In the ever-evolving world of digital advertising, the deprecation of third-party cookies is increasingly representative of an important change of scenery that primarily affects user tracking and profiling on the Web. To ensure the protection of users' personal data and privacy while protecting marketing and advertising strategies for companies, some important technological innovations have already been released. Let's see which ones.
How to prepare for the cookieless era
In this cookie-free scenario, new strategies for user profiling and ad targeting are needed. Here are some examples:
1. First-Party Data One of the most promising strategies is to focus on first-party data. This data is collected through users' interaction with a website or application. For example, when a user fills out a registration form or makes an online purchase, these actions generate first-party data. Using this data, more accurate user profiles can be created and more personalized and relevant advertisements can be offered.
This presents a unique opportunity for publishers to differentiate the quality of their digital properties through first-party data and the relevance of the content produced. By focusing on these two assets, publishers will be able to offer advertisers the best possible opportunity to buy sustainable media that drives real business results. Working with an advertising partner that possesses advanced targeting technologies and solutions can be truly game changer in a publisher's strategy to address the new cookieless world.
2. Contextual Targeting
Imagine being immersed in a world where every ad you see is relevant to you, not because someone has tracked your every online movement, but because the context in which that ad is displayed is perfectly aligned with your interests and needs. Contextual targeting is just that. Rather than relying on users' personal information, it focuses on the context in which an ad is displayed. For example, an ad for a coffee maker might be shown on a website about coffee or cooking.
AdKaora for the new era of targeting
We at AdKaora have been preparing for cookie armageddon for more than two years. How? We have been refining our technology solutions to enhance the availability of 1st party data and combine it with contextual targeting.
We have over 120 segments and sub-segments created with our 1st party data on socio-demo, interests, e-commerce, which we constantly analyze to update our clusters. We also target based on context with over 200 proxy segments on seasonal, industry and topical issues.*
We use our technology to deliver campaigns in:
safe contexts, with ad-hoc created formats and constant attention to correct on-page position
contexts with keywords consistent with the intended target audience
With AdKaora's intelligence, we combine granular, proprietary first-party data with contextual targeting profiling segments to provide the ultimate solution to the demise of third-party cookies. Last but not least, we work with technologies in the market to match deterministic and probabilistic data from advertisers. *Source: Integral Ad Science
Google's Privacy Sandbox: what we're talking about
In this context, Google's Privacy Sandbox emerges as an important initiative aimed at revolutionizing the way user data is handled online. But how exactly does it work? The Privacy Sandbox is based on advanced privacy-preserving techniques such as user clustering and federated data processing. This means that users' personal information is never disclosed or used without their explicit consent. Simply put, companies can access aggregated and anonymized data that provide useful information without compromising user privacy.
However, it is essential to note that, in the European Union, the adoption of such tools is constrained by regulatory requirements regarding user consent. Specifically, Google's EU User Consent Rules stipulate that for the collection, sharing, and use of personal data for ad personalization purposes, users' legal consent must be obtained, which remains valid even as we move into the cookieless era.
The timeline and implementation of Privacy Sandbox for the web
Many users feel that third-party cookies are too invasive, which has led most major web browsers, such as Microsoft Edge, Firefox and Safari, to abandon them. However, Google's Chrome has remained an exception, keeping third-party cookies active despite the company's attempts to disable them.
Recently, a new roadmap was announced to begin disabling third-party cookies for 1 percent of Chrome users in the first quarter of 2024 as a test phase before rolling it out to all users in the third quarter of the same year.
To facilitate the adoption of this new policy by companies, Google has precisely created the Privacy Sandbox portal, which provides tools and resources to effectively implement the Privacy Sandbox in corporate digital strategies.
Practical guide to testing a site without third-party cookies
Google has released a useful video tutorial on how to test your site and its behavior without the use of third-party cookies. Let's look together at the steps to configure your browser to emulate the disabling of third-party cookies.
To do this on Chrome, you need to go to the cookie settings and select the "Block third-party cookies" option. Next, after refreshing the web.dev home page, an icon will appear in the right corner of the address bar. By clicking on it, you will be able to check whether the sites have actually been blocked.
From the application panel, you will still be able to view cross-site cookies, since they will not have been deleted. To remove cookies from a specific source, you will simply right-click on the desired source and select the "Clear" option.
Once the disabling of third-party cookies is enabled, no cookies related to cross-site requests will be visible in the network panel. Also, in case problems occur, no warnings related to cross-site cookies will appear in the "Problems" tab.
In conclusion, the advent of the cookieless era is radically redefining the landscape of digital marketing and online advertising, prompting industry players to rethink their strategies and adopt more user privacy-centric approaches. The emphasis on technologies such as first-party data and contextual targeting, along with the implementation of initiatives such as Google's Privacy Sandbox, marks a shift toward a more secure and privacy-friendly digital environment. In this changing environment, the ability to adapt and embrace new solutions becomes crucial for companies that want to remain competitive and retain the trust of their users.