Respecting the public's desire for privacy on the web while still providing relevant advertising content is a complicated equation. On May 25th, 2018, Europe's General Data Protection Regulation went into effect. This changed everything for companies who use platforms like Facebook and Google to run ads.
What is the EU's General Data Protection Regulation law? The GDPR gives web users more control of how their data is collected and analyzed by companies. Simply put, the GDPR protects and strengthens the rights of individuals. Companies who violate the regulations can face a hefty fine of 4% of the company's worldwide revenue. Yikes.
So the question is, "How does this affect advertisers who are trying to collect relevant information to appeal to their target audience?" The biggest change that advertisers need to assimilate to is the increased autonomy individuals have when it comes to restricting access to their personal information and online behaviors, making it easy for new potential customers to hide at the slightest provocation.
Let's look at this from another perspective.
Before the GDPR went into effect, the loose restrictions resulted in a marketing numbers game. Ads could be flashy, irrelevant, and, frankly, annoying. Ads became "noise" instead of relevant content that users wanted to engage with.
Think of the last time your recent search history followed you around from website to website flooding you with not so relevant ads for the grill you thought was interesting but had no intention of buying. It makes browsing the web overwhelming and frustrating and now users will have the power to say, "No Thank You."
Advertisers will need to be more thoughtful in their actions. Meaning that brands should be encouraged to put more effort into creating content for users who will actually enjoy being engaged. The new requirements are likely to motivate advertisers to research quality leads and nurture them.
This shift in the relationship between user's privacy and data collection from companies will surely result in something less annoying and more relevant content-wise. Companies and their consumers can benefit from those personalized efforts and thoughtfulness. It's a win-win situation.
Although this sounds like more work (which it is), brands have the ability to establish trusting relationships between them and their consumers, resulting in more revenue for the company.
The GDPR really shows us the speed in which policies can have an influence on how advertisers work. It's one of the many exciting aspects of the advertising and marketing world.
