Navigating privacy changes & their impact on Paid Social advertising

As the internet has become increasingly influential over the purchasing powers of its users, the data collected on international users has become increasingly valuable.

With that shift, however, has come increased pressure on browser platforms and tech mega-stars like Google and Apple to improve privacy control over user data.

The changes in restrictions over user data usage is something that requires digital marketers to update and reconsider their marketing strategies. If you want to stay competitive, you must adapt your campaigns to keep up with the latest updates, whilst maintaining measurement and data-collection accuracy.

This guide will take you through the most recent changes, and introduce you to the best approach to take to keep your campaigns performing efficiently.

• Privacy changes: What's changing and why?
• The impact of privacy changes on Paid Social advertising
• Adapting your Paid Social strategies to Privacy Changes
• The role of creative and messaging in a privacy-conscious era

Privacy changes: What’s changing and why?

Here’s the lowdown on exactly what changes have taken place, and why they’ve come about.

Regulatory frameworks
There’s been a pretty revolutionary update to privacy policies across the UK and US. You’ll have come across General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in the EU and California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) in the US, among others.

Alongside these more universal changes at a country-wide, international level, there are also updates to the general standards of practice surrounding data protection. Look out for upcoming regulations like ePrivacy and a potential global adoption of stricter laws.

Overall, there’s an increasing focus on user consent for data collection. This comes after several infamous data breaches over the last few years, resulting in data misuse. This distrust between data-collection tech companies and the public has led to the need for these newly updated frameworks to be put in place.

Browser updates
Cookies used to be the mainstream for data collection, but these are actually being phased out by Google in favour of new methods. Many other browsers are following suit, including Safari’s Intelligent Tracking Prevention (ITP) and Firefox’s Enhanced Tracking Protection (ETP) blocking third-party cookies.

Platform updates
We’ve also seen updates across Apple, including their App Tracking Transparency (ATT) framework limiting data collection on iOS. This is in place as a prompt for users so that they can opt-out of sharing their data while browsing within an app.

Other platforms including Facebook and Instagram are reducing the granularity of user tracking. They’re opting for a shift towards first-party data collection and contextual targeting. 

The impact of Privacy changes on Paid Social advertising

But what does this change from cookies and easily available third-party tracking data to first-party tracking and less data mean for your PPC campaign?

Reduced tracking accuracy

• As there will be less data available overall, expect some challenges in attributing conversions across multiple devices and channels.

• You’ll also have a loss of granular targeting options (e.g., based on behaviour, interests, or location). 

Limited user data

• As users opt-out of tracking you may find slightly shrinking custom audience sizes.

• Your retargeting campaigns may become less accurately targeted due to data loss.

Impact on measurement

• As the data is potentially less precise, you may have some difficulty in accurately tracking conversions and Return on Ad Spend (ROAS).

Adapting your Paid Social Strategies to Privacy Changes

Don’t worry, these changes don’t mean the end of your campaign efficiency. You simply need to adjust your strategy to keep up to date with these changes. Here’s how to stay one step ahead of these updates.

Invest in first-party data

• This should be your primary objective. Focus on gathering customer data through owned channels such as email sign-ups, loyalty programmes, and CRM integration.

• This gives you ultimate control over what metrics you collect, and how you develop your relationship with your audience and customers over time. We’d recommend developing strategies to incentivise users to share data voluntarily.

Leverage contextual targeting

• It’s time to rethink your targeting approach. Target users based on the context of the content they are consuming, rather than behaviour or interests.

• Collaborate with platforms offering keyword and content-based targeting to speed up this process in the early stages.

Explore alternative measurement solutions

• Consider using aggregated data from tools like Facebook’s Aggregated Event Measurement (AEM) and Google’s Privacy Sandbox.

• Implement server-side tracking solutions to capture conversion data more accurately.

• Diversify your attribution models (e.g., incrementality testing, media mix modelling) to test your attribution methods for efficiency and ROI.

Emphasise user consent and transparency

• With user consent at the forefront of customer’s minds (especially when browsing online) you need to be totally upfront about how and why you are collecting any data from your customers.

• Clearly communicate how user data is collected and used at all times.

• Ensure compliance with privacy laws through robust consent management platforms (CMPs).

Optimise for broader segments

• Broaden your targeting criteria to reach larger audience pools. From here, you can refine these data sets into specific user groups and demographics.

• Test creative strategies to appeal to wider demographics. Now is the time for experimentation!

The role of creative and messaging in a privacy-conscious era

It’s clear that the world of data collection has totally transformed over the last few years, and is set to continue this change over the coming decade. As we enter a new era of our relationship with data in digital marketing, here are a few trends to expect:

Personalisation without data
Look out of a shift from hyper-personalisation based on user data to more generalised, engaging creative approaches. It’s less about designing ads that work at a totally granular level and more about appealing to your niche audience overall in a very authentic and engaging way.

Use storytelling and emotive messaging to create a connection without relying on specific user data.

Testing and iterating creative
A/B test various creative elements (images, copy, formats) to find what resonates with audiences. Your ads can no longer be saved just through targeting alone. As the data takes more of a back-seat, your creative efforts will be what really sets you apart from your competitors.

Focus on the quality and relevance of the creative to drive engagement.

Innovate with ad formats
Invest in interactive formats like polls, quizzes, and shoppable posts that encourage user interaction without tracking. This is part of your new approach to data collection that is organic, rather than relying on cookies to bring in the data for you.

It’s a fresh approach to data collection that can help level up your relationship building with your most loyal customers, as they become increasingly involved with your brand through interactive content.

A new era, that you can prepare for

As privacy regulations tighten and platforms limit data access, paid social advertisers face a challenging yet crucial opportunity to rethink their strategies. If you shift your focus towards first-party data, maintaining an open privacy-compliant approach to data collection, you can stay competitive as the industry evolves.

It’s all about the fine balance between compliance and innovation. Embrace these new approaches to building a deep understanding of your audience through themes and intent, to maintain strong campaign performance and future-proof your strategy.