Marketers must come up with new strategies to engage customers because they have limited options for targeting and serving ads.
By 2024, third-party cookies will no longer be used by marketers to track consumers; this will fundamentally alter how brands advertise. Companies and marketers have traditionally used tracking technology, or “cookies,” to identify customers and follow them online with tailored advertisements. Because it provides marketers with granular insight into performance and enables ad platform algorithms to optimize, it has long been the norm and significantly lowers the cost of customer acquisition.
Customers, however, dislike it. The customer is a passive participant, and it is intrusive. As privacy concerns have grown, organizations have all announced plans to gradually phase out third-party cookies. These browsers collectively account for almost 90% of all web traffic, effectively killing third-party cookies.
While some may find this news alarming, there is a chance for marketers to reduce their reliance on intermediaries and enhance their customer engagement by establishing direct relationships.
Use of third-party cookies today
Currently, brands use retargeting and third-party cookies to collect data on consumers, but this approach is largely one-sided. After users leave a website, third-party cookies continue to use data that is not theirs. Users are unknowingly leaving a trail of information about their web visit history on other websites and parties as they switch between tabs. Additionally, the user is unaware of which other third-party organisations are accessing their data, creating a privacy murky area.
When large third-party data pools are eliminated, a smaller number of platforms where advertising data can be combined -emerge, giving tech giants an advantage. Anyone who is bringing traffic to their website has the chance to consider improving their profiles to encourage long-term engagement and loyalty.
Due to impending significant changes, marketers must modify how they work with customers, significantly altering how they have operated for years. Email marketers have long recognized the value of a long-term strategy that involves creating profiles and using data more wisely.
The demise of third-party cookies demonstrates how crucial first- and zero-party data are to marketers. The time has come for marketers to focus on these elements and make sure they have a plan in place that takes advantage of these previously underutilized techniques.
Also Read: Trends Shaping the Future of Conversational Marketing
The rise of conversational marketing
The act of selling goods and gaining customers directly through messaging platforms is known as conversational commerce, and it is revolutionizing how consumers and companies interact.
Although the end of third-party cookies initially appears to be a problem, it’s actually an opportunity. Without the use of third-party ad platforms, marketers must find other ways to provide excellent customer experiences and support businesses in communicating with their customers effectively across all channels. Marketers have the chance to design engaging customer engagement experiences, and if they succeed, consumers will reward them by sharing data.
Businesses will be able to determine which channels, as well as the preferred frequency and content, a customer prefers to receive communications on through the preferences that customers express as part of their direct engagement with brands. As a result, marketers are able to further optimize how customers interact with the brand in an effort to boost retention and loyalty.
How it should be: A two-way street
Marketing starts to look very different when one moves away from intrusive targeting and interacts with customers directly to find out about their preferred channels, content, and frequency. Brands can encourage customers to engage in a two-way conversation over WhatsApp or via a chatbot rather than following them around the internet with advertisements.
Also Read: Leveraging Chatbots for Conversational Marketing
Real-time communication gives customers an immediate response to their questions, which boosts their trust in the company and makes it more likely that they will buy something. Additionally, the company has now gathered data that is first-party/opt-in compliant.
It can be difficult to break down the task of overhauling marketing and customer engagement processes into distinct areas of focus. The most crucial step is to work backwards from the customer. To create the ideal customer journey, consider the experiences they want from brands, the touch points that are required, and the channels that should be used.
Using conversational marketing and conversational commerce, consumers are in control of their interactions with brands. It facilitates the collection of valuable data for marketers and enables them to give customers the superior experience they deserve, benefiting both parties. The new approach is a complete 180 from the old one, but it is an exciting and welcome one.
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