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Third-party cookies have been the foundation of targeted advertising for a long time. Around 75% of marketers worldwide rely on third-party cookies, with approximately 42.2% of websites using them to gather user data. These tiny bits of code silently track our online activities, collecting search history and product preferences to help advertisers tailor their campaigns to our needs.
However, as fears over online privacy have grown, the third-party cookie era is ending. A 2020 Deloitte survey revealed that 65% of respondents had major concerns about excessive cookie use; consumers want personalized ad experiences but don’t want to feel like marketers are tracking their every online move.
While some other search engines have already eliminated third-party cookies, Google Chrome — which holds 65% of the global browser market — is just beginning to phase them out as new alternatives are tested. Google’s third-party cookie deprecation is expected to impact marketers in a big way.
Let’s talk about what that impact will look like and how marketers can reconcile consumer demands for browsing privacy with their preference for personalized ad experiences.
What is cookie deprecation?
Cookie deprecation is a process where web browsers, like Google Chrome, phase out the use of a specific cookie type. In the context of this article, we’re referring to third-party cookies, small pieces of data stored on a device by websites a person visits.
Advertisers and other companies use third-party cookies to track a person’s actions on the web. They help those companies learn about an individual’s interests and show them targeted ads. But over time, internet users have become more aware of cookies and how much companies know about them, so browsers are phasing out third-party cookies to respect user privacy.
The timeline and reasons behind the shift
In January 2020, Google announced it would no longer allow third-party marketing cookies by 2022. Realizing it needed to find an alternative first, it pushed the deadline back several times over the years, eventually confirming that third-party cookies would be deprecated by the end of 2024 — a big deal for the advertising industry. So, what’s the motivation behind this change?
Many people are becoming increasingly worried about online privacy and the intrusiveness of third-party cookies. In recent years, lawmakers have pressured tech companies to make changes in response to their constituents’ concerns about online privacy rights. By getting rid of third-party cookies, browsers like Chrome are trying to give users more control over their data and respect privacy demands to create a more privacy-friendly browsing experience.
This shift is part of a broader trend in the digital world toward greater privacy protections, with browsers like Firefox and Safari having already phased out third-party cookies. We’ve also seen other significant moves in this direction, including the following. These regulatory efforts reflect a growing awareness of how important it is to protect data privacy and consumer rights in a world gone digital.
- Apple’s App Tracking Transparency (ATT) framework was introduced in iOS 14.5, requiring users to get permission before tracking their data across other apps or websites.
- The Global Privacy Control (GPC) strives to improve users’ control over their internet privacy by letting them signal their preferences for data sharing.
- Europe’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and California’s Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) have strict guidelines for how companies handle personal data to prioritize transparency and user consent.
Google’s most popular browser, Chrome, recently made its first big move toward third-party cookie deprecation. On January 4, 2024, Google announced the rollout of a new “Tracking Protection” feature, limiting cross-site tracking by default. They’re doing this gradually, activating the feature for 1% of random Chrome users worldwide, about 30 million people.
Google Chrome’s cookie phase-out impact
Chrome’s third-party cookie deprecation is expected to have the farthest-reaching consequences for marketers like you, as it has almost two-thirds of the browser market worldwide. It’s important to note that this phase-out specifically targets third-party cookies, not first-party cookies, which are generated and stored by the website a user visits directly and will be unaffected by this change.
Here are a few of the impacts to prepare for.
Reduced tracking capabilities
Once third-party cookies are eliminated, you may face challenges in understanding consumer behavior across different websites. Without this tracking capability, understanding your audiences and effectively tailoring advertising campaigns might become more difficult.
Required shift in strategy
It will be key for you to adapt your advertising strategies to rely less on third-party data and more on alternative targeting methods. This shift may involve greater emphasis on contextual advertising, which targets people based on the content of the websites they visit instead of browsing history, and first-party data gathered directly from site users to personalize advertising campaigns.
