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• The Ultimate List of Alternatives to Google Products

  2 août 2022, par Erin — Privacy

  For many businesses, Google products can play an integral part in the productivity, function and even success of the company. This is because Google has designed their digital ecosystem to infiltrate every aspect of your work and personal life at low-to-no cost.

  On the surface, this seems like a no-brainer. Why not have a cost-effective and seamlessly connected tech stack ? It’s the complete package. 

  From Gmail to Google Analytics, it becomes hard to untangle yourself from this intricate web Google has managed to spin. But like a web, you know there’s also a catch.

  This leads us to the big question… Why stop ?

  In this blog, we’ll cover :

  Why de-Google ?

  Google products are convenient and seemingly free. However, in recent years, Google’s name has become synonymous with privacy breaches, data leaks and illegal under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

  As their track record shows a glaring disregard for data protection, a growing list of EU member countries like Austria, France, Denmark and Italy have banned Google products, such as Google Analytics, Google Workspace and Google Chromebook.

  Google offers free products and services, but not out of altruism. There’s a trade-off. By using Google’s “free” products, your customers’ and your own online activity becomes a commodity that can be sold to advertisers.

  When the risks of using Google products are considered, it becomes clear the need to plot a pathway to de-Google your business. If you’re wondering how in the world to uncoil from this web, fortunately, there are plenty of privacy-friendly, secure alternatives to Google products that you can choose.

  Disclaimer : Below, we’ve tried our best to provide a comprehensive list of alternatives to Google products for businesses, but because you know your business best, we’d also encourage you to do your own research to ensure the tool will suit your unique needs.

  Best Google alternative tools for business

  Overall business tools

  Google Workspace alternatives

  Google Workspace isn’t GDPR compliant by default, so businesses are at risk of fines and reputational damage. More EU countries are reaching the same conclusion that Google products are violating EU law. Data Protection Authorities from Norway and Denmark have deemed Google Workspace illegal in accordance with the GDPR. 

  Nextcloud

  Nextcloud is an open-source and self-hosted productivity platform that offers a suite of services to replace the major features found in Google Workspace, such as Google Drive, Calendar, Docs, Forms and Tasks. 

  You can share files and collaborate without worrying about data being shared with unauthorised individuals or companies. As a self-hosted suite, you’re in full control of where your data is, who has access to it and can comply with the strictest of data protection legislations.

  

  Zoho

  Zoho is a Google Workspace alternative built on the same principles as Google’s productivity suite. It offers a suite of online office tools, including email, calendar and task management, but with an emphasis on privacy protection. Zoho doesn’t rely on advertising revenue to support their business which means your personal data will never be sold or used for targeted ads. 

  With over 75 million users globally, Zoho offers data encryption at rest and at transit, multi-factor authentication and complies with strict security standards set by HIPAA, the Cloud Security Alliance and the GDPR.

  

  Gmail alternatives

  Google only encrypts emails via STARTTLS. In other words, your data isn’t end-to-end encrypted and can be decrypted by them at any time. Gmail also has a history of allowing third-party app developers that work with Gmail to access private and personal Gmail messages for their own market research purposes.

  ProtonMail

  ProtonMail is a secure, open-source email service that provides end-to-end encryption, so only the sender and receiver can access the messages. Proton deliberately doesn’t possess the key needed to decrypt any part of the message, so you know your sensitive business information is always private. 

  To protect users from digital surveillance, they also provide enhanced tracking protections and don’t rely on ads, so your data isn’t mined for advertising purposes. Not only that, you can also sync ProtonMail with a host of other Google alternative products, such as Proton Calendar and Proton Drive.

  

  Mailfence

  Mailfence is a highly secure communications and planning platform that offers a complete email suite, as well as, Documents, a Calendar and Groups. It provides end-to-end encryption and comes with a built-in data loss prevention system that prevents unauthorised access to your sensitive information. 

  Mailfence is completely ad-free and promises to never commercialise its databases or share data with third parties for targeted ads.

  

  Tutanota

  Tutanota is an open-source email service known as one of the first to offer end-to-end encryption. It boasts a user-friendly interface and offers a fast, simple and secure email service that works on web and mobile platforms. Stringent security, in addition to TOTP and U2F for two-factor authentication means you control who has access to your email and messages. 

  It requires no phone number or personal information to register for a free account. In addition, Tutanota doesn’t earn money through ads, its servers are based in Europe and it is fully GDPR compliant.

