Section 01 What Are Cookies? Cookies are small text files that a website places on your device when you visit. They allow the site to remember information about your visit — such as your language preference or login status — making your next interaction faster and more coherent. Cookies are not programs. They cannot run code, carry viruses, or access other files on your device. They store only what your browser and the websites you visit put in them. Our standard: Arts Design Studio uses cookies surgically. We deploy only what serves a genuine purpose. "Because we can" is never a reason to set a cookie. Our cookie footprint is reviewed every quarter by a senior team member. In addition to standard cookies, we may use local storage (for saving your cookie preferences) and session storage (for temporary, in-session state management). These are governed by the same principles as cookies. Section 02 The Four Categories We Operate Every cookie on artsdesignstudio.netlify.app falls into one of four categories. The first is non-negotiable. The remaining three require your consent and can be toggled in our preference centre at any time. Always Active Essential Required for the website to function at all. Cannot be disabled. No consent needed — they are the technical minimum for a secure, working experience. Requires Consent Performance & Analytics Measure how visitors use the site — which pages are visited most, where traffic comes from, and how users navigate. Data is anonymous and aggregated. Requires Consent Functional Enable enhanced features such as embedded maps, video players, live chat, and remembered preferences. Disabling these may reduce site functionality. Requires Consent Marketing & Retargeting Used to serve relevant advertising across third-party platforms such as Meta and Google Ads. These are only active where we run paid campaigns and only with your explicit consent. We do not sell your data to advertisers. Section 03 Essential Cookies Essential cookies are the foundation of a safe, functional website. They do not track you, they do not carry personal data to external servers, and they cannot be switched off without breaking core site features. Session management: Keeps your interaction coherent as you move between pages — without this, every page click would be treated as a brand-new visit. Security tokens: Prevent cross-site request forgery (CSRF) attacks on form submissions including our contact and booking forms. Cookie consent record: Stores your own cookie preferences in local storage so we do not show you the consent banner every single visit. Load balancing: Distributes traffic across our hosting infrastructure to maintain speed and availability. Set automatically by our CDN provider. Legal basis under GDPR: Strictly necessary cookies are exempt from the consent requirement under Article 5(3) of the ePrivacy Directive, on the grounds that they are essential to a service explicitly requested by the user. Section 04 Performance & Analytics Cookies These cookies help us understand how our website is being used so we can make it better. All data collected is anonymised and aggregated — we see patterns, not individual identities. What we measure Which pages receive the most visits and where users spend the most time. The source of traffic — organic search, direct, social referral, or paid campaign. Device and browser distribution to inform design and compatibility decisions. Scroll depth and interaction heatmaps to identify friction points in the user experience. Conversion tracking for consultation bookings via Calendly. Tools in use We use Google Analytics 4 (GA4) with IP anonymisation enabled. No full IP addresses are stored. Data is retained for 26 months before automatic deletion. You may also opt out site-wide using Google's official Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on. Legal basis: Consent (GDPR Article 6(1)(a)). These cookies are only activated if you have accepted analytics via our consent banner or preference centre. Section 05 Functional Cookies Functional cookies allow us to provide enhanced features and personalisation. Without them, some areas of the site may not operate as intended — but the core experience remains fully accessible. Calendly scheduling widget: The embedded booking tool uses cookies to maintain your scheduling session, detect your timezone automatically, and pre-fill previously entered contact information for convenience. Language and region preferences: Where applicable, remembers your locale settings across sessions. UI state preferences: Saves minor interface preferences such as collapsed/expanded sections or last-viewed content categories. Form pre-fill: Retains partially completed form fields so you do not lose progress if you navigate away and return. Legal basis: Consent (GDPR Article 6(1)(a)). Functional cookies are only set with your prior agreement. Section 06 Marketing & Retargeting Cookies Marketing cookies enable us to run targeted advertising on external platforms. They are only active when we have an active paid campaign and only with your explicit consent. We do not use these cookies to build personal profiles for sale to third parties — ever. Meta Pixel: Tracks page views and conversion events to measure campaign effectiveness on Facebook and Instagram. Data is shared with Meta Platforms under their data processing agreement. Google Ads Remarketing: Allows us to show our work to visitors who have previously viewed our portfolio, helping relevant audiences find us when they are ready to engage. You can opt out of interest-based advertising at any time via the Your Online Choices platform (EU) or the Network Advertising Initiative opt-out tool (US). Legal basis: Consent (GDPR Article 6(1)(a)). Marketing cookies are inactive by default. They activate only after you grant explicit permission. Section 07 Full Cookie Register The table below lists every cookie currently active on artsdesignstudio.netlify.app. This register is reviewed and updated quarterly. If a new cookie is introduced outside of a quarterly cycle, this table is updated within 7 days. Cookie Name Category Provider Purpose Duration ads_cookie_pref Essential Arts Design Studio Stores your cookie consent choices so the banner is not shown on every visit. 12 months __session Essential Netlify Maintains your session state as you navigate between pages. Session _csrf Essential Netlify Forms Cross-site request forgery protection token for contact form submissions. Session _ga Analytics Google Analytics Registers a unique visitor ID used to distinguish users in analytics reports. IP anonymised. 24 months _ga_[ID] Analytics Google Analytics 4 Persists session state and event data for the GA4 measurement model. 24 months _gid Analytics Google Analytics Registers a unique ID for a single-day session to generate page-view statistics. 24 hours __clnt Functional Calendly Identifies the user within the Calendly booking widget to pre-fill timezone and contact fields. 30 days _fbp Marketing Meta (Facebook) Used by Meta to deliver, measure and improve the relevance of ads served on Facebook and Instagram. 90 days _gcl_au Marketing Google Ads Stores and tracks conversion events for Google Ads remarketing campaigns. 90 days Section 08 Your Preferences — In Full Control You are in complete control of which non-essential cookies are active on your device. Use the toggles below to update your preferences at any time. Changes take effect immediately without requiring a page reload. Essential Cookies Required for the website to function. Cannot be disabled. No consent required. Performance & Analytics Anonymised data that helps us understand how the site is used and improve the experience for everyone. Functional Cookies Enable enhanced features including the Calendly scheduling widget and form conveniences. Marketing & Retargeting Allows us to show relevant content on Meta and Google platforms. Only active during active campaigns. Save My Preferences Browser-level controls You can also manage or delete cookies directly from your browser settings. Instructions for major browsers: Chrome: Settings → Privacy and Security → Cookies and other site data Firefox: Settings → Privacy & Security → Cookies and Site Data Safari: Preferences → Privacy → Manage Website Data Edge: Settings → Cookies and site permissions Note: disabling all cookies at browser level may affect the functionality of this and other websites you visit. Section 09 Third-Party Services & Processors Certain cookies are set by third-party services embedded in our website. While we select these partners carefully and only embed what genuinely serves your experience, their cookies are governed by their own privacy policies. Calendly — Booking and scheduling. Privacy Policy ↗ Google Analytics — Performance analytics. Privacy Policy ↗ Meta Platforms (Facebook/Instagram) — Retargeting. Cookie Policy ↗ Google Ads — Remarketing. Advertising Policy ↗ Netlify — Hosting & forms. Privacy Policy ↗ Arts Design Studio does not have access to or control over cookies placed by third-party services. We do not share your data with these providers beyond what is technically necessary for the features they enable. Section 10 Policy Updates We review this Cookie Policy every quarter. When we add a new cookie or make a meaningful change to how an existing one is used, we update this page and revise the "Last Updated" date in the header. If changes are significant — for example, adding a new marketing partner or changing the legal basis for any category — we will display a notice in our consent banner prompting you to review and re-confirm your preferences. Continued use of the website following a policy update constitutes acknowledgement of the revised terms. If you disagree with any update, you may withdraw consent for non-essential cookies via Section 08 at any time. Section 11 Questions & Contact If you have any questions about our cookie practices, wish to exercise your data rights, or want to report a concern, our team is available by direct email. We do not use automated response systems — a qualified team member responds to every enquiry. Arts Design Studio — Data Enquiries Email: info@artsdesignstudiotz.com Response time: Within 48 hours on business days (GMT+3) Location: Dar es Salaam, United Republic of Tanzania See also: Privacy Policy · Terms of Service