In the ever-evolving landscape of digital marketing, privacy has become paramount. And this year, with Google switching off 1% of third-party cookies in Chrome – as well as rolling out its Privacy Sandbox – making the most of available data has never been more important.
When it comes to the topic of consumer engagement, a key focus area that we cover in our marketing modules is finding the data signals that will help brands understand where their customers are and how they are behaving, and then using those signals to target them with the right message at the right time.
Of course, as third-party cookies begin to wane, that becomes harder to do.
A shift to consumer-centric marketing
Prior to the demise of the cookie, and increasingly stringent legislation such as GDPR, a common targeting method was to acquire as much first, second, and third-party data as possible and follow consumers around the internet until the marketing message started to stick. So how can brands achieve the same results in the reality of the new world?
Central to this mindset shift is being able to provide meaningful engagements with consumers, by embracing a customer consent approach to personalisation. But to do this, they need to focus on the following approaches:
1. Leverage zero-party data
Zero-party data refers to data willingly provided by consumers and is crucial in informing any marketing strategy, as it reflects their preferences, interests and intent (and therefore gives an accurate indication of their shopping choices).
This all starts with the concept of consumer consent. In other words, brands must clearly communicate the benefits of sharing their data and offer tangible incentives for doing so. Whether it’s exclusive discounts, personalised recommendations, or an enhanced service, consumers need compelling reasons to entrust brands with their personal information.
2. Don’t forget first-party data
Meanwhile, in parallel to acquiring zero-party data, brands should also be doing more with their first-party data, i.e. data that brands have gathered directly from their audience (website and mobile app interactions, in-store interactions, and purchase history, for example).
This data collection – which provides indirect insights into consumer behaviour – should be a core focus for any brand because it’s sitting right there waiting to be tapped.
However, to deliver the ultimate consumer experience, once brands have mastered the art of harnessing zero and first-party data, they need to look to augment this dataset by building nuanced relationships with retailers and other industry stakeholders.
3. Maximise the retailer relationship
We know that providing a seamless customer journey is all about having the ability to reach them at moments that matter to them. Some of those moments might be in a retail store – so adding those touchpoints into the customer journey profile is crucial.
There are a number of ways to maximise brand-retailer relationship for collaboration opportunities, including:
- carrying out in-store advertising and promotional campaigns
- leveraging a retail media network (a retailer-owned advertising service allowing brands to purchase advertising space across all its digital assets – from newsletters to promoted listings – and use its first-party data to connect with shoppers throughout their buying journey)
4. Use approximated data to plug the insight gap
Another way to leverage rich and relevant consumer insight is by tapping into data powerhouses such as Google and Facebook (also known as walled gardens), which provide algorithm-based tools such as ‘value-based bidding’ to plug the data gaps between a brand and the sea of customer data they amass.
In 2021, the majority of Google’s $257bn revenue (80%) came from ad channels including search, shopping, and YouTube, representing a massive ecosystem of consumers searching for products and information – a data opportunity that brands can’t afford to miss.
So how do these tools work? Google, for instance, combines its huge data set with extensive AI and machine learning to help inform marketers’ campaign strategies. But that data is incomplete because it doesn’t consider account-specific information, such as customers who converted as a result of a Google Ad, but then returned their item in-store. Value-based bidding closes that data gap by feeding information from your brand about your customers’ specific purchase behaviour back into the algorithm.
5. Develop second-party data partnerships
The final way of building a more complete picture of who your customers are and how they behave is to form partnerships with second-party data providers. Known as ‘data clean rooms’, these environments provide a brand-safe, transparent way to share data across common audiences for mutual benefit.
Today, we’re seeing more and more second-party data strategies – powered by clean rooms – from companies that wouldn’t normally be considered ‘data providers’ in the traditional sense. These include:
- Credit card providers and brand partners (to increase brand loyalty)
- Sports teams and brand sponsors (to increase brand awareness)
- Travel industry companies (to run joint acquisition campaigns)
- Games publishers and gaming platforms (to increase playing time and in-game purchases)
Embracing the cookieless era
The prospect of relying on zero, first and second-party data is no longer a distant future. It’s upon us, and demands a complete shift in mindset and marketing strategy. But no brand can do it alone.
By maximising in-house data collection, strengthening retailer relationships, using AI to build more complete data sets, and establishing new partnerships with second-party data providers, brands can become their own data powerhouse to deliver smoother, more impactful experiences than they ever could in the cookie era.
If you’re looking for an L&D provider who can help you navigate cookieless alternatives to data collection, email Colin at colin@cognitiveunion.com or contact our team here today to learn more.