  

  Google Calendar alternatives

  Calendars can contain a lot of personal information (who you are meeting, location, contact info, etc.), which is well worth keeping private. 

  Proton Calendar

  With Proton Calendar all event details – participants, locations, event names, descriptions and notes are end-to-end encrypted. It has a clean and easy-to-use interface, and you get a full set of advanced features to replace Google Calendar, such as the ability to create events and reminders, add multiple calendars and set up repeating events. You can easily sync all your calendars between mobile and desktop apps.

  

  Mailfence Calendar

  Mailfence Calendar lets you manage, schedule and track your events and meetings. Similar to Google Calendar, you can invite people to events using their Mailfence email IDs, but it doesn’t track your location or email address.

  

  Tutanota Calendar

  Tutanota Calendar offers built-in encryption, so no one else can decrypt and read your information.

  You can keep track of your appointments and meetings in a secure environment that only you have access to. You get features, such as day/week/month view, all-day events, recurring events, upcoming events view and shared calendars. You can also sync it with other apps such as Outlook.

  

  Nextcloud Calendar app

  Nextcloud also offers a Calendar app which easily syncs events from different devices with your Nextcloud account. You can integrate it with other Nextcloud apps like Contacts, Talk and Tasks.

  

  Google Drive alternatives

  The GDPR emphasises end-to-end encryption as a safeguard against data leaks, but Google Drive isn’t end-to-end encrypted, so Google has access to the data on its servers. 

  In their privacy policy, they also state that this data can be analysed for advertising purposes, so although you’re using “free” Cloud storage, users need to be aware that they’re paying for this by giving Google access to any and all data stored in Google Drive.

  Proton Drive

  Proton Drive is a secure and private Cloud storage service that provides you with an easy-to-use, customisable and secure file management system.

  It uses end-to-end encryption to secure your data and keep it safe from prying eyes. As you have full control over your data, you can decide how long it’s stored and who has access to it. You can also choose how much of your information is shared with other users.

  

  Nextcloud

  Nextcloud works on your own server, so you can access and share your data wherever you are. It’s a file hosting service that lets you store files, sync them across your devices and collaborate with others on projects. 

  It also provides encryption for all the files that you store on its servers, so you can rest assured that no one can see your information without your permission.

  

  Syncthing

  Syncthing is a free, open-source file synchronisation program that allows you to store and access your files wherever you are. It’s designed to be fast, secure and easy to use, making it a great alternative to Google Drive. 

  With Syncthing, you can sync files across multiple computers and mobile devices at once. So if you create, delete or modify files on one machine, they will automatically be replicated on other devices. Data is saved directly to a location you choose, so you can securely backup your data without needing a third-party cloud service.

  Google Docs alternatives

  Google states they can “collect information” from Google-hosted content such as Docs by means of automated scanning. 

  Not only does this stoke spying fears, it also raises concerns over who holds power over your content. If they look through your docs and decide that you’ve violated their terms of service, you can get locked out of your Google Docs – as was the case when a National Geographic crime reporter had her story “frozen” by Google.

  LibreOffice

  LibreOffice is a free, open-source office suite with all the features you need to create and edit documents, presentations and spreadsheets. It’s compatible with many different languages and all Microsoft Office file formats. 

  Unlike Google Docs, LibreOffice doesn’t store your documents on the Cloud. As it runs on your own computer, you maintain complete control and the data is kept as private and as secure as you wish. LibreOffice also has an online version that works with most web browsers and can be used on Windows, Mac and Linux operating systems. 

  The open-source nature ensures security as the code is constantly improved and scouted for vulnerabilities.

  

  Nextcloud Office

  Like Google Docs, Nextcloud Office lets you create new documents and spreadsheets and collaborate with teammates or colleagues. But unlike Google Docs, Nextcloud doesn’t collect any data on who is using its platform, or what they’re doing on it. You can even encrypt the files you store in Nextcloud, so no one else can see them unless you give them access to your account.

  

  Google Keep alternative

  Standard Notes

  Standard Notes is an open-source online notebook app that offers a variety of useful features, such as tasks, to-dos and spreadsheets. 

  Unlike Google Keep, which has access to your notes, Standard Notes is end-to-end encrypted, which protects all your information and keeps it securely synced across all your devices. Standard Notes supports text, images and audio notes. As open-source software, they value transparency and trust and don’t rely on tracking or intrusive ads.

