In business today, many believe that customer privacy and business outcomes are mutually exclusive – lacking in one area to gain expertise in another.
Consumer privacy is seen many as a field of operation in the technology industry. However, the truth is companies that are champions of privacy will be in a better position to win in all cases. This is especially true because the digital industry continues to carry out tectonic shifts in privacy – both in terms of government control and browser updates.
By the end of 2022, all major browsers will phase out third party cookies – tracking codes placed on visitors’ computers created by websites other than your own. Additionally, mobile device manufacturers are restricting authorized identifiers to their devices and applications.
In the vertical part of the industry, the global enterprise ecosystem is now facing a critical moment where digital advertising will change forever. So far, consumers have mostly enjoyed the free internet experience, but as publishers adapt to such a cookie-free world, they get to see more payloads and less free content.
In order to maintain the free exchange of content for personalized ads, merchants may not find new ways to authenticate users and see a decline in creating new advertising applications, mobile gaming and other ad-supported content. When customers authenticate themselves to brands and sites, they create revenue streams for publishers as well as opportunities to get discounts from brands, first looks and other particularly relevant experiences.
To protect consumer data, companies need to design internal systems near data versus data custodianship from the concept of data entitlement. While this is a challenging and extensive ongoing evolution, there are plenty of benefits to getting started right now. Privacy front and center placement creates a sustainable digital ecosystem that enables better advertising and drives business results.
As we collectively focus on redesigning how companies interact with buyers and think about consumers, we must first recognize that putting people first means putting transparency first. This process, where customers authenticate themselves – or actively share their phone number, email or other form of identity – allows brands and publishers to get closer to them in exchange for free content or any other value.
