Third-party tools have always been valuable in B2B PPC, but in 2025, they’re essential.
With third-party cookies fading, cross-channel attribution still a mess, and competitors constantly pivoting, advertisers who rely only on platform-native tools are leaving massive optimization opportunities on the table.
To stay ahead, you need the right external tools. This article breaks down five I recommend testing or doubling down on ASAP to level up your PPC strategy, including:
My favorite CDP.
My ace in the hole for non-browser tracking.
My preferred competitive research tool.
My choice for a multi-channel attribution tool.
Google Ads Editor (including some new functionality).
Segment is a leading customer data platform (CDP) that helps marketers consolidate data sources and break down silos – an ability that’s more critical than ever in today’s evolving measurement landscape.
We integrate Segment with GTM for our clients to reduce reliance on third-party cookies – tracking mechanisms controlled by browsers that are increasingly unstable.
Segment centralizes data within servers, giving you greater control and ownership of your analytics.
Other CDPs, such as Tealium and Salesforce Data Cloud, offer similar functionality, but Segment is our choice because it offers a wide range (400+) of integrations.
We’ve also found that it’s relatively easy for technical teams to implement, scales well, and has very handy features that help with data validation.
Keep in mind, though, that Segment is a significant investment. CDPs, in general, are not cheap.
It won’t solve all of your data issues. Its value relies on having:
A well-developed data infrastructure.
Multiple destinations (e.g., a mobile attribution tool, a user analytics tool, and assorted martech sources) for event data to consolidate.
If you’re fairly new to the concept of CDPs, make sure (and this is true of any martech investment) you can identify the exact challenges you need help with.
Do your due diligence in the consideration stage to ensure your CDP of choice has a plan to help you overcome them.
Dig deeper: Top 6 B2B paid media platforms: Where and how to advertise effectively
Server-side tracking is crucial to a successful performance marketing program, especially in 2025. I recommend Stape, which bills itself as “an all-in-one server-side tracking solution.”
Stape carries a slightly lower price tag than its competitors (including taggers.io) and lets customers choose from client- or server-side tracking.
While both methods give clients control over their data, client-side tracking depends on cookies and is vulnerable to ad blockers and user settings.
It could take a significant hit once Google rolls out the Chrome opt-out prompt.