  

  Google Chrome alternatives

  Google Chrome is notorious for stalking users and collecting information for their own gains. Their browser fuels their data gathering infrastructure by being able to collect info about your search history, location, personal data and product interaction data for “personalisation” purposes – essentially to build a profile of you to sell to advertisers.

  Firefox

  Firefox is one of the most secure browsers for privacy and is trusted by 220 million users. It easily compares with Chrome in terms of ease of use and performance. 

  On top of that it offers enhanced privacy protections, so you get a browser that doesn’t stalk you and isn’t riddled with ads.

  

• How to Conduct a Customer Journey Analysis (Step-by-Step)

  9 mai 2024, par Erin

  Your customers are everything.

  Treat them right, and you can generate recurring revenue for years. Treat them wrong ; you’ll be spinning your wheels and dealing with churn.

  How do you give your customers the best experience possible so they want to stick around ?

  Improve their customer experience.

  How ?

  By conducting a customer journey analysis.

  When you know how your customers experience your business, you can improve it to meet and exceed customer expectations.

  In this guide, we’ll break down how the customer journey works and give you a step-by-step guide to conduct a thorough customer journey analysis so you can grow your brand.

  What is a customer journey analysis ?

  Every customer you’ve ever served went on a journey to find you.

  From the moment they first heard of you, to the point that they became a customer. 

  Everything in between is the customer journey.

  A customer journey analysis is how you track and analyse how your customers use different channels to interact with your brand.

  

  Analysing your customer journey involves identifying the customer’s different touchpoints with your business so you can understand how it impacts their experience. 

  This means looking at every moment they interacted with your brand before, during and after a sale to help you gain actionable insights into their experience and improve it to reach your business objectives.

  Your customers go through specific customer touchpoints you can track. By analysing this customer journey from a bird’s eye view, you can get a clear picture of the entire customer experience.

  4 benefits of customer journey analysis

  Before we dive into the different steps involved in a customer journey analysis, let’s talk about why it’s vital to analyse the customer journey.

  By regularly analysing your customer journey, you’ll be able to improve the entire customer experience with practical insights, allowing you to :

  Understand your customers better

  What’s one key trait all successful businesses have ?

  They understand their customers.

  By analysing your customer journey regularly, you’ll gain new insights into their wants, needs, desires and behaviours, allowing you to serve them better. These insights will show you what led them to buy a product (or not).

  For example, through conducting a customer journey analysis, a company might find out that customers who come from LinkedIn are more likely to buy than those coming from Facebook.

  Find flaws in your customer journey

  Nobody wants to hear they have flaws. But the reality is your customer journey likely has a few flaws you could improve.

  By conducting customer journey analysis consistently, you’ll be able to pinpoint precisely where you’re losing prospects along the way. 

  For example, you may discover you’re losing customers through Facebook Ads. Or you may find your email strategy isn’t as good as it used to be.

  But it’s not just about the channel. It could be a transition between two channels. For example, you may have great engagement on Instagram but are not converting them into email subscribers. The issue may be that your transition between the two channels has a leak.

  Or you may find that prospects using certain devices (i.e., mobile, tablet, desktop) have lower conversions. This might be due to design and formatting issues across different devices.

  By looking closely at your customer journey and the different customer touchpoints, you’ll see issues preventing prospects from turning into leads or customers from returning to buy again as loyal customers.

  Gain insights into how you can improve your brand

  Your customer journey analysis won’t leave you with a list of problems. Instead, you’ll have a list of opportunities.

  Since you’ll be able to better understand your customers and where they’re falling off the sales funnel, you’ll have new insights into how you can improve the experience and grow your brand.

  For example, maybe you notice that your visitors are getting stuck at one stage of the customer journey and you’re trying to find out why.

  So, you leverage Matomo’s heatmaps, sessions recordings and scroll depth to find out more.

  In the case below, we can see that Matomo’s scroll map is showing that only 65% of the visitors are reaching the main call to action (to write a review). 

  

  To try to push for higher conversions and get more reviews, we could consider moving that button higher up on the page, ideally above the fold.

  Rather than guessing what’s preventing conversions, you can use user behaviour analytics to “step in our user’s shoes” so you can optimise faster and with confidence.

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  Grow your revenue

  By taking charge of your customer journey, you can implement different strategies that will help you increase your reach, gain more prospects, convert more prospects into customers and turn regulars into loyal customers.

