Four trends driving the future of consumer identity

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Data privacy and consumer identity have been the talk of the ad tech industry for a long time now. With widespread use of the internet and a desire for companies to be more transparent with their motives, consumers are getting smarter about how their data is collected online. This new insight has sparked countless debates about what resources are and isn’t acceptable for companies to use and has led to big-name platforms, such as Apple and Google redefine their privacy policy.

Advertisers can reach consumers in new and meaningful ways with so many online channels at their disposal. However, the promise of value-based advertising has fallen by the wayside, with some calling for changes to the way consumer identity data is handled.

Trends such as consumer action, privacy regulations, the removal of third-party cookies, and the rise of all walled gardens have contributed to the rapidly changing landscape. of the ad technology industry, and it’s important for companies to innovate their identity and data strategies.

There are currently four trends driving the future of consumer identity that marketers should keep in mind as they continue to improve their brands/consumer relationships:

Consumers are not just participants

With so much data-driven insights, brands tend to shift away from people-based marketing and instead treat consumers as cookies, cohorts, and user IDs. By taking the data collected from consumers to best target them based on their individual wants and needs, companies hope to connect with their audiences in more relevant ways.

While the average consumer reviews personalized marketing , they’re getting smarter and smarter in their ability to recognize what’s real value and what’s noise. As consumer behavior changes, brands must shift to a conversation-based approach instead of seeing consumer engagement as the ultimate goal to be achieved.

With the advent of AI-based technologies comes an eagerness to automate consumer processes. Brands should be careful when taking this approach. Simply automating all the processes can take away the dynamic and responsive aspects of marketing that consumers have come to appreciate.

Instead, companies that want to evolve with consumers’ wishes should integrate AI with pre-existing ideas about human creativity and intelligence to bring vivid answers to the questions that are asked. search consumers. The implementation of an innovative ad technology system that streamlines and automates the entire creative process, allowing brands to combine large-scale personalization with consumer wants and needs .

Due to the explosion of social media, consumers can connect with brands at many different touchpoints in the customer journey.

Instead of an overarching advertising approach, brands must take into account the fact that the vast majority of consumers likely to buy from a brand that puts effort into personalized marketing . Innovative use of personalization solutions has the potential to create 1:1 personalized experiences at the level that the market evolves with demand.

Navigating consumer identity privacy

The momentum around consumer privacy regulations has grown in recent years. Privacy regulations such as CCPA and GDPR requires user consent and an opt-out policy is specified and allows consumers the right to request that their data be corrected if inaccurate.

Finally, these laws require brands to be transparent about how they collect, use and share customer information, bringing even more attention to how consumer data is being handled.

Brands need to proactively implement data security measures to avoid dire consequences.

Identification solutions, such as LiveRamp RampID of and Unified ID 2.0 (open source ID framework that uses anonymized consumer email addresses collected from users logging into a website or app), providing brands a way to personalize communication with their audience across all communication channels while complying with privacy regulations through informed consent.

Consumer identity and privacy will continue to be key topics across the industry for years to come. Combining data-driven identifiers with innovative automation platforms allows companies to set themselves up for long-term success. They must ensure that they are still meeting consumers in the right places with the right messaging with privacy in mind.

Stop using cookies and device IDs

Consumers have been standing up to demand more fairness and transparency for their privacy online. Browsers and device manufacturers were also on the same page.

With Google’s decision to move away from third party cookies (currently delayed until 2023) and Apple integration major privacy changes Into their iOS 14.5, consumer market direct players are creating a major disruption in the data-driven advertising space.

The industry is rapidly moving away from a world of pervasive consumer data to a world of significantly better controlled, managed, and protected data. These changes leave brands with no choice but to turn away from traditional advertising methods and find new ways to exploit consumer data, such as first-party cookies through privacy-compliant technologies.

Companies should remember that traditional use cases for third-party cookies will not simply disappear, but will instead evolve.

By maximizing the value of first-party data to effectively personalize the experience for consumers, brands will be in a better position to weather these changes and grow with the industry. These changes may seem daunting for an industry that has depended on third-party cookies and device ID methods for decades, but one switch to first-party data provides an opportunity for companies to take a step back and really dig into their personalization strategies to best optimize their consumer relationships.

Walled Garden vs Open Web

The Walled garden ecosystem is growing rapidly as big players like Amazon and Facebook erect walls to protect their data and assets. These walled gardens are hugely disruptive to the future of data-driven advertising, as they block the collection of data from any external advertisers. There has been conversation around publishers and ad tech companies around a new unified ID, however, it’s too early to tell if these efforts will bear fruit.

According to a 2020 Harris Poll , online users spend 66% of their time on the open web and 34% behind a walled garden. However, web-only accounts open for 40% of total ad spend, while 60% of brands are putting their money in walled gardens in the hope of reaching more consumers.

For publishers and marketers to survive this large-scale content transition to a closed ecosystem, companies need to improve first-party data and strengthen their direct relationships. them with consumers instead of relying on platforms like Google and Facebook to connect them.

Between you and me

Advertisers who see cookies as the end-all for personalization tactics will have to be smart about their next move. Respecting consumers’ desires for privacy, moving to a first-party data strategy, and recognizing customers as more than one-size-fits-all are all great steps towards creating a Trusted, long-lasting brand. There are plenty of opportunities for external solutions if only companies are willing to take the leap.