Anatomy of a Data Fall

Federal privacy legislation is on the horizon, and third-party cookie deprecation is inevitable, even with Google’s delays. This shift means you need to adapt your campaign targeting and performance measurement strategies across channels now.

Embrace first-party data to avoid putting your brand at a disadvantage. As the leader of Wpromote’s Data Strategy & Analytics team, I’ve noticed many brands lagging in modern data strategies. With cookie loss, relying solely on existing data can lead to biased marketing decisions, favoring trackable platforms over those best suited for your goals.

To succeed in this evolving landscape, we need to broaden our data perspective. In the 2024 State of the Data report, we cover the latest developments in data, marketing platforms, and privacy regulations. We’ve also included essential actions you need to take now to prepare for the future.

You’ve already experienced the impacts of changes like App Tracking Transparency (ATT) and state-level privacy legislation. This guide will help you navigate these shifts and implement strategic changes to brace for industry-wide transformations.

It’s time to act.

DREW FORD
VP of Data Strategy & Analytics
Wpromote

Tremors: What Shook the Data Landscape in 2023

After years of anticipation, the data privacy revolution began to take shape in 2023. Major updates from companies like Google and Apple, along with new campaign strategies, set off the first wave of significant changes.

Apple strikes again: iOS 17 and other updates

Apple surprised advertisers once again with the release of iOS 17, which introduced Link Tracking Protection (LTP) that limits tracking parameters in URLs. LTP removes marketing query parameters that track user activity across various websites, effectively disabling tracking on links shared in Messages, Mail, or Safari’s Private Browsing Mode. This update notably stripped click IDs from Google Ads and Meta Ads on iOS devices, impacting native and third-party ad platform integrations and their CRM systems by hindering user identification and offline sales funnel optimization.

However, marketers aren’t entirely in the dark. UTM parameters remain available for aggregate engagement tracking (e.g., sessions) and conversion tracking (e.g., purchases) in analytics platforms like Google Analytics 4 (GA4).

Personalization will be harder, but not impossible for brands willing to get creative about gathering data.

While LTP has significantly changed certain tracking methods within ad platforms (for instance, without the Facebook Click ID, advertisers can’t link user behavior to specific Meta campaigns), brands can still use UTMs and analytics tools to maintain valuable insights. This will require a different approach that relies less on link tracking.

iOS 17’s removal of marketing parameters in URLs also limits detailed user data for personalized targeting and segmentation. Brands are now unable to target users who visited sites and may face challenges in constructing specific user segments based on click-through behavior. However, some targeting options remain. For example, brands can track category pages with a Meta pixel installed on their website.

Workarounds like these will shape personalization in the post-iOS 17 world. While personalization will be more challenging, it’s still possible for brands willing to be creative about data collection. Ultimately, directly collecting first-party data will be crucial.

PROMISES, PROMISES: APPLE TAKES AIM AT DEVICE FINGERPRINTING

Apple, along with major players like Google and Mozilla, announced their plans to limit device fingerprinting in the Safari browser long ago. Despite stating in 2021 that fingerprinting is specifically prohibited under ATT, little has changed since then beyond obscuring some data in Safari.

Fingerprinting is an alternative method of identifying and tracking users online by collecting and combining data like IP addresses, VPN/browser information, and time zones and language to identify a unique user. Consumers have limited options to avoid fingerprinting since the information gathered is necessary for websites to load properly in a browser. However, using fingerprinting to target ads has become increasingly controversial due to the collection of user information without consent.

Apple made more progress in 2023 by requiring app developers to provide reasons for using specific application programming interfaces (APIs). Apps without justified reasons for their APIs could be banned from the App Store. Additionally, LTP impacts fingerprinting by removing information from URLs.

Continue reading to understand the critical data shifts, download the guide now to prepare your brand for the future!

• Tremors: What Shook the Data Landscape in 2023
  • Apple strikes again: iOS 17 and other updates
  • The baseline shifts: Google Analytics
  • The new normal evolves: AI-powered campaigns
• The Big One: Prepare for 2024’s Seismic Privacy Shifts
  • The game is changing: Privacy legislation in the US and abroad
  • Start the countdown: Google Chrome cookie deprecation
  • The ecosystem evolves: The rise of retail media
• Moving Forward: Strategies to Combat Data Deprecation
  • Build a stronghold: Learning to leverage first-party data
  • Uplevel measurement: Mission-critical solutions
  • Build for tomorrow: Data powering AI models
• Take Action: Your Data Loss Preparedness Kit

Number of Pages:

• 32 pages

Pricing: 

• Free