  Using customer journey analysis will help you optimise those different touchpoints to maximise the ROI of your channels and get the most out of each marketing activity you implement.

  7 steps to conduct a customer journey analysis

  Now that you know the importance of conducting a customer journey analysis regularly, let’s dive into how to implement an analysis.

  Here are the seven steps you can take to analyse the customer journey to improve your customer experience :

  

  1. Map out your customer journey

  Your first step to conducting an effective customer journey analysis is to map your entire customer journey.

  Customer journey mapping means looking at several factors :

  • Buying process
  • Customer actions
  • Buying emotions
  • Buying pain points
  • Solutions

  Once you have an overview of your customer journey maps, you’ll gain insights into your customers, their interests and how they interact with your brand. 

  After this, it’s time to dive into the touchpoints.

  2. Identify all the customer touchpoints 

  To improve your customer journey, you need to know every touchpoint a customer can (and does) make with your brand.

  This means taking note of every single channel and medium they use to communicate with your brand :

  • Website
  • Social media
  • Search engines (SEO)
  • Email marketing
  • Paid advertising
  • And more

  Essentially, anywhere you communicate and interact with your customers is fair game to analyse.

  If you want to analyse your entire sales funnel, you can try Matomo, a privacy-friendly web analytics tool. 

  You should make sure to split up your touchpoints into different customer journey stages :

  • Awareness
  • Consideration
  • Conversion
  • Advocacy

  Then, it’s time to move on to how customers interact on these channels.

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  3. Measure how customers interact on each channel

  To understand the customer journey, you can’t just know where your customers interact with you. You end up learning how they’re interacting.

  This is only possible by measuring customer interactions.

  How ?

  By using a web analytics tool like Matomo.

  With Matomo, you can track every customer action on your website.

  This means anytime they :

  • Visit your website
  • View a web page
  • Click a link
  • Fill out a form
  • Purchase a product
  • View different media
  • And more

  You should analyse your engagement on your website, apps and other channels, like email and social media.

  4. Implement marketing attribution

  Now that you know where your customers are and how they interact, it’s time to analyse the effectiveness of each channel based on your conversion rates.

  Implementing marketing attribution (or multi-touch attribution) is a great way to do this.

  Attribution is how you determine which channels led to a conversion.

  While single-touch attribution models credit one channel for a conversion, marketing attribution gives credit to a few channels.

  For example, let’s say Bob is looking for a new bank. He sees an Instagram post and finds himself on HSBC’s website. After looking at a few web pages, he attends a webinar hosted by HSBC on financial planning and investment strategies. One week later, he gets an email from HSBC following up on the webinar. Then, he decides to sign up for HSBC’s online banking.

  Single touch attribution would attribute 100% of the conversion to email, which doesn’t show the whole picture. Marketing attribution would credit all channels : social media, website content, webinars and email.

  Matomo offers multiple attribution models. These models leverage different weighting factors, like time decay or linear, so that you can allocate credit to each touchpoint based on its impact.

  Matomo’s multi-touch attribution reports give you in-depth insights into how revenue is distributed across different channels. These detailed reports help you analyse each channel’s contribution to revenue generation so you can optimise the customer journey and improve business outcomes.

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  Get the web insights you need, without compromising data accuracy.

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  5. Use a funnels report to find where visitors are leaving

  Once you set up your marketing attribution, it’s time to analyse where visitors are falling off.

  You can leverage Matomo funnels to find out the conversion rate at each step of the journey on your website. Funnel reports can help you see exactly where visitors are falling through the cracks so you can increase conversions.

  6. Analyse why visitors aren’t converting

  Once you can see where visitors are leaving, you can start to understand why.

  For example, let’s say you analyse your funnels report in Matomo and see your landing page is experiencing the highest level of drop-offs.

  

  You can also use form analytics to find out why users aren’t converting on your landing pages – a crucial part of the customer journey.

  7. A/B test to improve the customer journey

  The final step to improve your customer journey is to conduct A/B tests. These are tests where you test one version of a landing page to see which one converts better, drives more traffic, or generates more revenue.

  For example, you could create two versions of a header on your website and drive 50% of your traffic to each version. Then, once you’ve got your winner, you can keep that as your new landing page.

  

  Using the data from your A/B tests, you can optimise your customer journey to help convert more prospects into customers.

  Use Matomo to improve your customer journey analysis

  Now that you understand why it’s important to conduct customer journey analysis regularly and how it works, it’s time to put this into practice.

