Data clean rooms have risen in importance amid the post-cookie digital marketing landscape, as a means for marketers to extract value from user data while protecting consumer privacy preferences. But for marketers new to the concept, evaluating the variety of options that exist in the space today could feel a bit overwhelming.

A column in AdExchanger from Alliant Chief Innovation Officer Donna Hamilton provides a useful introduction to the category and shines a spotlight on what newbies should know, from setting ground rules with data governance and compliance teams to employing a flexible strategy that leverages collaboration with peers rather than building infrastructure from scratch. Read more in AdExchanger.

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In the land of third-party cookie deprecation, marketers have been handed a reprieve. Google announced that it will—again—delay the phase-out from Chrome until the second half of 2024. Claiming in a blog post that feedback from the industry was the motivation behind the extension, Google says that the extra time will allow for additional technology tests and trials. Here’s the latest on the cookie crumbling, according to a piece in AdExchanger.

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Monumental shifts are taking place within the digital marketing ecosystem as it moves closer to prioritizing consumer privacy over unencumbered audience targeting, attribution and personalization. Privacy regulations, such as CCPA, coupled with browsers blocking the use of third-party cookies, are providing real challenges for marketers. Following are three ways brands can tackle these changes and win out in the end, according to a column in AdExchanger by Diane Perlman, CMO of Blis.

Perlman maintains that brands should broaden the scope of their marketing strategies to include customers who are happy sharing their personal data in exchange for a personalized experience as well as those who are not comfortable doing so. Use alternative ways to reach the latter group in order to balance consumer privacy with personalization. “The role of the marketer is now to cater to the variety of responses your target customers will likely provide,” she says.

Secondly, marketers should define what they mean by “personalization.” Some consumers will appreciate an ad served to them that uses their name, while others may find a favorite sport team to be preferable. Brands should determine what types of data they actually need (or don’t need) in order to create a relevant experience.

Third, and most critical, is measurement and attribution. Perlman suggests taking a more comprehensive and holistic approach. “With the vast amount of anonymized data sources available, marketers should be able to isolate and explore the mechanisms between different variables to find the real cause for a specific trend,” she says. “This is a crucial piece of the attribution puzzle that can stop marketers from making poor decisions.”

For more detail on marketers can successfully transition to privacy-first marketing, read on in AdExchanger.

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Defining “Sale”

The CDPA’s definition of sale is limited to “the exchange of personal data for monetary consideration,” which is narrower than CPRA’s definition, which involves “monetary or other valuable consideration.” So the CDPA may not apply to exchanging personal information, like cookie data, for targeted advertising purposes. Meanwhile, the CPRA’s broader language applies to “sharing” and not just “sales.”

Types of Advertising

The CDPA gives consumers the right to opt out of processing for “targeted advertising,” but it provides several exceptions, including ads based on activities with a company’s websites or applications; ads based on a consumer’s search query; ads directed to a consumers based on their request; and personal data processed to measure advertising performance. The CPRA also includes exceptions, particularly regarding first-party data. But overall, the CDPA gives companies greater flexibility in terms of opt-out obligations relating to targeted advertising.

For more on the differences between the two laws, including notification of opt-out rights, obligations to children under 16 and mandatory data assessments, read on in AdExchanger.

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The delay gives publishers, advertisers and web developers more time to build alternatives to third-party identifiers and adjust to Google’s Privacy Sandbox, an initiative that proposes new standards to preserve consumer privacy while also allowing for adequate digital targeting and measurement.

The announcement has come as a shock to those facilitating the transition, according to an article in AdExchanger, as agencies have been pressing clients to quickly adapt new targeting technology that does not rely on cookies. But given the delay of early tests of some of its Privacy Sandbox proposals and the two extra years it took to comply with GDPR, some are not surprised by the postponement. And given the regulatory scrutiny it’s experiencing, the search giant must proceed slowly and take time to evaluate new technologies and gather feedback.

For more on Google’s decision to delay cookie deprecation and the new timeline, read on in AdExchanger.

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What’s more, users have to actively opt in to each individual app, and ATT forbids the use of workarounds such as fingerprinting. “It is more than a technical change,” says Gartner analyst Eric Schmitt. “It is a clear policy change from Apple.”

Gartner estimates that 56 percent of mobile phones in the U.S. are Apple devices. Among that majority of iOS users, experts anticipate average opt-in rates of just 20-30 percent. While your digital ads will still reach the app users who opt out, the lack of tracking data means they might not reach the targeted audience you want.

“The days of lights-out performance optimization are coming to a close,” Schmitt says. “One of the areas with greatest exposure is paid social campaigns. And if you have a lot of investment in performance marketing campaigns based on retargeting and look-alike targeting, those programs are really at risk.”

What’s a chief marketer to do? Schmitt offers a few suggestions:

* Make sure your team is upgrading software, updating pixels and data flows, and following other guidance from major platforms such as Facebook, Google and Instagram. Facebook, for instance, has implemented Aggregated Event Measurement (AEM) to help compensate for a lack of individual tracking data.

