IAB Europe predicted that 2020 would be the year adtech turned the corner on regulator perceptions of digital advertising, delivering on the GDPR’s promise to provide transparency and control to users about the processing of their personal data. 

But little did we know what 2020 would have in store. From a global pandemic, to the third-party cookie demise, our worlds have placed us in uncharted territories. But, with all disruption, comes opportunity.

Over the past few years, numerous privacy regulations have come into force across the globe. Consumers have greater control over their data but multiple regulatory initiatives has created greater complexity for the martech and adtech industries.

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More so than ever, consumers are concerned about data privacy, with breaches becoming mainstream media stories. Therefore, trust is more important than ever, and for a consumer to trust a brand with their data, privacy compliance must be at the center of user experience.

Ethics, privacy and consumer data

Compliance isn’t binary and data ethics is still in many ways subjective, with publishers often under fire when it comes to data protection. Most recently in the firing line is leading social media platform TikTok, as it faces allegations of misleading its users by failing to clearly inform them about what kind of personal data it collects, what the collected data will be used for, and the legal reasoning behind its collection. 

And whilst publishers ultimately hold responsibility for their platforms, brands absolutely need to make consent their priority. At the end of the day, a privacy experience that clearly informs the consumer of their rights, while explaining the benefits of personalised advertising, will establish much-needed trust.

In a complex global environment, it’s important to establish and communicate your business’ approach to privacy. Establishing a set of best practices will also form the basis for evaluating your partners and vendors, to ensure your customer experiences with your brand matches your brand ethics and image.

Tips for building trust around data

Brands face new challenges when connecting with their customers. As the third-party cookie disappears, brands are seeking new ways to accurately engage consumers in a world where traditional ways of working no longer apply. A key remedy to a world without cookies is the use of next generation contextual targeting products, where brands are able to not only protect their brands through smarter suitability measures, but can also improve outcomes through smarter in-the-moment targeting. 

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So, what do we need to do to pave the way where brands can engage their customers in a privacy safe yet effective way.

• Brands also need to take responsibility, and have a strong data and tech ethics strategy to ensure best practices are met at all times. As contextual tools replace third-party cookies, brands need to embrace advancements in technology to drive suitability and relevance, so they can improve customer experiences.
• Privacy compliance needs to underpin all marketing activities. This requires a comprehensive data management infrastructure to be put in place and maintained.
• Businesses need a new kind of marketing partner – one that is driven by outcomes and powered by expertise. Blending end-to-end marketing services with the right data (consented) and the right technology (contextual intelligence), will help you step into the new marketing age. 
• In a world where data and technology sits at the very heart of your business strategy, it’s more important than ever to surround yourself with smart people who know and care about privacy, and can embrace the raft of new products and services that are available to brands globally.

An exciting future, powered by context.

Silverbullet has launched a new context outcome engine, 4D, which allows advertisers and agencies to define the perfect context for their ads to appear against, and to apply that context across all addressable channels.

Silverbullet’s 4D Context Outcome Engine leverages its data DNA expertise acquired through helping global brands, including: Heineken, FCA, D&G and Channel 4, and combines it with machine learning to bring contextual targeting ‘back to the future’. 

Marketers now can also leverage 4D’s advanced computer vision context segments to execute cookieless, interest-based targeting, on brand-suitable inventory – at scale across thousands of IRIS-enabled CTV and online video publishers, and billions of monthly video impressions worldwide. This new integration between IRIS.TV and 4D addresses advertisers’ demands for privacy-friendly solutions to reach target audiences in the post-cookie era, and the need to safely target the way contextual video is bought and sold for marketers.

About Silverbullet

Silverbullet is the leading marketing transformation company that helps the world’s biggest brands to improve business outcomes. We reduce the friction across digital marketing, empowering better, faster and smarter marketing decisions.

Founded in 2016, the company is headquartered in London, with a team of consultants, product experts, data scientists, and marketing engineers in Milan, Munich, Melbourne and New York.

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