  To improve the customer journey, you need to understand what’s happening at each stage of your funnel. 

  Matomo gives you insights into your customer journey so you can improve website performance and convert more visitors into customers.

  Used by over 1 million websites, Matomo is the leading privacy-friendly web analytics solution in the world. 

  Matomo provides you with accurate, unsampled data so you understand exactly what’s going on with your website performance.

  The best part ?

  It’s easy to use and is compliant with the strictest privacy regulations.

  Try Matomo free for 21-days and start Improving your customer journey. No credit card required.

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• GDPR Compliance Checklist : A Detailed Walkthrough

  14 septembre 2023, par Erin — GDPR

  As digital transformation drives global economies, data has become a valuable currency to businesses of all shapes and sizes. As a result, the complex issue of data privacy is often in the spotlight.

  The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is the key legal framework in the European Union to protect individual privacy and regulate business data handling. 

  Compliance with the GDPR is not just a legal mandate, it’s also good business. An 86% majority of users want more control over their data and 47% of users have switched providers over data privacy concerns.

  To help guide your business decisions around user privacy, this article will cover the key principles of GDPR, including a comprehensive GDPR compliance checklist.

  The key principles and requirements of GDPR

  Before we can translate GDPR’s objectives into practical steps, let’s begin with the defining features and key principles.

  GDPR : An overview

  The GDPR bolsters and unifies data protection standards for everyone within the EU. Enacted in 2018, it represented a seismic shift for companies and public authorities alike in protecting personal information. Its primary objective is to offer greater control to individuals over their data and to hold organisations accountable for its protection.

  GDPR establishes a legal framework that mandates corporate compliance with key principles to ensure user data security, transparency and choice. It sets the terms for your organisation’s privacy practices and the landscape of legal obligations you must navigate in data handling. 

  Key principles of GDPR

  There are seven core principles pivotal to GDPR compliance, which provide a roadmap for ethical and legal data practices.

  

  • Lawfulness, fairness and transparency : This principle demands lawful and fair processing of personal data. Companies should be transparent about their data processing activities, providing clear information in an accessible form.
  • Purpose limitation : Personal data should be collected for explicit, legitimate purposes and not further processed in a way incompatible with those purposes. This demands careful planning of data processing activities.
  • Data minimisation : Companies should only collect personal data that are necessary for their specified purposes, as anything more than this is illegal. This principle emphasises the importance of limiting scope, rather than performing blanket data collection.
  • Accuracy : This principle calls for maintaining data that is accurate, up-to-date and not misleading. Regular internal audits and updates are crucial to following this principle.
  • Storage limitation : Personal data should only be kept for as long as necessary for the purposes for which it was collected. This underscores the need for a detailed retention policy in your GDPR compliance efforts.
  • Integrity and confidentiality : Companies should protect personal data from unauthorised or unlawful processing and accidental loss or damage. Your organisation’s technical security measures play a vital role in this.
  • Accountability : Organisations should be able to demonstrate their compliance with GDPR principles. This underscores the importance of records of processing activities and regular audits as part of your compliance checklist.

  The importance of GDPR compliance for businesses

  Embracing GDPR compliance isn’t merely a matter of avoiding penalties — it’s a commitment to principles that reflect integrity, transparency and respect for personal data. At Matomo, we champion these principles, empowering companies with powerful and compliant web analytics. We make the compliance journey accessible and straightforward, making sure website analytics aligns with legal obligations and ethical practices.

  The implications of non-compliance

  It’s easy to highlight the dramatic fines imposed on tech giants such as Google and Meta. However, it’s essential to recognise that GDPR compliance extends to all companies, including small businesses — for whom even smaller fines can have a significant impact.

  The implications of non-compliance aren’t limited to financial penalties alone, either. Failing to meet obligations can tarnish reputations, erode trust and hinder business activities. Non-compliance could lead to a breach of privacy policy, causing a ripple effect that may be challenging to overcome.

  The potential benefits of being GDPR compliant

  Adhering to GDPR regulations is more than a checkbox on a form — it’s a comprehensive approach to handling personal data responsibly. It fosters trust, opens doors to European customers and builds enduring relationships with individuals whose rights are protected. In fulfilling these obligations and practices, businesses not only meet legal requirements but also foster a culture of ethical conduct and business success.

  Comprehensive GDPR compliance checklist

  Ensuring GDPR compliance may seem like a complex task, but this detailed checklist will simplify your journey. From consent management to data security, we’ve got you covered.

