How do you future-proof your data management?
2021 has been all about data privacy for individual consumers. But it has come at a price, a big one for some. E-commerce businesses have been struggling to deal with the aftermaths of iOS14.5 and GDPR changes.
With Google phasing out cookies soon, the future of data-driven insights becomes even more difficult to work with. But there are ways to future-proof your business and mitigate the damage from iOS14.5 on your marketing efforts.
Data is one of the most important assets for a company. The more ways you’re able to use it, the more valuable it becomes. Organizations that value data as a critical asset, need to protect them from any future risks that might come in their way.
iOS 14.5
Apple is one of the tech giants that showed concerns about users’ privacy. App Tracking Transparency (ATT) was introduced by Apple in their iOS14.5 update. ATT controls what companies can or can not track about what their users share on the internet.
With ATT you can easily decide if you want to let an app or any other platforms track you or not. More than 80% of users choose to opt-out. Which puts companies like Google, Facebook and Amazon in a difficult position when collecting data.
This has created a situation for many companies to own their own data and not rely on other providers to gather what they need in order to reach their goals.
Google Phasing Out Cookies
In 2020 Google announced that they are phasing-out of third party cookies and said no replacement would be available to track individuals after 2023. This decision was made simply because users asked for more privacy and control over how their data has been used.
Google has done something that other browsers like Firefox and Safari have done since 2013. This was necessary to secure the user’s experience and build their trust in brands.
This is not the end for marketers and advertisers on tracking users. It is only the end of shady methods to track consumers data.
What this means for marketers’ data management!
Well, here are some of their main concerns.
- 41% of marketers are worried about not being able to track the right data
- 44% of marketers feel the need to raise their spending from 5% to 25% in order to hit the same goal.
- Due to new google’s policy, 23% of marketers intend to invest in email marketing
Business experts have constantly been distressing about the phase-out of Google ad-tracking and how it changes the way they do business. Not that it is not a major shift, but is it really necessary to panic? We might have a solution for you, but we will get there soon! Let us first dive into what is happening within data privacy.
The Google phase-out will of course influence some areas in marketing and advertising, but many other tactics remain the same. If you as a marketer or advertiser used to rely on third-party data to target your audience however, you should be worried about how to handle this in the future.
GDPR
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) came into force in May 2018. It had all the business leaders across the world work consciously to cover all the bases to protect EU consumers’ data.
GDPR made a huge improvement in strategic decision making, governance, monitoring and awareness of the use of consumer data. And it didn’t just stop there! The core of the legislation was that any EU citizen can request deletion of their personal data from any organization around the world.
While GDPR was beneficial for consumers protecting their data and not receiving any unwanted emails, it has been a game changer for businesses.
And the message been clear for businesses. Either take it seriously or pay a fine of 4% of your global revenue. Organizations have to ensure they complied with the data legislation and consumers data are kept safe. They need to have the user’s consent in order to use their data and in the case of data being misused or stolen, they risk fines from the European Union.
Switching Away From Third-Party Data To First-Party Data
Third-party cookies allow an advertiser to learn about their user’s behavior, interests and purchasing habits. For example, when you visit a website to purchase an item, a third party cookie will track this information and transfer it to the third party like an advertiser.
This is how they create a list of users’ profiles to use them for sending out ads according to their online behavior. As a marketer who always relies on third-party data to target audience and online advertising, you will fully get affected by this phase-out. The best solution would be to consider a first-party data strategy.
First party cookies allow you to learn about what your user has done while being on your website, including how frequently they visit your website. The analytics you gain, helps you build and improve your marketing strategy. Not to forget, you won’t be able to track your user’s behavior on other websites soon.
This means your visitors willingly come to your website and give you consent to track their data. Which will help you to build trust with your customers by letting them future-proof have control over their personal data.
Believe it or not, first-party data will soon be the ONLY reliable way for you to target and track your audience.
But not everybody is able to use this sort of data effectively. No need to worry! There are platforms that can easily help you to achieve that. Customer Data Platform (CDP) is one of the primary tools to able to work in the smartest way with customer data management.
Why You Need A CDP
A CDP helps you gather all of your customers’ data from different channels in one place. This is an optimal way to know your customers’ behavior and interest and most importantly to personalize their experience. And it is a future-proof way as it is built around first-party data. There are different types of data management, and having a CDP is one of the most effective ways to go about it. Data management benefits based on first-party data are not only limited to a future-proof approach. It also includes higher quality data and bigger trust with your customers.
Why is this important?
A CDP gives an overview of any action that your customer takes from clicking on a website or emails to online purchases and many more. This is the data you need to target the right customer and send the right message. This is what differentiates you from your competitors. CDP management is a massive competitive advantage you should leverage to beat your competitors.
Think about it this way. Your customers should prefer to be tracked by you. Those that are willing to share their data with you, are the ones that want to interact with your brand. This way you will know who your potential customers are, instead of targeting a wide range of users that might not even want to engage with you.
A Customer Data Platform saves you time and energy. It allows your business to spend your marketing efforts in the right segments for your business.
Now, it is the time to be more transparent with your customers and show them the reason why they need to share their personal data with you and how you can give them value by personalizing their experiences. It is how you future-proof your data management.
Book a free demo today and see how you can do it.
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