No More Cookies for Marketers? MARION VESPREY | SEPTEMBER 2022
By 2024, third-party cookies will become obsolete, thanks in part to tech firm Google’s decision to join Mozilla and Apple in blocking its use. With Google Chrome making up nearly 60% of the web browser market share, this announcement is the final nail in the coffin for a cookieless world.
This pivot comes as a victory to consumers with growing concerns about privacy. Unfortunately for marketers, the end of third-party cookies means having to find alternate ways to track website visitors and collect the data needed to understand their target audience.
Alternatives to Third Party Cookies
For marketers who have long relied on the use of third-party cookies, they can expect to face a new normal: a first- or zero-party data world. In such a world, marketers will need to deepen first party relationships and prioritize personalization. This trend is backed by survey data evidencing that 62% of marketers are looking to build their marketing strategy around first-party data.
By leveraging first-party data, marketers can gain reliable insight on their existing customer base through basic analytics and website behavior. As the data is collected directly from customers, it is often highly accurate and allows marketers to target more effectively. Unfortunately, it can be a tedious and time-consuming process to collect enough data to be useful.
Zero-party data is another promising remedy to the end of third-party cookies. As the data is shared willingly and explicitly from the consumer themself, guesswork is largely eliminated from the marketing equation. This can come in the form of various formats such as social media polls, interactive quizzes, and feedback.
However, such valuable information is not always given up by consumers willingly. Instead, ⅔ of consumers have expressed willingness to share data in exchange for some value, which could even come in the form of better user experience. And as can be expected, there may be a gap between reported customer attitudes and actual behaviors.
Preparing for the End of Cookies
In order to continue providing personalized experiences to consumers in a world without third-party cookies, marketers must hone their first- or zero-party data strategies.
The end to third-party cookies is likely one of many hurdles to be thrown in marketers' way in an evolving new era of consumer privacy. And that’s just the way the cookie crumbles!
Sources:
https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/third-party-cookie-phase-out
https://www.actioniq.com/blog/death-of-third-party-cookies-first-party-data-strategy/
https://qualifio.com/blog/what-is-zero-party-data/
https://www.bloomreach.com/en/blog/2021/importance-of-zero-party-data
[a]https://pixabay.com/photos/cookies-website-computer-accept-4803408/
