The state of tracking and data privacy in 2020
0Reported today on Search Engine Land
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The state of tracking and data privacy in 2020
January 2020 felt like a turning point. CCPA went into effect, Google Chrome became the latest browser to commit to a cookie-less future and, after months of analytics folks sounding the alarm, digital marketers sobered to a vision of the future that looks quite different than today.
This article is not a complete history of consumer privacy nor a technical thesis on web tracking, although I link to a few good ones in the following paragraphs.
Instead, this is the state of affairs in our industry, an assessment of where search marketers find themselves in the current entanglement of data and privacy and where we can expect it to go from here.
This is also a call to action. It's far from hyperbole to suggest that the future of digital and search marketing will be greatly defined by the actions and inactions of this current calendar year.
Why is 2020 so important? Let's assume with some confidence that your company or clients find the following elements valuable, and review how they could be affected as the associated trends unfold this year.
Channel attribution will stumble as tracking limitations break measurability and show artificial performance fluctuations.
Campaign efficiency will lose clarity as retargeting efficacy diminishes and audience alignment blurs.
Customer experience will falter as marketers lose control of frequency capping and creative sequencing.
Despite the setbacks, it is not my intention to imply that improved regulation is a misstep for the consumers or companies we serve. Marketing is at its best when all of its stakeholders benefit and at its worst when an imbalance erodes mutual value and trust. But the inevitable path ahead, regardless of