducing the chance of being blocked.
Universal implementation: install the SDK on every page where you want to track visitor behavior. Missing pages create gaps in your customer journey data.
FAQs
Why install manually instead of using Google Tag Manager?
Why install manually instead of using Google Tag Manager?
Manual installation places the SDK directly in your site's HTML, which ad blockers are far less likely to interfere with than a script delivered through Google Tag Manager. The result is more complete, accurate data. Use GTM only when editing your site's HTML directly is not feasible.
Do I need to set up a CNAME?
Do I need to set up a CNAME?
A CNAME is optional but recommended. It loads the tracking script from your own domain instead of a Sona domain, which improves performance and tracking accuracy and further reduces the likelihood of being blocked. See the Create a Custom Tracking Domain (CNAME) article for setup steps.
Which pages need the SDK?
Which pages need the SDK?
Install the SDK on every page where you want to track visitor behavior, placed between the <head> and </head> tags. Any page without the SDK will not be tracked, leaving gaps in your customer journey data.