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Businesses can collect huge amounts of data about customers, and when combined with shopping or browsing patterns, it can tell marketers much about someone, sometimes more than we know ourselves. They can correlate data from different sources into a \u2018buyer persona\u2019 that may be surprisingly accurate.<\/p>\n
But ads based on this deep data collection and correlation can come across as creepy, leaving consumers wondering how brands know so much about them.<\/p>\n
Tracking people across the internet<\/h2>\n
\u201cMost websites and emails contain some form of tracking,\u201d Karen Gullo of EFF (Electronic Frontier Foundation) told me. \u201cCookies let advertisers follow your web searching. Tracking pixels in emails tell the sender if you opened the message. Tracking links let websites know what you clicked on. If you\u2019ve ever filled out an online form, the data may have been collected even if you didn\u2019t submit the form.\u201d<\/p>\n
Social media apps can also collect and retain information, creating accurate user profiles. It can feel like your phone is listening to you when Instagram starts showing you ads for coffee beans just as you\u2019re running out.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
But with great data comes great responsibility<\/a>. \u2018The more targeted the ad, the higher the response\u2019 has been a standard in advertising for decades. But as ads grow more focused, they begin to cross lines. Marketers must think about how their campaigns might come across to customers.<\/p>\n
What makes ads creepy?<\/h2>\n
Research shows that personalization tends to increase response<\/a>, but it can also have the opposite effect. When personalization and targeting are \u2018too much,\u2019 it puts people off by seeming intrusive.<\/p>\n
CEO of Email Optimization Shop Jeanne Jennings told me, \u201cI got an email from a department store where I shop, with my first and maiden name in the subject line.\u201d She had not used her maiden name for 20 years and could not figure out how they knew it. She eventually worked out they got her maiden name through her social security card, which she had shared when setting up her debit card.<\/p>\n
The further we get from good personalization, the more awkward the information \u2013 feeling \u2018wrong\u2019 or too personal. That\u2019s when things start getting strange.<\/p>\n
Jeanne Jennings, CEO, Email Optimization Shop<\/p><\/cite><\/blockquote>\n
While perceptions vary between customers and age groups, people tend to base judgments of creepiness on four things.<\/p>\n
1.\u00a0\u00a0 Consent: Was the data collected voluntarily?<\/h2>\n
Using data voluntarily provided by the customer means great targeting, but using third-party data or data obtained without consent can be an invasion of privacy.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou want the customer to be pleased the content is relevant. You don\u2019t want them to wonder how you got that information,\u201d said Jennings.<\/p>\n
2.\u00a0\u00a0 Explainability: How does a brand know this about me?<\/h2>\n
\u201cSome of the best recommendations\u2026 suggest why you are seeing that recommendation,\u201d said Emad Hassan, former Head of Data Analytics at Facebook and Paypal, on CMSWire<\/a>.<\/p>\n
Using targeted data in a way that makes it easy for the customer to know why you have the data reduces intrusiveness. For example, a donut shop might say, \u201cFrom your purchase data, we know you\u2019re a huge fan of our donuts, so here\u2019s a special discount for being one of our top customers.\u201d<\/p>\n
3.\u00a0\u00a0 Third-party data: When information given to one company shows up in an ad for another<\/h2>\n
Using demographic or preference data from a third-party source to target consumers often comes across as intrusive. Someone buying books for a niece or nephew from a children\u2019s book shop may not appreciate a children\u2019s clothing brand urging them to get \u201ctheir\u201d children new clothes for school. There\u2019s presumptuousness alongside exchange of personal data between brands.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you learned that a friend had revealed something about you to another friend, you\u2019d probably be upset, even if you have no problem with both parties knowing the information,\u201d wrote Harvard Business Review<\/a>.<\/p>\n
4.\u00a0\u00a0 Security and privacy: Will this brand keep my data safe?<\/h2>\n
Consumers want to know they can trust brands to store and process their data ethically and securely against hacks and breaches.<\/p>\n
Poor data storage or weak privacy policies can turn consumers off. Seeing personal information pop up in an ad or communication from another brand can be distressing and feels like a breach in trust between consumer and brand<\/a>.<\/p>\n
The same principles that apply to social interactions apply here \u2013 don\u2019t use information gained without consent or from a third party, keep customers\u2019 data secure and avoid using sensitive information like sexual orientation, health information or financial status.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s about privacy, safety, and security, and being able to control your data and internet experience,\u201d said Gullo.<\/p>\n
Future advertising: Hyper-targeted\u2026 or not targeted at all?<\/h2>\n
Third-party cookies are put on a website by someone other than the website\u2019s owner and collect data for that external entity. Many search engines have already, or plan to, phase these out soon<\/a>.<\/p>\n