Jan. 6, 2022

This paid piece is sponsored by Click Rain.

You don’t have to work in marketing or technology to get the sense that consumer privacy has become an important topic. In recent months, so-called tech giants like Apple, Google and Meta, formerly Facebook, have cycled through the public spotlight to receive criticism and praise on the matter.

Consumer privacy discussions touch on numerous issues. In this article, we turn to Chelsea Redinger, lead media strategist at Click Rain, for clarity on a specific topic: how developments in consumer privacy are impacting digital marketing.

What are the most important developments related to consumer privacy?

A few topics have risen to the forefront over the past six months that are important for both consumers and advertisers to understand regarding consumer privacy.

The first has to do with Apple’s most recent software releases, which give users more control over their privacy settings in mobile apps. This shift now makes app privacy settings an option for users, instead of a hidden setting like it was formerly.

Second, Google has announced it will remove all third-party cookie tracking by the end of 2023. This shift will stop the tracking of users’ internet activity, specifically on Google Chrome.

Finally and most recently, those who use the Mail application on Apple devices will now have a prompt to hide their email address from senders. As a result, marketers will have less accurate insight into email performance.

Digital marketers use “tracking” when serving ads. What exactly is tracking?

When digital marketers reference tracking in regards to ad serving, they’re most often talking about the use of tracking pixels. When an ad is shown to a user, an appended pixel fires and in turn allows an advertiser to track a variety of metrics. This could include how many times their ad was shown or how many people took action on their website. Rest assured, these pixels do not collect any personal information.

Can you summarize some of the new concerns over consumer privacy from a user perspective?

A benefit to consumers is that the recent changes strongly support the privacy of a consumer by giving them more transparency and control over the information that is used and shared across the mobile apps and the internet.

On the other hand, these changes also affect what type of content consumers will see from advertisers. Because of the lack of tracking, there is less information about each user, which results in less personalized and relevant ads.

 How do these changes affect your work in digital marketing?

I always say, as marketers, part of our job is adjusting to constant change. The recent consumer privacy changes have required our team to strategically pivot with each new privacy development. Not only have we put more of an emphasis on collecting and utilizing first-party data, but we’re also relying heavily on our client’s websites for audience insight.

How are Google and Facebook involved in all of this?

Google Chrome accounts for the largest share of browser usage in the U.S., and with their recent “cookieless” announcement, they’ve caused concern for some advertisers. Fortunately with over a year to prepare, advertisers, including ourselves, are vetting and implementing new solutions prior to the change.

As noted earlier, Apple’s privacy changes largely impacted how mobile apps collect and utilize consumer data. One of those apps included Facebook. Not only is Facebook highly utilized through their app, as a business they rely heavily on advertising for revenue. The Apple app changes cause some concern for Facebook as they would no longer be able to share and utilize app data for advertising purposes.

In a more privacy-conscious world, how will digital marketing help businesses continue to promote their products and services?

Privacy changes seem to be something that will continue to evolve. Luckily, several solutions have already been or are in the process of being developed by platforms and vendors. These solutions will continue to allow advertisers to successfully promote their businesses and services in this “new” advertising realm.

So much is still unknown, but at Click Rain, we’re committed to learning, communicating, adjusting and maintaining a privacy-first lens as we continue to help our clients grow their businesses online.