Why marketers should care about consumer privacy

The key to marketing privacy is data, namely personal, identifiable, or aggregate data about a person and how businesses gather, use, exchange, and then forget about it. The right to privacy, according to the International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP), is “the right to be left alone.”

How important is privacy to consumers?

According to the MAGNA and Ketch poll, consumers are concerned about privacy, but they aren’t as concerned about privacy compliance requirements as, say, the entire digital marketing sector.

The Virginia Consumer Privacy Data Protection Act was unknown to 90% of poll respondents (VCDPA). People are paying attention to corporations that are labelled for poor privacy practices, even if they are not closely tracking government-imposed privacy standards or how businesses comply with them.

Even if they don’t understand the terminologies as well as we do, consumers are concerned about how firms handle their data, with only 5% saying they have no major worries.

While customers are more aware of how corporations use their data and have some worries, they are still mostly in the dark about a company’s privacy practices, which makes them sceptical. According to a recent BCG/Google survey, nearly 60% of consumers believe corporations sell their data, despite the fact that most organizations do not.

Privacy initiatives marketers should know about

Some privacy regulations have already been enacted, like the EU’s GDPR, Australia’s Consumer Data Right (CDR) law, and California’s Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA).

GDPR: The EU’s General Data Protection Regulation came into force in 2018 and expands consumer privacy rights by, among other things, giving consumers the right to know what personal data is being collected about them, the right to have that data erased, and the right to object to its use.

CCPA: In January 2020, the California Consumer Privacy Act, which was passed into law in 2018, took place. Californians are given the right to know what information is gathered, why it is gathered, and how it is gathered. Customers also have the option to revoke their consent and exercise their right to be forgotten (e.g., have their data deleted).

CDPA: The Virginia Consumer Data Protection Act is expected to go into effect in 2023. It, like the CCPA, allows customers far more control over how firms access and utilize personal data. It also emphasises data security, which means that businesses must take reasonable precautions to secure consumer data against unauthorized access, destruction, use, alteration, or disclosure. Marketers should be aware of the following distinctions between CCPA and CDPA.

ADPPA: The American Data Privacy and Protection Act, which is expected to be passed in 2023, would allow consumers the right to learn more about personal data, including how firms gather, use, and share it. It allows Americans the opportunity to opt out of targeted advertising and provides “strong safeguards” for kids, limiting the collecting and sharing of data about minors.

What does this mean for marketers?

GDPR, CCPA, and ADPPA, among others, impose strict limits on what, how, and why data is collected. Consumers are also becoming more worried about how firms utilize and exploit their personal information. More control and transparency are desired. They wish to reclaim control of their data from firms such as Google and Amazon.

Marketers should be more aware of consumer attitudes about data, particularly what information they are ready to share in exchange for benefits like discounts, freebies, and ease, in addition to the most recent privacy laws.

As a result of all of this, marketers must adopt a privacy-first, open, and rigorous strategy to data usage and privacy. Having your own data rather than relying on second- or third-party data for marketing efforts means you’ll have more control over client data collection preferences and utilization.