Consumers have often wondered how it’s possible that something they were talking about, browsing through or recently liked is now being advertised to them. Coincidentally, as I’m pulling information from online resources regarding this very topic, I scroll down to see the exact products in the exact colors that I was interested in just last week. As a marketer myself, you would think that I would know better, but no – I fell for the trap. Instantly clicking on the ad and again, perusing the options I had once considered a short time ago.
To advertisers and businesses, this tactic works. It’s effective, accurate and results in high conversion rates. To consumers, it seems as if it’s an invasion of privacy. Online privacy is a topic that has been heavily in the news over the past few years. Starting with GDPR after the last election, and leading into today – where Apple and Google are head to head regarding their privacy settings.
In the upcoming months, iPhone users will begin to see a pop-up question when using certain apps; Do they want their online activity and behavior to be tracked?
A simple question, but one that could single-handedly change the way marketers target ads, affecting both major corporations, such as Facebook and Google, and small businesses looking to increase their online presence.
What does this mean for you?
How often have you found a new product or service from an ad? For most consumers, many of their purchases are initially found through digital advertising. In fact, even if you knew about a particular product or service, you’re not always ready to move forward with the purchase. This is where advertisers create “multiple touch points” to encourage consumers to follow through with their purchase. (Yes, Amazon – I am talking about you).
This is done through retargeting, which stems from the ability for advertisers to track your online behavior. By agreeing to disengage with this feature, you can say good-bye to new product finds and stumbling across trending nearby businesses.
While this new privacy feature is expected to roll out in early 2021, small businesses and marketers are already starting to think of outside-of-the-box ways to target ads in the upcoming future. In the meantime, it’s time to start ramping up your search engine optimization so that your business is easily found on Google! Everything you need to know about Google’s latest core algorithm update can be found here.
