Our Experience With The New Adobe Experience Platform Web SDK – Webinar Re-Cap

The Adobe Experience Platform (AEP) Web SDK Insider Knowledge Panel is packed full of advice and knowledge from Adobe Analytics experts. Thanks to Geoff Ogrin, Jean-Paul Behrens and Andy Johns who made this Webinar possible. We hope this is a valuable webinar and you can learn a little more about the new AEP Web SDK and the Edge Network. If you have any follow-up questions, please direct them to info@softcrylic.com.

You can view it here! Watch NOW!

Questions covered in the Webinar:

Product

1. Do you need to have the AEP Product to use the new AEP Web SDK?
2. What it alloy.js?
3. Are the individual libraries for Adobe, Target, AAM, etc. being deprecated?
4. Is it true that we can send one single beacon?

Tag Management

1. Do I need Tags (formerly Adobe Launch) to deploy the AEP Web SDK?
2. We just migrated from DTM to Tags; do we now need to migrate to Web SDK?

Data Layer

1. Does my data layer have to be an Adobe Data Layer?
2. What is XDM and what does it mean to my Data Layer?

Analytics

1. Data sends in XDM format now, instead of props, eVars, and events. Can you explain to me how XDM maps to Analytics?
2. What happens to the AA variables going forward?
3. What happens to QA and Debugging?

Target

1. What is different with the Adobe Target Implementation?

Follow-up questions from the audience and answers:

1. Is this like a node.js set up on the server side?
   Similar, node.js is a way to run JavaScript in server-side environments. XDM leverages node.js within some of their tooling, see the GitHub link here: https://github.com/adobe/xdm
2. How does this relate to the App SDKs?
   It is similar however the current App SDK uses a concept of “context data” rather than the XDM the Web SDK uses. Some good news, the AEP App SDK is currently in beta mode. It will be very similar to AEP Web SDK – you’ll create a schema, assign an XDM class, and send data to an Edge network.
3. Why should I get both Tags + Adobe SDK?
   Tags and AEP Web SDK is a good pairing to have. As I mentioned in the Webinar and in full transparency, we have not tested it on another TMS outside Tags. Tags makes it easier to map your client-side variables to XDM and you can setup the Config ID within Tags for the data stream (e.g. where to send all your data). As well another advantage to Tags is you can have your AEP Web SDK extension pull your schema into a single data element and you can tell Tags when to trigger that data element to fire based on page view or events.
4. Does it make sense to use the Edge SDK if you aren’t leveraging the entire Adobe tool set? i.e. you are only leveraging Adobe Analytics (AA) and leveraging other products for testing and DMP?
   I would say it all depends on the AA maturity within your organization. But yes, I think it makes sense to explore this as an option if you are an AA customer only. Just proceed cautiously and do your due diligence on the gaps between AEP Web SDK and your standard AA implementation.
   The server-side capabilities (coming soon), standardized data model, and light page weight of Web SDK provides your Analytics, Data, and Web Performance teams with benefits.
5. Will this cost anything extra to use? Using XDM, or alloy.js?
   If you are currently on the Analytics Product, we do not believe so. The AEP Web SDK is available as a Tags extension now. It is probably best to confirm with your Adobe account representative.
6. Can XDM be consumed by other non-Adobe tools?
   Eventually yes. Adobe is looking to have server-side forwarding capabilities later this year!