Understanding the _mkto_trk Cookie in Marketo
Understanding how tracking cookies work is crucial for optimizing campaigns and ensuring accurate data collection. One such cookie is the _mkto_trk cookie! Today, let’s delve into the workings of the _mkto_trk cookie, its implications for lead tracking, and best practices for managing it.
What is the _mkto_trk Cookie?
The _mkto_trk cookie is a client-side cookie generated by Marketo. It resides in the browser's cookie store, even if the browser cannot connect to a Marketo instance. The value of the _mkto_trk cookie does not change on its own, but its association with a specific person in your Marketo instance can change under certain conditions.
Default Behavior and Lead Association
By default, if two leads share the same browser profile, activities on your website will be associated with the first lead to receive an association via a clicked link in an email. This means that if multiple users use the same browser profile, their actions may be attributed to the wrong lead.
Why This Happens?
This default behavior should not be surprising. If individuals are careless enough about security to check their email from the same machine and browser profile, they should not expect that actions within that profile are isolated. Logging out and back into email services like Gmail does not affect the tracking cookie set by other sites, including Marketo.
Potential Issues
If a second lead clears cookies for all domains, they might expect not to be mistaken for the first lead on other sites. However, this action can disrupt the first lead's future web experience, as their tracking data would be lost.
Cookie Expiration and Activity Log
The _mkto_trk cookie does not expire for two years, ensuring long-term tracking capabilities. However, the actions associated with those cookies will age out of the Activity Log long before the browser stops sending the cookie. This means that while the cookie remains in the browser, its usefulness in tracking user actions diminishes over time as the Activity Log data ages out.
Conclusion
The _mkto_trk cookie is a powerful tool for tracking user activities and associating them with people in Marketo. However, it is important to understand its default behaviors and manage it effectively to ensure accurate data collection and tracking.
Munchkin lead association, facilitated by the _mkto_trk cookie, is a practical solution for most marketing purposes. While it is not a substitute for a real authentication layer, it serves most purposes very well.