Eyeota’s Rob Armstrong talks to Adweek about why third-party data remains mission-critical after the death of the third-party cookie and the core requirements that marketers need to vet their third-party data partners readiness for a cookieless world.
For the past two years, “the death of the third-party cookie” has dominated industry headlines across the publishing and digital marketing landscape. And the subtext to nearly every such piece has been this: Going forward, first-party data will reign supreme.
But first-party data isn’t all that’s left after the death of the third-party cookie. Even in an increasingly privacy-first world, third-party data sets are still entirely viable—and, in fact, essential to rounding out core components of a company’s marketing strategies.
That said, the rules of engagement around third-party data are evolving, particularly in the U.S. Let’s look at how to navigate the market for third-party data in 2022 and beyond.
Why third-party data remains mission-critical
The growing volume of discussions around the importance of first-party data is understandable—and, indeed, quite valid. As the privacy landscape shifts around the globe, and especially in the U.S., permissioned first-party data is a brand’s fastest, most obvious path to developing and sustaining customer relationships. This has always been the case. But as the cornerstone of a data strategy, it’s insufficient.
Most companies today simply don’t have the means of gathering and maintaining adequate first-party data to power their marketing and advertising efforts. Sometimes the challenge is one of resources, whereas sometimes it’s one of market presence and access. The CPG space has notoriously struggled on the latter front, despite progress by many to embrace DTC tactics and other means of forging direct customer relationships.
Likewise, even when it comes to verticals where customer relationships are more one-to-one in nature, the question of customer acquisition remains. First-party data is exceptionally powerful when it comes to personalization, retargeting and retention efforts. But what about finding new customers? How can brands connect with those individuals who represent a strong fit for their products and services, but who have yet to enter a brand’s first-party orbit? This is yet another core marketing use case where third-party data remains vital.
Vetting third-party data in an evolving marketing landscape
Here’s the thing: Third-party data remains as important as ever. But that doesn’t equate to “business as usual” for marketers. In an evolving privacy landscape, the way in which marketers think about third-party data—and who they partner with to tap into it—has to change. Going forward, here are the core requirements that marketers need to be vetting when it comes to their data partners:
Cookieless roadmaps: Third-party data isn’t going anywhere, but third-party cookies are. Marketers need to reevaluate their data partnerships to gauge exactly what impact that will have on their various relationships and the data fidelity and scale they yield. If a third-party data provider can’t clearly lay out their roadmap for how they’ll evolve in a cookieless world, it’s time to ask more questions.
Diversity of partnerships and identity availability: The future of third-party data needs to be interoperable. There’s no one identifier that’s coming to replace the third-party cookie. Rather, the landscape is becoming increasingly littered with identifiers, and the players that pivot most successfully for a cookieless world will be the ones that take a “yes and” vs. an “either or” approach to identifiers. Solutions that are truly “ID agnostic” are the ones that connect all areas of data input that collect audience identifiers, including mobile IDs, hashed email, contextual data, first-party data and more.
Certifications: Data quality and compliance matter—now more than ever. And marketers shouldn’t have to take a data company’s word for it when it comes to evaluating such parameters. Look for partners that boast certifications through trusted independent parties, like Neutronian.
Stability: We live and work in disruptive times. Look for established partners that have already proven themselves by surviving and thriving through previous industry upheavals.
Above all, now is a time for marketers to be seeking balance within their data strategies—not silver bullets. In the coming years, the data and privacy landscape will become more complex, not less—but the solution isn’t to hide from this complexity. Rather, the brands that set themselves apart in this new ecosystem will be the ones that lean into the symbiotic interplay between first- and third-party data, and partner smartly to ensure their strategies remain viable regardless of where the technology and regulatory shifts take us.
Article first published in Adweek.
