Whether it be through proliferation of vanity metrics like last click attribution, or productising shame through the degradation of self worth, marketers have contributed to the digital race to the bottom.

Thanks to a collective effort to subvert data privacy, big tech companies have commoditised their consumers. The upshot is that an open, ad-funded internet is now seen as dangerous and exploitative. The solution? To opt out.

But what does this achieve? Massive audiences consume content funded by advertising. Given our insatiable desire for free content, this iteration of the internet is not going away.

The issue is the internet as we know it is broken, and the marketing safety net has been removed. No matter how many times Google delays the inevitable, the demise of the cookie is approaching.

The delay to 2024 just shows how much is at stake commercially, not just with respect to user privacy, but with respect to ownership of the ecosystem.

So instead of opting out, we need to collectively create a better narrative.

The fix

For marketers, the internet of today can be divided into two groups of people.

Firstly, there is the known cohort. These are identity-based audiences with whom we have direct relationships. For these consumers, we can provide content with confidence that it will suit their interests, and deliver on the promise.

The second segment is a growing, non-addressable majority. With this cohort, we don’t have a browser cookie or mobile identity, so in essence we don't know they're there. But these are your customers too, so it's equally important to understand who they are in order to offer them relevant, contextual information. 

To bridge the gap between these two groups, the first step is to define where your audience lives across browsers and operating systems. That will help you understand the size of the challenge.

The second step is to implement a first party data re-order. This data must be consent-based, and stem from recent direct consumer transactions. If your goal is addressability at scale, beware of the bad actors and user data which does not carry an ID. Likewise, if it's sub-licensed from different vendors.

Consensus required

Another hugely important aspect of marketers is assessing how our data practices are communicated to the consumer. After all, there's a lot at stake here, especially for those who currently have limited or no first party data.

From our research, we’ve seen statistics that show the disconnect between consumers' expectations and their willingness to help us meet those expectations.

Some 86 per cent of Gen X audiences have stated that they expect brands to deliver seamless, innovative and personalised experiences¹. And yet opt-in rates to Apple's iOS – which asks users to consent to cross-app tracking – are struggling to push above 25 per cent.

We need to continue delivering relevant ads, but without fingerprinting or cross device tracking as we’ve done in the past. Yahoo weaves over 100 million user profiles every month across Asia Pacific. We see that 30 per cent of all ad impression opportunities are without an identifier² (such as a cookie, device ID, or hashed email). So the impact is already being felt.

The internet remains integral to our lives and there are endless reasons consumers should be opting in. We just need to be better at showing them why – and clearly communicating that message.

It’s incumbent on marketers and businesses to agree on what a fair and equitable open internet looks like. Let's evolve.

Sources:

1. Yougov x 5G & immersive consumer study (Mar/Apr & Sept/0ct 2020)
2. Yahoo Internal Data, May 2022