Marketing Futures Pulse

As the news of the cookie’s so-called demise has spread far and wide (and we’ve previously discussed here), there have been a number of potential strategies laid out for marketers looking to navigate this brave new world. While further leveraging influencers or re-designing loyalty programs have emerged as two possibilities, we’ve also witnessed a natural tendency to focus on party data above all. This makes sense, as it’s the “death” of third-party data (in reality, privacy regulation barriers) that prompted a re-examination of how to properly use consumer data in the first place. Enter (or, re-enter, as it may be) first- and zero-party data, best explained by this chart from Cheetah Digital:

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has sent shockwaves throughout the world; and with so much information sent digitally today, the events have been unfolding in real-time with no filter, and often with no commentary. People around the world are looking for a response from those with the power of global conversation, and brands are naturally part of this.

The world is seeing price inflation on a scale that hasn’t been experienced in 40 years. While brands may be tempted to resort to their old playbooks by raising prices, cutting margins, or sacrificing quality, the amount of data and visibility that brands experience now can help manage these difficult times. Nuanced information about markets, consumers, and suppliers allow marketers to choose where and when to change prices or margins, and provide an opportunity to optimize their promotions around the products most affected. The resources below provide insight into how consumers are dealing with inflation, and how brands can positively respond.

The new kids on the block are generation Alpha, kids born after 2010 to predominantly millennial parents. Following their gen Z predecessor’s footsteps, they are already heavily immersed within the digital world and were born with screens all around them. The resources here discuss some of the ways CX will evolve in 2022.

Last month's Pulse discussed Customer Data Platforms to manage the myriad data marketers will need to collect post-cookie. It begs the question, though: If you can't deliver an exceptional customer experience in a highly competitive world, will you even need a CDP? If you can't delight your customers, then the rest is moot; the keys to all success across a marketing organization start and end with the end-user: the consumer. The resources here discuss some of the ways CX will evolve in 2022.

Apple announced earlier this year that with the update to their operating system with iOS 14, consumers would have more control over the information that apps could track via the IDFA (we explored the effect this would have on marketers here). Now with the announcement of iOS 15, Apple is putting yet more control in the hands of consumers by extending privacy protection to email and other often-used services on all their devices.

The resources collected here explore just what the metaverse entails, how brands can take advantage of them, and some examples of marketers who have already dipped their toe in these unchartered waters.

With the eventual and final phase out of the third-party cookie, marketers will need to rely on the data they can collect directly from consumers. This first- and -zero-party data will come from a multitude of sources and, if not managed properly, can end up as a disorganized, in-actionable mess.