EverWeb doesn't add a cookie banner by itself, and it doesn't have a built-in consent tool. There are two ways to add one, and both can be free:
- A cookie notice made with a Popup Window, built into EverWeb. It tells visitors about cookies and stays away once they close it. It doesn't stop any cookies.
- A cookie consent service. You paste its code into EverWeb. It asks visitors to accept or reject, and can hold back tracking until they agree.
Which one you need depends on what your website uses and on the law where you and your visitors are. In the EU and the UK, for example, the rules (GDPR and others) can require you to ask first. We can't advise on what the law requires for you.
Does your website use cookies?
A cookie is a small file a website saves in the visitor's browser. Many EverWeb websites don't set any. These things can:
- Google Analytics, a Facebook Pixel or other visitor tracking code
- YouTube and Vimeo videos, and Google Maps
- reCAPTCHA spam protection on a contact form
- Social media buttons and feeds, and other services' code in an HTML Snippet widget
- Members' logins with Membership Sites
- A Popup Window with a Cookie name (including the notice below)
EverWeb + Hosting's Website Stats don't use cookies.
Method 1: a cookie notice with a Popup Window
- Open your Master Page, so the notice appears on every page. See Put the same header, menu and footer on every page with a Master Page.
- Choose Insert > Popup Window > New Popup Window.
- Add a short message, such as "This website uses cookies to show videos and count visitors.", a link to your privacy policy page, and a button labelled OK.
- Name the popup: click the cog in the popup's own toolbar, choose Name… and type a name, such as Cookie notice.
- In Inspector > Widget Settings, set Popup trigger to Immediate and Position to Bottom. Untick Block background scrolling so visitors can still use the page, and lower Background opacity if you don't want the page darkened.
- Under Cookie Settings, type a Cookie name, such as cookie-notice, and a Cookie expiration (days), up to 365.
- Select the OK button. On the Hyperlinks tab of the Inspector, open On Click Actions, set Action to Hide and Element to your popup's name, then click Add.
- Publish, and check it in a private browser window.
When a visitor clicks OK, the X or outside the notice, it stays hidden on that browser for the number of days you set. To make them click OK, untick Close when clicking outside popup. For more on popups, see How do I open a popup window or enlarge a photo when someone clicks?
Method 2: a cookie consent service
Many cookie consent services make a banner with Accept and Reject buttons, and many have a free plan for small websites. Search for "cookie consent banner" to compare them.
- Sign up, enter your website's address and copy the code the service gives you.
- In EverWeb, go to File > Edit Publishing Settings and scroll to Head/Footer Code.
- Paste the code into Head Code, unless the service says to put it somewhere else.
- Choose File > Publish Entire Site, so every page gets the code.
- Open your website in a private window and check the banner appears.
To hold back tracking until visitors agree, the service usually needs to know about your tracking code, such as Google Analytics. Follow its instructions for that. We can check that EverWeb publishes the code, but we can't set up or troubleshoot another company's service. See Add a booking calendar, Instagram feed or other outside code with the HTML Snippet widget.
Related articles
- See how many people visit your website: Website Stats and Google Analytics
- How do I open a popup window or enlarge a photo when someone clicks?
- Add a booking calendar, Instagram feed or other outside code with the HTML Snippet widget
- Put the same header, menu and footer on every page with a Master Page