Additionally, in order to move beyond reliance on cookies and third-party identifiers, activation platforms like demand-side platforms (DSPs) must evolve to identify addressable IDs within bid streams. This adaptability is essential as digital advertising shifts toward privacy and cookieless environments. By being able to recognize addressable IDs in bid streams, DSPs can help facilitate more accurate, personalized targeting and help advertisers reach their audiences across channels and devices without privacy concerns. As a marketer, you should understand the capabilities of your chosen platforms and inquire about their support for evolving targeting methods and data sources.
New compliance regulations
By limiting the ability to track users across the web, Google aims to enhance user privacy and control over their data. You’ll need to embrace privacy-centric approaches to advertising to comply with evolving privacy regulations and build trust with consumers.
Challenges posed by Google’s cookie deprecation in 2024
Marketers are responding to the announcement of third-party cookie deprecation with an eye toward innovation as they proactively seek new solutions. As of early 2024, 56% of marketers in the United States were testing cookieless alternatives. Knowing their customer acquisition will be less efficient without these cookies, they’re looking for ways to maximize the value of their existing customers, increase retention, and make better use of first-party data. Others have been slow to react due to a lack of awareness or uncertainty about how to handle the changes.
Here are some additional challenges advertisers can expect to face as third-party cookies begin to be phased out.
Impact on targeting and personalization
The decline of third-party cookies is expected to have a major impact on targeting and personalization strategies. As advertisers will no longer have access to individual browsing histories, some may struggle to reach specific audiences and deliver personalized content. As a result, they have begun to explore using first-party data and contextual targeting to preserve relevance and consumer engagement.
Attribution and measurement challenges
The future removal of third-party cookies may also make it harder to measure the effectiveness of advertising and accurately attribute conversions. Marketers are currently searching for reliable alternatives to track users across channels and touchpoints. Google’s Attribution Reporting API and private aggregation methods are being explored as potential solutions to these attribution and measurement challenges.
Data privacy and compliance challenges
Future third-party cookie deprecation makes data privacy and compliance a top priority. With the introduction of stricter regulations like GDPR and CCPA, you need to ensure your data collection and usage practices comply with privacy laws. To maintain the trust of consumers and abide by regulatory requirements, it has become essential to shift toward first-party data collection and more transparent consent mechanisms.
Lack of resources to invest in alternative solutions
One of the main challenges advertisers will face with future cookie deprecation is a lack of resources to invest in alternative solutions. Many businesses don’t have the financial resources or technical expertise to explore and implement new targeting and measurement methods.
Additionally, some companies have been reluctant to adopt new solutions because they want to thoroughly test and evaluate their efficacy. The fear of investing resources in unproven technologies or strategies has led to a cautious approach among marketers and advertisers. However, this reluctance to adapt could hinder their ability to remain competitive.
Many companies may also face logistical challenges due to the complexity of transitioning from reliance on third-party cookies to alternative data sources and targeting methods. Integrating new technologies, adjusting workflows, and retraining staff requires time and effort, adding to the complexity of the transition.
Adapting to a cookieless world
Even though third-party cookies are going away, you still have other types of data in your arsenal to help you continue reaching your audience.
Use first-party data
First-party data, collected from customers or website visitors directly, offers valuable insights into consumer behavior and preferences. By investing in proven data collection methods and analytics tools, you can understand your audience more accurately and tailor your messaging and targeting accordingly.
Explore Experian’s signal-agnostic products
Experian is leading the charge in preparing marketers for a cookieless world with our audiences and foundation built from over 200 offline data sources. Our signal-agnostic Graph supports universal IDs and enables brands to expand their existing IDs to all other digital and addressable IDs within our Graph.
Advertisers can enhance their strategies by working with Experian to enrich first-party data with our demographic and behavioral attributes to gain a better understanding of audiences without cookies. Additionally, our data collaboration solutions enable marketers to collaborate with partner data, deriving greater value and enabling deeper insights for effective marketing campaigns. Experian is future-proofing identity strategies to ensure continued marketing performance and success.
