In September 2021, Google announced the deprecation of third-party cookies in Chrome by 2023. But, plans changed, and they are delaying the deprecation by another year, aiming to start phasing them out in 2024.
When Google first announced these changes, marketers were a little insecure and uncertain about the end of the third-party cookies. How could digital and paid strategies possibly work without data?
The good news is that you’ll have more time to calmly measure the consequences of these changes on your digital strategy, and be prepared when the time comes. But, even with that, it’s time to create some tactics for you to be in a better position when it comes.
I’ll go deeper into that.
What Are Third-party Cookies?
First things first, it is important to understand what third-party cookies are, so you can measure the impact on your strategy and be prepared to embrace these changes.
Remember when you’re navigating through the internet, and then the same ad keeps showing up, even when you’re on a completely different website? Well, this is due to the third-party cookies.
Basically, third-party cookies are all the information provided by open data providers that register and share statistics about the behavior, habits, and preferences of customers, from different purchasing channels.
Google Ads, for example, is an advertising service that uses this kind of technology to monitor and track user behavior, and with this information, they are able to target advertising about the same product on different websites.
Third-party cookies are used for three main proposes:
- Cross-site tracking: collecting browsing data from different websites.
- Retargeting: the name already said it, but is basically retargeting visitors with ads based on their previous searches on the website.
- Ad-serving: making strategic decisions based on customer insights and ad performance. For example, when and where ads were served on the website?
What Motivated Google’s Decision?
Well, third-party cookies can divide opinions. Can this kind of technology be useful for users? In some way, I think, yes. They help to create a better user experience when we talk about advertising because in some way you’ll receive a personalized ad based on your current interests and behavior. Could be helpful, right?
But, it is very important to mention the word “privacy” when we talk about third-party cookies. We must not forget that we live in the GDPR era, and we can’t deny that these cookies go against the grain in this case. After all, websites use cookies to retain user information, and, increasingly, customers are demanding more transparency regarding the usage of their personal data.
So, since this is an important matter regarding customer privacy, it is also important for Google. Recently, during Google I/O (a programmer conference organized annually by Google in San Francisco, California), the company reinforced its commitment to improving privacy and security protection for its users.
How Could You, As A Marketer, Be Prepared For The End Of Third-party Cookies?
You still have time to be prepared, and this is great. But it is time to start making some important decisions and drawing up your digital strategy without the dependency on third-party cookies and connect directly with your prospects and customers
If you are here seeking ideas, here it goes!
- Maybe it’s a good moment to start investing in different ways to collect data. Interactive Content, for example, can help you to provide an interactive and useful experience for users in exchange for some information. Collecting data can be a two-way street, benefiting you and your customer!
- First-party data is still an option for you and can help with valuable information collected directly by your company. You will own this data and can establish your own parameters and metrics to be collected and analyzed. But, it’s important to be responsible with this data anyway, huh?! You still owe transparency to your customer regarding data usage.
- Last, but not least, we have the old (but gold!) email marketing. This is still an important channel to start conversations with your customers and build a relationship with them. Also, when used in the right way, it also can provide you with great data and insights.
I hope this helps you to start building your strategy with your own source of data-collecting. It can be scary to imagine your digital strategy without third-party cookies by your side, I know. But I promise this is not the end of the world!
At the end of the day, your customer wants to receive real and valuable information from you, no matter where, no matter how. So, build your strategy around your customer’s actual needs, and I’m sure it will be successful.
Do you want to continue to be updated with Marketing best practices? I strongly suggest that you subscribe to The Beat, Rock Content’s interactive newsletter. There, you’ll find all the trends that matter in the Digital Marketing landscape. See you there!
