Even as Google announced in July that it would push back its deadline to remove cookies from Chrome to 2024, marketers continue planning for the cookieless future now.
It makes sense, as cookies are fast becoming irrelevant. Brands that only use cookie-based solutions are missing out on about 70% of the open web, because cookies are not present on a rapidly expanding number of browsers, devices and platforms.
In a fragmented and changing ecosystem, marketers are working to find new identifying signals for consumers, access walled gardens through the use of clean rooms and analyze across both anonymous and authenticated data to create a unified strategy.
Exploring every new identity avenue
One of the biggest hurdles marketers face with the deprecation of cookies is scale.
If we rely on logged-in email addresses as the basis for digital identifiers, we can reasonably expect that the number of usable IDs will be much lower than with cookies. Marketers need multiple new identifying signals, both authenticated and anonymous.
In a world that has constantly evolving privacy regulations and an industry that is only becoming more fragmented, it’s more important than ever to have an agile approach to your marketing and technology stack. And here’s the good news: With the right data science and partnerships, you don’t actually need cookies for effective reach, relevancy and ROI.
An agnostic approach to platforms, data and supply provides access to data across the open and walled-off web. Instead of a fixed data stack, with an agnostic programmatic partner you can access a variety of anonymous and authenticated data through partnerships with companies such LiveRamp, The Trade Desk, Amazon, Experian and many more.
Agnosticism is critical here; a marketer needs multiple ID signals across the omnichannel buyer’s journey to target and reach consumers anywhere they go, rather than a single stack solution, which only offers a small piece of the picture.
Finally, of the 30+ ID solutions that currently exist, consolidation is to be expected. By taking an agnostic approach and working with all relevant partners, marketers can safeguard their brand’s approach to identity even after consolidation takes place.
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Embracing a future-forward philosophy
The deprecation of third-party cookies is an opportunity for the advertising industry to rethink how we gather and analyze data. Access to a plethora of data from partners and data scientists allows marketers and technology partners to not only ask the questions that drive industry innovation but also to spearhead new solutions.
Marketers who shift their strategies toward multi-identity solutions now will be considerably ahead of the curve, and ahead of their wait-and-see competitors, when cookies are finally phased out.
Finding alternative solutions that actually improve performance is part of our company’s legacy. Our latest offering, the CookielessIQ score, offers a simple way to measure users’ progress toward cookieless activation, enabling us to recommend further cookieless optimizations based on their score. And our Identity Spine connects multiple data signals – including authenticated IDs, postal codes and email addresses – into a single profile, so brands can achieve connected and accurate measurement across channels.