Discover alternative targeting technologies
As third-party cookies become obsolete, marketers are starting to investigate alternative targeting technologies for optimizing campaigns. These may include contextual targeting, which focuses on the content and context of a user’s web browsing activity, as well as emerging solutions like cohort-based targeting, which groups users based on shared interests and behaviors. Think of third-party cookie deprecation as the opportunity to innovate and rethink strategies that have relied too heavily on one type of technology.
Best practices for marketers in the post-cookie era
Embracing best practices for a privacy-centric advertising environment can help you maintain your effectiveness and thrive in a cookieless world. Let’s talk strategies to help you succeed in the post-cookie era.
Focus on customer consent and transparency
Having consumers opt-in to sharing their data is an excellent way to build your data pool ethically. One way to do this is by encouraging users to create accounts or log in to access exclusive content or features while providing valuable information in exchange for their data. Another way is by conducting surveys or quizzes to gather insights directly from users about their preferences, interests, and behaviors. You could also use interactive content like polls and contests to engage users and collect data. These approaches can enrich your data pool while demonstrating your commitment to respecting user privacy and preferences.
Prioritize obtaining explicit consent from users before using or gathering their data for your advertising. Implement transparent data practices by clearly communicating to consumers how you’ll use their data and providing easily accessible options to manage their privacy preferences. By building trust through transparency and respecting user choices, you can forge stronger relationships with your audience.
Enhance the customer experience with quality data
In the future absence of third-party cookies, first-party data will be paramount in helping you understand and engage with your audience effectively. Invest in strategies that will help you collect high-quality data directly from customers, such as through interactive content, preference centers, and loyalty programs. By obtaining and using accurate, relevant data, you can provide personalized experiences that resonate with audiences and drive meaningful engagement.
Collaborate with evolving technology platforms
As Google’s cookie deprecation reshapes advertising, it will be important to collaborate closely with technology providers and key industry players who are adapting to these changes. Make sure your chosen platforms are keeping up with the industry and offering solutions that align with the shift to cookieless environments. Partnering with platforms that are proactively addressing these challenges will make it easier to navigate the changing marketing environment and drive better results for consumers and campaigns.
Prepare for the future of advertising with Experian
Despite the fact that third-party cookies are going away, there’s no need to panic. This change offers new opportunities for innovation and strategic refocus. With the emergence of alternative targeting methods, such as first-party data, you can still reach your target audiences effectively while respecting user privacy. By staying proactive and utilizing your available resources, you can navigate the cookieless future with confidence and continue to drive meaningful connections with your audiences.
With a robust suite of data-driven solutions and a breadth of addressable IDs, Experian can help you continue to reach and engage with your target audiences. Our Consumer Sync identity solution is signal-agnostic and empowers consistent consumer interactions, while our Consumer View data solution offers privacy-compliant data to help you connect meaningfully with consumers and reach audiences effectively. Connect with Experian today to discover how we can help you prepare for and thrive in a cookieless future.