* Estimate the potential business impact. Review revenue, subscriptions and traffic previously and currently generated by performance-based marketing, as well as expenses related to the programs. Then create scenarios based on several potential opt-in rates. “Opt-in rates are really difficult to predict,” Schmitt notes. “They’re going to vary by app for sure. I think it’s possible that for social media apps they might creep up over time. If users start getting ads for things that aren’t relevant to them, they might say, ‘Okay, I’m cool with [being tracked]’ and opt in.”

Another thing to keep in mind is that ad prices might change. If less-effective targeting leads to a decline in advertisers, platforms could reduce prices. Then again, they might not. Right now, it’s impossible to predict.

* Consider pulling back on creative tests of digital ads. “Measurement is going to degrade,” Schmitt says. “There’s not enough data to test as many variables.”

* Be flexible regarding media commitments. Fluctuating opt-in rates and ever-changing publisher adjustments in response to ATT could cause performance to vary wildly month by month (or even week by week), so make sure your media plans can be tweaked as needed.

* Consider allocating some performance-marketing dollars to alternative channels. Content marketing, podcasts and Twitch are a few options you could test or expand your investment in. “I think there will be holdbacks for sure, and the potential for reallocation is there,” Schmitt says. “The challenge is there’s no alternative out there that offers comparable returns.”

* Keep the C-suite and other stakeholders informed of these changes and the possible effects on business. “The CMO is going to be in charge of not only managing change but also keeping the wheels on the car regarding marketing,” Schmitt says.

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Though it may not be addressed in the first 100 days, data privacy legislation will likely remain a priority for both the Biden Administration and lawmakers on both sides of the aisle, according to a piece in AdExchanger. Debates surrounding clearly defined consumer practices, national privacy legislation and data collection processes are on the horizon.

Data privacy legislation has bipartisan support, though the focus of each party differs. Republicans are looking at preventing social platforms’ immunity when third parties post content on their platforms and Democrats are focused on data collection practices. Members of both parties have also expressed support for national privacy legislation. The latter would be administered by the Federal Trade Commission which will soon release a study about the data collection practices of major internet companies, including Amazon, Twitter, Facebook and others.

For more detail on how the Biden presidency may affect the marketing industry—including possible regulation against big tech—read more in AdExchanger.

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The push for a future focused on privacy affects marketing strategy measurably, writes Luke Taylor, COO of TrafficGuard. In light of changes to Apple’s Intelligent Tracking Prevention (ITP), attribution has become a top concern for marketers since the channels, creative and messaging that contribute to a conversion are harder to identify. And that makes it more difficult to invest and optimize in the areas that have been most successful.

As a potential way forward, Taylor suggests identifying earlier stronger indicators of the potential to convert and then develop and test hypotheses against performance. He also suggests developing a process for measuring incremental uplift to better understand how each channel and campaign is performing following increased investment.

Another paint point on the horizon is the breakdown of A/B testing. Without the ability to rely on cookies to determine which audience is returning to your test, it will be more difficult to determine whether the test experience was consistent. Taylor recommends first-party tracking to maintain consistency across various online domains.

For a look at additional marketing challenges in a privacy-fueled future, including inflated analytics and smaller audiences for retargeting, read more in AdExchanger.

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The amendment makes the privacy laws outlined within the CCPA more likely to be enforced. For one, it calls for the creation of a California Privacy Protection Agency that’s dedicated to defending consumer rights. Instead of enforcement falling under the purview of California’s attorney general’s office, the agency will take on the role and receive a $10 million annual budget.

The CPRA also expands the definition of Californians’ “sensitive personal information” that must be protected to include race, ethnicity and precise geolocation, and it enhances children’s privacy by tripling fines for violation. The amendment also places limits on data retention, requires annual audits and changes the “do not sell” personal information remit to “do not sell or share.”

The outcome for marketers? Given the additional details included in the amendment and the formation of an agency, companies that have been slow to adjust to the new rules should no longer avoid compliance. However, the new rules do not require those businesses that have begun making the necessary changes to dramatically change course or start over from scratch.

For more on the implications of the CCPA, read on in AdExchanger.

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The new regulations eliminate the voluntary opt-out button design that version two had introduced, according to an analysis by AdExchanger. The button was a suggestion that addressed the need for marketers to communicate to consumers that they have the right to opt out of the sale of their personal information. No new solution was presented in the update, however.

The regulations also emphasized that businesses collecting personal information online must honor global privacy controls. And in terms of IP addresses, the AG issued a reversal of what it previously stated. Draft two said that visitors’ IP addresses are only considered “personal information” when directly links to a particular consumer or household. But in the third draft, that language has been removed. Read on for what’s likely to happen next in AdExchanger’s deep dive.

Other articles you might enjoy:

• Second Draft of CCPA Regulations Some Clarification on Compliance
• Insights for Marketers on CCPA Compliance
• GDPR: Three Tips for Compliance

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