You’ve heard it before — “Third party cookies are over for good.” But this time it’s real. For a lot of marketers, this is a nightmare they wish they could wake up from, but it doesn’t have to be.
Third party cookies are created by domains other than the one the user is visiting at the time, and they mainly are used for tracking and advertising at a personalized level, based on that user’s previous behavior. Although users know they are visiting a specific site, they are unaware of the third parties that are tracking their information at the same time. The problem? It lacks transparency.
On the other hand, first party data is information companies collect from their own audiences.
While transparency has always been our present and it is core to our work, it’s clear that transparency must be everyone’s future. From a digital advertising lens, this means that collecting first party data and building relationships with audiences is priority No. 1. The longer you let others do this for you, the longer it will take you to catch up.
Continuing to collect first party data about individuals means that we’re getting smarter every day about what matters to them.
It’s no secret that, the more information you have about an individual, the better you can reach them. While this new normal will change the way some marketers get information, audience expectations will remain the same. Personalized experiences are paramount and always will be. Marketers will need to consider leveraging technology (such as our use of a CDP) to do this effectively so that information is gathered and stored in the best way possible and adheres to increasing privacy regulations.
Then comes the art of using this audience data to execute experiences that serve meaningful content that people want to see, rather than what we think they want to see, based on previous interactions with the brand. This is where the true value lies in building relationships, not transactions.
Still not sold on why leveraging first party data is superior to using third party data? Here are three benefits:
1. Trust. Giving consent is directly correlated to trust. Trust is directly related to the strength of a relationship. If people trust a brand, they’re more open to its point of view, ultimately making it easier for us to move them to action.
2. More effective user experiences. Continuing to collect first party data about individuals means that we’re getting smarter every day about what matters to them. Getting smarter about the people we need to reach only means a better, more personalized experience. We’re not wasting their time, and they’re more likely to respond to our content. The relationship is mutually beneficial. We exchange content they value, while they give us information that helps us better communicate with them in the future.
3. Optimization. The beauty of collecting your own data is that you know exactly where it came from, what it means and how to use it. Is your messaging, content or overall experience not performing the way you hoped? Digging into the audience data and examining behavior to optimize is essential, and it’s important to have this data at your fingertips in real time.
Dare I say this actually can be a welcome change for all parties — marketers and users? Reach out to us if you’re interested in our approach to leveraging first party data to better communicate with our clients’ audiences.