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The holiday season is just around the corner, and retailers and marketers are gearing up for the busiest shopping period of the year. It's crucial to understand how consumer behavior is evolving and what emerging trends to expect. Experian's 2023 Holiday spending trends and insights report analyzes recent trends, consumer spending habits, and anticipates what's to come in 2023 to help you deliver a top-notch shopping experience this holiday season. In this blog post, we'll cover three key insights from our report. 1. Consumers are shopping earlier It's no secret that December has always been the go-to month for consumers when it comes to holiday spending. However, holiday shopping now starts earlier, particularly with online sales. This can be attributed to a surge in promotions and deals, enticing shoppers to open their wallets ahead of time, giving a significant boost to holiday sales. Notably, Cyber Week sales have proven to be an influential factor, accounting for 8% of total consumer holiday spending. Experian tip Reach the right shoppers with your promotions with sell-side targeting. This powerful approach gives you control over where your ads are placed while ensuring maximum visibility through direct connections with publishers. Whether on mobile, web, or CTV, this seamless ad experience will engage your audience effectively. 2. Online sales are on the rise The popularity of online holiday sales is continuously growing, surpassing in-store shopping. There has been a consistent 1% year-over-year increase in online sales, while in-store sales have seen a 1% decrease. "It’s easier for consumers to comparison shop for large ticket items online that they might find at a mass retailer or office supply store. Consumers prefer to have larger, bulkier items shipped directly to their home for minimal cost. By shopping online, consumers can save time since they don’t need to wait in checkout lines." Anna Liparoto, Sr. Account Executive, Retail & CPG Although online sales currently make up only one-third of all holiday shopping, there is immense potential for further expansion. Mass retailers and office, electronics, and games industries particularly excel in online holiday sales. While in-store purchases remain the primary choice for holiday shoppers, consumer online and offline activities intersect before the final purchase. Experian tip Take advantage of the surge in online shopping by diversifying your marketing channels. An agnostic identity graph can bring together device and media data, capturing valuable user insights. By gaining a holistic view of your target audience, you'll be able to optimize your ad spend and allocate resources effectively, ultimately boosting your return on investment. "Omnichannel targeting during the upcoming holiday season will continue to prove to be the best way to reach scale and maximize ROI across all marketing channels."Joe LigÉ, Head of Enterprise Demand Partnerships 3. 2023 holiday spending will be on par with 2022 During the holiday season in 2022, consumer spending showed an anticipated increase, although the growth rate was slightly lower compared to previous years. October saw a surge in average consumer spending, indicating a swift response to early discounts and promotions offered by retailers. As the holiday season progressed, holiday spending gradually slowed down and reached a level similar to that of the previous year. Overall, there was a modest 2% growth. Looking into the future, if economic conditions remain stable in the second half of 2023, we can expect holiday spending to align with the figures from last year. Experian tip To truly maximize impact, consider data enrichment. By diving deeper into your target audience's preferences and behaviors, you can better tailor your strategies and seamlessly integrate the enriched data across various channels. This allows you to unlock the true potential of your ad inventory, creating more meaningful connections with your audience. Download our 2024 report Get ready for the holiday shopping season with Experian's 2024 Holiday spending trends and insights report. Inside you'll find: Analysis of past trends and what they mean for 2024 Exclusive predictions for the upcoming holiday season The top audiences to activate this holiday season To access to all of our predictions for this year's holiday shopping season, download our 2024 Holiday spending trends and insights report today. Download now Latest posts
As technology reshapes our media experience, TV remains a powerful channel for content consumption. In our next Ask the Expert series, we dive into a pivotal subject – the convergence of TV, linear (conventional broadcast and cable TV), and digital marketplaces. In this Q&A segment, we’re joined by two industry experts, Dan Hickox, VP of Development & Partnerships at 605, an iSpot.tv Company, and Chris Feo, Experian’s SVP of Sales & Partnerships, who guide us through an engaging discussion on convergent TV, attribution, measurement, and safeguarding personal data in the evolving landscape of TV advertising. How convergent TV is changing the future of advertising The convergence of traditional TV and digital streaming platforms presents an innovative opportunity for advertisers to engage their target audience. With convergent TV, you can create campaigns that bridge the gap between linear and streaming, ensuring your message reaches your target audience while avoiding ad fatigue. Along with high-quality content, extensive inventory, and targeting capabilities, convergent TV offers advanced measurement and attribution tools that will empower you to optimize advertising campaigns for maximum impact. You can make better decisions regarding when and where to strategically allocate your