Third-party cookies are about to disappear, so it is urgent to have a strategy that allows marketers to prepare themselves to collect information and make the most of their own data.
In 2024, Google began restricting third-party cookies for 1% of Chrome users. With an affected population of around 30 million users, we have seen the beginning of the phasing out of third-party cookies which, although due to end in the second half of this year, looks like it will once again take a little longer.
Whether by the end of 2024 or during 2025 – if there are no further delays – Google intends to continue the market trend started by Safari and Firefox a few years ago, which removes cookies from websites placed by companies other than the website owner in order to track user behaviour, personalise advertising experiences and measure the effectiveness of paid campaigns.
Until now, marketers have somehow relied on third-party cookies to measure and trigger campaigns. Third-party cookies have been a sort of common currency that allowed them to have a single source of truth for measurement and activation. Their disappearance will lead to a decrease in the attributable data available to them, and therefore a decrease in the reach of personalised ad campaigns as well.
But in the face of the idea that brands will lose highly relevant data about their targets, marketers have the opportunity to leverage technology solutions to maintain the same level of activation and measurement, building hyper-personalised experiences based on proprietary data.
The technical infrastructure needed for a proprietary data strategy
The vacuum created by the disappearance of third-party cookies must be exploited by new ad-targeting techniques based on first-party data. This is a fundamental change in the approach to the use of data. Whereas until now, first-party data was collected through direct interactions with customers on websites and apps, now it must be used.
To be ready for the cookieless future and to be able to weave privacy-based marketing strategies that generate hyper-personalised experiences, it is essential to invest in technical infrastructures that allow you to squeeze your own data and activate it in relevant customer journeys.
The CDP for harnessing first-party data and activating audiences with precision
The Customer Data Platform makes it possible to use CRM data, proprietary data acquired from server-side tracking on any digital property and information from internal databases to create unified customer profiles with profile and engagement information on anonymous, cookie-known and identified users. This is why implementing a Customer Data Platform is a fundamental step in making the necessary cultural and technological change in terms of data strategy and audience activation.
The CDP is a crucial tool in any robust technical infrastructure, allowing you to segment in infinite ways to build truly meaningful privacy-based experiences that connect brands with consumers through more personalised campaigns.
Advantages of having a Customer Data Platform are:
At the same time, the implementation of a CDP is a challenge for which one must be prepared and it is advisable to have the guidance of an implementation company with experience in both the technology and in the implementation of use cases to ensure a return on investment:
Where do we go from here?
With the obsolescence of third-party cookies, the CDP is emerging as the most relevant tool in terms of technology and marketing. While it is true that tools that help to take advantage of proprietary data require initial definition work, technical expertise and the ability to define and prioritise use cases, they are essential for any marketing team that wants to be prepared for this future that is becoming more and more present every day.
And in this context, Google’s calendar changes should not be read as yet another occasion to procrastinate, but as a new opportunity to get ahead of the change technologically and to arrive at the new cookie scenario with the necessary technology stack and our own up & running data strategy.