  

  Establish personal data collection and consent management

  When it comes to GDPR compliance, not all consent is created equal. Two distinct forms exist : explicit consent and implied consent. But what exactly sets them apart, and why does it matter to your organisational measures ?

  Explicit consent from users means that the individual has unequivocally agreed to the processing of personal data. It’s an unambiguous agreement, often obtained through a deliberate action like ticking a box. Details are paramount, as the person giving consent must be fully informed about the processing activities.

  • Inform clearly : Use plain language to explain how data will be used and be transparent about processing practices.
  • Obtain active agreement : Use forms or checkboxes (not pre-ticked boxes) to ensure active participation and that you are obtaining explicit user consent.
  • Document it : Keep records of consent, including when and how it was obtained, as a crucial part of your compliance efforts.
  • Facilitate withdrawal : Use consent mechanisms that allow for easy withdrawal of consent for users who decide to opt out.
  • Manage consent forms : Tools like Matomo’s Consent Management Platform can provide accessible forms that not only enhance transparency but also empower individuals, allowing them to feel in control of their details and rights.

  Facilitate data subject rights and access requests

  GDPR emphasises individual rights by empowering users with control over their personal data processing. Here’s a succinct breakdown :

  • Know the rights of individuals : GDPR outlines individual rights such as data access, error rectification, erasure and data portability, allowing individuals to guide how their details are used, processed or shared.
  • Simplify complying with access requests : Companies must respond to access requests efficiently, usually within one month, without undue delay, reflecting organisational measures of respect.
  • Employ ethical and compliant digital analytics : As a leader in ethical web analytics, Matomo subtly aids in compliance efforts, protecting privacy without compromising functionality.

  These practices align with a modern understanding of privacy, emphasising more than legal obligations. By employing Matomo, companies simplify the processing of access requests, which fosters transparency and user control over personal data.

  Implement clear data privacy practices

  Data privacy and consent mechanisms are key tools for compliance. Crafting a comprehensive privacy policy helps protect individuals’ rights and provides integrity in personal data processing. Designing sites and applications with data protection in mind ensures your compliance from the ground-up.

  • Create an easy to understand privacy policy : Create a clear, GDPR-compliant privacy policy that details processing activities, storage limitations and organisational measures, all in plain language. 

  By implementing these steps, companies not only adhere to their legal obligations but also foster an inclusive community that values privacy and ethics. Whether you’re an IT professional or marketer, Matomo’s platform can guide you through the maze of GDPR complexities, inspiring positive change towards responsible data handling.

  Implement data storage limitations and robust security

  Data storage and security are foundational elements of compliance efforts. Companies must foster a proactive approach to preventing data breaches by understanding potential cyberthreats and enforcing appropriate security controls across applications and infrastructures.

  

  • Implement storage limitations : Define limitations on time and scope to avert undue retention and protect personal details.
  • Embrace technical security : Utilise secure processes like encryption, access controls, firewalls and so on, bolstering protection by design.
  • Establish a comprehensive security policy : Align security practices with privacy laws and regulations, including GDPR.
  • React swiftly to personal data breaches : A security breach requires an immediate response, without undue delay, to honour legal obligations and maintain customer trust. Develop a plan for notifying supervisory authorities and affected individuals promptly in the event of a personal data breach.

  Security measures for personal data are about more than just fulfilling legal obligations — they’re about building a safe and ethical digital ecosystem that instils confidence in customers.

  Keep cross-border data transfers in mind

  Cross-border data transfers present a unique challenge, with increased complexity due to varying data privacy laws across regions. You must understand the respective regulations of participating countries and align your compliance practices appropriately to respect all that are relevant to your organisation. 

  For example, data privacy laws in the US are generally more lax than the GDPR so US companies taking on EU customers must hold themselves to a higher standard, with stricter controls placed on their data processing practices.

  • Evaluate third-party services : For companies utilising global networks of third-party services, be sure to select providers that maintain ongoing knowledge and vigilance towards privacy law compliance. Platforms like Matomo that innately prioritise transparency and privacy, have implemented robust security measures, and document transfers diligently are worth considering. 

  Conduct internal audits and compliance checks

  Compliance is not a “one and done” setup, but an ongoing journey requiring regular internal audits. Systems settings can drift over time, and datasets can become increasingly complex as companies scale. Human error happens, too. Audits identify gaps in your compliance efforts to guide actionable improvements. 

