—Advertisers waiting for a magic cure-all solution will be not only disappointed, but left behind, says Google's Karen Stocks—
Third-party cookies are about to have their last dance. This day has been coming for a while. But as the final countdown approaches, it’s important that advertisers ask themselves the question: how much of your strategy still relies on third-party cookies?
The answer to that question is the most critical thing advertisers need to consider in 2024. And it can’t be arrived at without a long, hard look.
While we all wish there was a magic wand and easy, cure-all solution, that’s not the case—and advertisers waiting for that will be not only disappointed, but left behind.
So, what does it all mean?
First, it’s important to know what third-party cookies did and still do for the advertising industry.
Plain and simple, they capture pretty much everything. With cookies, advertisers could reliably have access to all of the consumer data at their fingertips without much effort—and, as a result, their measurement setup could be a lot less strategic. But often, their advertising strategies could take that data for granted.
The ability to use consumer data has been changing for a while, as people expect more when it comes to online privacy. But there are only a few more months before third-party cookies are phased out for good. Once that happens, advertisers will need to be much more thoughtful and intentional about the data they are collecting, the way in which they collect that data and what they do with it.
Long story short, if you’re not thinking about how much of your advertising strategy currently relies on third-party cookies, come next year, you are setting yourself up for a potential blackout.
The good news is, time hasn’t run out yet. The impact of third-party cookies going away varies on the type of media an advertiser relies on and the quality of their conversion tracking. For example, cross-device measurement and reporting and view-based conversion measurement will be most impacted.
Once you take a deep look at what part of your existing strategy relies on third-party cookies, you can then move on to problem solving mode.
What should be done?
We’ve been talking about the importance of durable measurement and audience solutions for years, but now we’re rapidly approaching the point of no return. As a result, the industry has introduced solutions that will work long after third-party cookies go away.
Now it’s time to take stock of what those solutions are and which best suit your needs.
These solutions are different from those that rely on third-party cookies because they drive results without compromising user privacy. While that’s a good thing, it doesn’t mean it will be easy for advertisers to adjust. Unlike those with unlimited data, privacy-centric solutions take a bit more work to produce results. And it won’t just be one solution that’s the answer, but a few working together to achieve the most comprehensive results.
Conversion modeling, enhanced conversions and optimized targeting allow advertisers to make the most of their first-party data by reaching the right audience and measuring effectively without compromising user privacy. By focusing on privacy-centric solutions, advertisers will be able to understand the nuances of different tools in the market and be better positioned to manage the phase out of third-party cookies.
In the coming months, we’ll be introducing a new tool to help advertisers tackle this directly. Available in Google Ads, it will evaluate measurement solution set ups and filter for upcoming privacy changes to make sure advertisers have the right solutions set up and, more importantly, that they are set up correctly. It will help diagnose the issue if, for example, an advertiser is receiving errors or if their data inputs are set up incorrectly. And it will provide recommendations to ensure they are prepared to deal with privacy and regulatory changes.
Would it be 2024 if we didn’t talk about AI?
For years, we’ve talked about the future of measurement as first-party, consented and modeled. Now that it’s no longer the future, it’s essential that advertisers understand what each of these pieces means.
Modeling has been around for what feels like forever, but is integral to understanding marketing effectiveness in a post-third-party cookie world. It is the key as we move away from precision and toward predictive analytics.
Modeling, as we know, relies on AI…and AI only works as well as the information you give it. Meaning, garbage in = garbage out. To prevent the “garbage out” outcome, advertisers need to focus on feeding AI quality information—emphasis on the word quality.
It bears repeating that first-party data is information that customers share with advertisers in exchange for something they deem valuable. It is a trusted relationship that enables even smarter decisions when it comes to advertising. And, it’s critical to the use of AI.
Tagging is the foundation on which a successful measurement strategy is built—it’s how advertisers understand how their websites and campaigns are performing, measure conversions and thoughtfully and responsibly collect first-party data.
The North Face, for example, used insights gained from tagging its site to make strategic decisions that led to a 3X increase in conversions and revenue for a specific product while driving 32% greater efficiency in CPCs. You don’t have to be a global brand to benefit from tagging; businesses of all sizes should have a tagging strategy.
Now, go take that long, hard look in the mirror…
If you take one thing from this piece, it should be this: you can’t afford to wait. It’s time to take stock of just how reliant on third-party cookies your advertising strategy actually is and take action.
I cannot stress enough the importance of acting now. There’s still time to set yourself up for success — to prioritize first-party data, invest in privacy-centric solutions and make the right adjustments based on the information you have available.
The ignorance is bliss mindset won’t work here.
Karen Stocks, VP, global measurement and audience solutions, Google. This column originally appeared at Campaign US.