advertising budgets with effective TV measurement and attribution. Attribution in converged TV TV attribution involves tracing consumer actions and uncovering valuable insights into their behavior. With these insights, you can gain a clear understanding of the audience exposed to your ads and their actions in response. Lean into data attribution tools to track your target audience throughout the customer buying journey. Measurement in converged TV In contrast, TV measurement enables the tracking of performance TV advertising campaigns to assess campaign effectiveness. Through converged TV measurement solutions, you can rely on a singular data source, unifying different channels, devices, and metrics for actionable insights. This analysis will give you insights into the audience reached, their location, and the resulting actions taken. TV attribution’s impact on cross-channel media Embracing an omnichannel advertising approach is vital. Evaluating advertising campaigns across various platforms and devices – including linear, TV, and digital channels – is essential for identifying the channels that drive revenue for your businesses. Converged TV and digital streaming enable you to control ad frequency across all channels, enhancing the cross-screen experience. This convergence paves the way for a more comprehensive and holistic future in advertising. Here are three ways TV attribution impacts cross-channel media. Identify the most effective channels TV attribution offers a significant advantage in determining the channels that generate the most conversions. By using this data, you can make informed choices about budget allocation to achieve maximum impact. Deliver a seamless customer experience Consumers demand consistency in their brand interactions. TV attribution can help you by guiding the optimal timing and placement of ads, resulting in a more seamless viewing experience. This synchronization can significantly enhance customer loyalty and retention. Enhance marketing effectiveness By identifying the most effective channels and refining campaign strategies, TV attribution can significantly improve the success of marketing campaigns. The outcome is a measurable increase in sales and revenue, demonstrating the impact of informed and data-driven advertising. Audience-based targeting across linear and digital ecosystems It's crucial to comprehend and connect with the appropriate audience. The emergence of linear and digital platforms has required the development of audience targeting. Across these two ecosystems, audience-based targeting aims to enhance this process by concentrating on specific audience segments rather than general demographics or programming. Benefits of audience-based targeting There are four key benefits of audience-based targeting across the TV ecosystem. Personalization at scale Digital platforms have conditioned users to expect tailored experiences. Audience-based targeting ensures ads resonate with individual preferences and behaviors, even within the vastness of linear TV. Combining data from both linear and digital sources makes it possible to segment audiences more precisely. This results in advertising content tailored to each individual, making it more relevant and personalized. Optimized ad spend Improve your return on investment by targeting specific audience segments more likely to convert, ensuring your messages reach suitable viewers. 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As a result, viewers can have a more pleasant experience while watching content, which may discourage them from skipping ads and increase their engagement with the content. Future-proofing and safeguarding data Businesses are focusing on future-proofing for data privacy, and safeguarding individual data is becoming more significant than ever before. Now’s the time to embrace new methods that protect your data privacy while ensuring that measurement remains accurate. Experian offers privacy-safe solutions to help businesses preserve precise measurement, even with fewer cookies. "What we're working toward is future-proofing ourselves. To do that, we work with partners like Experian who are already thinking forward, and with your pixel technology, we can capture and resolve the identifiers that we know will be around for a while."Dan Hickox, VP, Solutions Consulting, Development & Partnerships, 605 How Experian and 605 work together 605 is an independent TV measurement and analytics company providing solutions for advertising, content measurement, attribution, planning, optimization, and media transactions. “We partner with great identity partners, such as Experian, that really help us act as the connecting glue across different data touch points. So what it really is, is the ability to have holistic measurement across the different channels, across the different audiences and it starts out with the ability to be able to take disparate data sources and match them together.”Dan Hickox, VP, Solutions Consulting, Development & Partnerships, 605 605 and Experian have a strong partnership that enables 605 to enhance its data through Experian’s Consumer Sync and Pixel solutions. Consumer Sync – 605 utilizes Experian’s Consumer Sync to ensure their data is privacy-compliant and deterministic across all sources. Experian identity organizes people into households, links their digital devices and IDs to them, enriches their identity with behavioral attributes, and then makes this data actionable in any environment, all while maintaining consumer privacy and data regulations. 