  • Conduct regular audits : Stay proactive with internal audits and systematic monitoring, adapting policies to align with privacy laws. Clarity in privacy notices and cookie banners fosters confidence, while regular assessments ensure alignment with GDPR requirements.
  • Ensure transparency : Platforms like Matomo simplify audits, offering valuable insights and support for ethical web analytics and transparency. The right platform can increase visibility and make generating your reports easier. Integrating these processes guarantees GDPR-aligned measures while emphasising data ownership and customer-centric values.
  • Educate and train staff : Engage in ongoing staff education and training on GDPR compliance, privacy policies, and their related responsibilities.

  

  Case study : GDPR compliance in action

  Achieving compliance with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) stands as a paramount concern for businesses worldwide. Both small and large companies have embarked on this journey, implementing measures and revising privacy policies to conform to these regulations.

  Typeform

  Based in Ireland, Typeform, a company dealing with online forms, took GDPR compliance very seriously. Here’s how they achieved it :

  1. Conducting a data protection impact assessment (DPIA) : This vital step helped them assess personal data breach risks and enabled systematic monitoring of potential challenges.
  2. Implementing technical and organisational measures : Security measures such as encryption, access control and drafting a security policy reinforced their personal data processing mechanisms.
  3. Revamping privacy policy : They transformed their privacy policy with accessible, plain language, making it clear and user-friendly.
  4. Appointing a data protection officer (DPO) : This aligned with their core activities and strengthened their compliance efforts.

  The benefits for Typeform were profound :

  • Enhanced customer trust and confidence
  • Reduced risk of fines and penalties
  • Bolstered data security and privacy
  • Improved brand reputation, positioning them favourably among European customers

  Ensuring GDPR Compliance with Matomo Analytics

  Matomo is more than just an analytics platform ; it is a trusted guide in the realm of data privacy. Our mission is to empower users with full data ownership, fostering an inclusive digital community built on trust and transparency. Our suite of features has been meticulously designed to align with GDPR regulations, ensuring that businesses can navigate the complexities of compliance with ease and confidence.

  1. Data Anonymisation

  Matomo’s focus on ethical digital analytics means the platform allows for the anonymisation of user data, ensuring that individual identities remain protected.

  2. Robust GDPR Management

  Beyond just a GDPR Manager, Matomo provides an encompassing framework to streamline compliance activities. From managing user consent to meticulous record-keeping of processing activities, Matomo ensures you are always a step ahead.

  3. User Empowerment with Opt-Out Capabilities

  Matomo respects user choices. The platform offers users an easy way to opt-out of all tracking, giving them control over their data.

  4. First-party Cookies as the Standard

  By using first-party cookies by default, Matomo ensures data remains with the website owner, minimising potential breaches or misuse.

  5. Transparent Data Collection Practices

  Users have the right to know their data. With Matomo, they can view the exact data being collected, reinforcing a transparent relationship between businesses and their users.

  6. Visitor Data Management

  Upon request, Matomo offers capabilities to delete visitor data, aligning with the GDPR’s right to be forgotten.

  7. Data Ownership and Privacy Assurance

  Unlike other web analytics platforms, with Matomo, you retain full ownership of your data and can rest assured that it is not being used for other purposes such as advertising.

  8. IP Anonymisation

  Protecting user location details, Matomo anonymises IP addresses, adding an additional layer of privacy.

  9. Customisable Data Visualisation

  Recognising that not all data is essential, Matomo allows the disabling of visitor logs and profiles, giving businesses the flexibility to decide what data they track.

  By taking a holistic approach to GDPR compliance, Matomo streamlines the processes for you and ensures you follow the legal and ethical best practices.

  

  Start your GDPR compliance journey today

  The global focus on data privacy requires using a GDPR compliance checklist. With 137 countries implementing data protection laws (UN), companies must align with international standards. Compliance, after all, goes beyond avoiding breaches— it’s about upholding privacy and building trust.

  As your trusted guide, Matomo invites you on this GDPR journey. With us, you’ll uphold privacy obligations and manage your processing activities effectively. Compliance isn’t a one-time task but a continuous journey to enhance practices and align with individual rights. Start this vital journey with Matomo today. Try it free for 21-days. No credit card required.

  Disclaimer

  We are not lawyers and don’t claim to be. The information provided here is to help give an introduction to GDPR. We encourage every business and website to take data privacy seriously and discuss these issues with your lawyer if you have any concerns.