Death of the cookie brings brands’ plans to the fore

Companies have had four years to prepare for the death of cookies, as Google moves to its Privacy Sandbox. Two companies have stood out for the detail of their preparation: Diageo and Experion.

Diageo, the drinks giant, started planning for the change almost immediately after it was announced. As their global marketing director Isabel Massey explains, Diageo started focusing on what the loss of third-party cookies meant for measurement. 

By this they meant how they could use existing and developing methodologies that didn’t focus on third-party cookies. A thought process that led to the company looking at an ‘agile media mix model solution,’ that provides granular measurement of return on investment around advertising. A solution, Diageo believes will be vital for optimising media buying plans.

Experian has taken a slightly different approach. 

By adopting three priorities, the company has sought to make the post cookie pathway clear for themselves.

Their first step has been to examine addressability. Addressability, meaning Experian going out of its way to solve a clear market need for data sharing, which is flexible enough to be able to quickly react to further change be it regulatory or industry based.

Secondly, they are looking at a tool that will deliver dynamic insights in real-time, while the third is privacy first collaboration and looks at convincing complimentary organisations to collaborate using privacy first solutions in sync with one another.

One such collaborative solution is the use of data clean rooms. These rooms feed user level data in and get aggregated data around audience groups (known as cohorts) out. 

Other companies however, are taking a different path, and are focusing on expanding their tech capabilities. By doing this, they hope to make the most of their stock of first-party user data. With ID5 estimating that around 25% of brands are increasing their investment in first-party data capabilities. 

The race to find a solution to the end of cookies is heating up. Whoever finds the answer may come out ahead.