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Watch the full Q&A Visit our Ask the Expert content hub to watch Dan and Chris's full conversation about TV measurement, data analytics, privacy regulations, and the evolving landscape of TV advertising in the digital age. Watch now About our experts Dan Hickox, VP, Solutions Consulting, Development & Partnerships, 605 As the Vice President of the Solutions Consulting team, Dan collaborates with sellers to turn prospective opportunities into long-term client relationships. He leads new initiatives and drives partnerships that expand 605 capabilities and improve marketplace positioning. Dan brings over a decade of cross-channel media experience in advanced analytics, media optimization, data integration and statistical analysis to 605. Chris Feo, SVP, Sales & Partnerships, Experian As SVP of Sales & Partnerships, Chris has over a decade of experience across identity, data, and programmatic. Chris joined Experian during the Tapad acquisition in November 2020. He joined Tapad with less than 10 employees and has been part of the executive team through both the Telenor and Experian acquisitions. He’s an active advisor, board member, and investor within the AdTech ecosystem. Outside of work, he’s a die-hard golfer, frequent traveler, and husband to his wife, two dogs, and two goats! Latest posts
Over the last few months, Experian has released new syndicated audiences to most major platforms supporting retail and travel. In this blog post, we’ll highlight some of these new audiences and how they can be used with other data from Experian to build the perfect audience to reach your customers and prospects. Household Expenditure audiences We’ve created new predictive audiences to help retailers reach consumers across 35 categories likely to spend within that category. A few categories include Apparel, DIY, Health, and more. With the launch of these new audiences, we will retire our existing Household Consumer Expenditure, Online and Retail category audiences in the November Digital Master update. Who these audiences are for Our Household Expenditure audiences use data from multiple sources, providing brands with highly accurate purchase predictions and data that scales for digital execution. Household Expenditure audiences are an excellent solution for brands with new product lines or where targeting based on historical purchases lack signal brands seek. Building data from multiple data sources helps ensure high performance and accuracy and can illuminate trends in consumer shopping patterns. These trends can be used to help predict future shopping behaviors. How to refine our Household Expenditure audiences To refine your audience, you can combine this data with Experian’s demographic and household expenditure audiences to ensure you are reaching consumers. For example, suppose you’re an apparel brand launching a new line aimed toward women over the age of 40. In that case, you can use Experian’s demographic data to reach those women and layer in our household expenditure purchase predictor segment for women's apparel to reach their new target audience. Mobile Location audiences We’ve expanded our location database to include more locations and points of interest. With this new data, we could strengthen our existing mobile location audiences to broaden the reach, improve accuracy, and increase performance. We’ve created 11 new mobile location audiences with our new dataset that supports the retail and travel verticals. These new audiences include new shopping behaviors, including high-income and high-end shoppers and travel and entertainment behaviors, including visiting sporting arenas like MLB, NBA, NFL, and university stadiums. Who these audiences are for These audiences are for brands that want to reach consumers based on their location behaviors. Often valid for retail, travel, and entertainment brands, Mobile Location audiences provide brands with highly accurate data that shows previous intent and interest in critical locations. How to refine our Mobile Location audiences To refine your audience, you can combine your Mobile Location audience with Lifestyle and Interest data. For example, if you are creating an advertising campaign for a hotel near a university stadium for the largest game in the season, you could combine university stadium visitors with sports enthusiasts and in-market for travel to find consumers most likely to be interested in your campaign and staying at the hotel. Purchase-Based Transaction audiences For use cases where predictive audiences aren’t the best fit to reach the right consumer, such as targeting consumer’s historical purchases, we’ve created new purchase-based transaction audiences that utilize opt-in consumer transaction data across 29 retail categories, including apparel, home, lifestyle, health, food and beverage, and more. Who these audiences are for These audiences are a perfect fit for brands trying to reach consumers based on previous purchases. These audiences can be broken out by their spending patterns – frequency of purchase and high spenders – and their response to advertising, including direct mail, email, inserts, and digital. How to refine our Purchase-Based Transaction audiences Combine these new audiences with Mosaic to fine-tune your audience based on their purchasing and lifestyle patterns. Suppose you are a brand with a new line of home décor products launching and will utilize influencers to endorse your product line. In that case, you can use Experian’s purchase-based transaction audiences for high spenders in home décor and layer our Mosaic audience Influenced by Influencers to find consumers who are most likely to purchase and trust an influencer. We can help you discover and activate your perfect audience Our audiences are available in most major data and execution platforms. Visit our partner page for more information. Don’t see our audiences on your platform of choice? We can help you build and activate an Experian audience on the platform of your choice. Contact us Latest posts