Their effectiveness at customizing the consumer experience has made them the new standard. <\/p>\n
However, there’s a fine line between useful and intrusive<\/strong> as far as your customers are concerned, and developing a human-first data experience is the key to walking it successfully.<\/p>\n Ready to learn more about this topic?<\/p>\n With the internet and mobile technology becoming bigger parts of everyday life, people share an immense amount of personal data, sometimes without realizing it. <\/p>\n Web cookies track people’s browsing habits. Social media sites and mobile apps of all kinds collect and organize many personal details, as well.<\/p>\n By analyzing this data thoroughly, savvy marketers can know modern consumers almost better than they know themselves. <\/p>\n Data can tell you what kind of people your customers really are<\/strong>, what types of content genuinely capture their attention, and what products they’re in the market for, right down to the last detail. <\/p>\n The marketing world hasn’t been the same since.<\/p>\n Targeted marketing all but eliminates the need to guess<\/em> what your potential customer might be interested in, and the results have been incredible. <\/p>\n Personalized<\/a>, targeted ads have a much higher success rate than traditional alternatives. <\/p>\n But it’s becoming increasingly rare for a consumer not <\/em>to understand what a prominent role their personal data plays in the eerily accurate ads they see virtually everywhere, and they have mixed feelings about that.<\/p>\n On the one hand, people love experiences that are accurately tailored to their needs and preferences without them even having to ask. <\/p>\n On the other, they don’t want their data mishandled <\/strong>or for marketers to pry further into their lives than they’d like. <\/p>\n The digital marketer’s job is to figure out the difference, and the following factors often come into play:<\/p>\n Research shows that the more intimate and personal a piece of information is, the less comfortable a person is with someone else knowing about it. <\/p>\n Examples include details related to their finances, health, or sex lives<\/strong> \u2014 topics the average person typically keeps to himself or wouldn’t want to discuss in front of other people.<\/p>\n It’s not just the type of information being shared that makes a difference to your customers. It’s the path that information takes as it passes from one set of hands to another. <\/p>\n Even consumers who are OK with first-person sharing (the direct disclosure of their personal information) often feel very differently about third-person sharing (information shared without their knowledge).<\/p>\n These patterns hold true of personal relationships, as well. <\/strong><\/p>\n For instance, no one likes finding out a trusted friend passed on information shared in confidence, even if the information isn’t particularly sensitive. <\/p>\n People don’t like it when others infer personal details about them, either, even when they are correct.<\/p>\n People also react strongly to whether or not social norms governing privacy<\/a> feel violated by a particular advertisement or marketing tactic. <\/p>\n Again, people don’t necessarily mind being shown targeted ads based on information they’ve willingly shared publicly or with a business. <\/p>\n But interest in the ad drops significantly if it’s based on inferred information or details passed from one company to another without their understanding or explicit consent.<\/p>\n People also tend to dislike ads that leverage device listening technology.<\/strong> <\/p>\n They don’t like to feel like their phones, smart speakers, and other smart devices are eavesdropping on their private conversations. <\/p>\n Geotracking tech and advertising based on third-party cookies<\/a> can inspire similar feelings in consumers that their privacy is being violated.<\/p>\n Naturally, the answer isn’t to stop collecting, analyzing, and utilizing data altogether. <\/p>\n Customers actually enjoy personalization <\/em>and prefer to see ads that are relevant to their interests and needs. <\/p>\n However, good business practices dictate that marketers also treat consumers with respect and use data responsibly.<\/p>\n Human-first data experiences are the key to making sure everyone’s happy. <\/strong><\/p>\n Here are some terrific expert tips for crafting one of your own to the tune of excellent results.<\/p>\n The best time to collect valuable information from existing or potential customers is at the point when you first make contact with them. <\/p>\n This could happen when the customer makes a purchase or signs up to receive newsletters, coupons, deals, or other communications from your company. <\/p>\n It could also occur via an application for a membership or loyalty program.<\/strong><\/p>\n Get any information you’re likely to need from your customer then<\/em> while they’re having an interaction they initiated. <\/p>\n Be as brief as possible to avoid losing their attention while remaining thorough. People don’t generally like to be asked for additional data later on down the line.<\/p>\n It might sound like common sense, but the ways customers are asked for data can really shift their comfort level. If the form is crammed with fields or looks like it’s fishing for unnecessary details\u2014well, people notice. Convenience will always win out, so the smoother the process feels, the more willing folks are to let you in.<\/p>\n And don’t underestimate the subtle signals you send by how you treat those first exchanges. Little things like a friendly intro, a simple privacy statement, or even just stating the obvious (“we’ll never sell your info”) matter more than marketers give credit for. When in doubt, stick to the basics: ask for what you actually need, and let the customer lead the way when it comes to sharing more.<\/p>\n Don’t assume it’s obvious to the customer that you’ll be using information they provide to contact them later. <\/p>\n Instead, err on the side of caution and explicitly ask them for permission to do so<\/strong> if that’s your intention.<\/p>\n Make sure you also honor any preferences they’ve given regarding how <\/em>they’d like to be contacted. <\/p>\n For instance, if they’ve said it’s OK to contact them by text or email, don’t bother them with phone calls even if they’ve provided a phone number.<\/p>\n Modern technology makes it incredibly easy to use information you already have about someone to uncover even more information about that same person. <\/p>\n But you risk alienating your customers and making them feel stalked if you do that.<\/p>\n When contacting or advertising to your customers, stick to using information they’ve willingly given you via a contact form, survey, or other avenues. <\/p>\n You’ll want to avoid doing anything else that violates a customer’s privacy<\/strong>, as well, like selling their information to third parties without their express consent.<\/p>\n Trust is everything when it comes to today’s business-client relationships. <\/p>\n Break a customer’s trust even once, and you’re highly likely to lose the customer. And if the violation was severe enough, they may spread the word to others they know, as well. <\/p>\n Transparency is a compelling way to ensure trust stays intact.<\/strong><\/p>\n Preempt the backlash that can come with targeted advertising by offering to disclose information about why the person is seeing the ad. (Think about the clickable feature on Facebook that lets users find out “why am I seeing this ad”.<\/em>) <\/p>\n And as always, stick to using only information consumers have willingly given you.<\/p>\n Loss of control is at the heart of many concerns modern consumers have about data sharing and the potential loss of privacy. <\/p>\n If a third-party business with whom they’ve never had direct contact can get a hold of their personal information without their say-so, who else might be able to do the same? <\/p>\n How might that information be used against them down the line?<\/p>\n Never allow your customers to feel like they’re not the ones in charge of their experience.<\/strong><\/p>\n Give them as much say as possible in how their shared information may be used to market to them in the future. <\/p>\n The more control a would-be customer feels they have, the more likely they are to be generous with their data in the first place.<\/p>\n Consumers also respond favorably when businesses readily reveal why <\/em>a particular piece of information may have been used to generate an ad or otherwise make a suggestion. <\/p>\n Let’s use geotracking information as an example.<\/p>\n When a customer’s physical location is used to generate an ad without explanation, it can backfire. <\/p>\nWhen and How Personalized Experiences Can Feel Intrusive<\/h2>\n
Nature of the Information<\/h3>\n
How the Information is Shared<\/h3>\n
Whether Privacy Feels Violated<\/h3>\n
![\"COLLECTING](\"https:\/\/mlgzkyrbq6eh.i.optimole.com\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/https:\/\/pingback.com\/br\/resources\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/first-party-data.png\")
How to Build a World-Class Human-First Data Experience<\/h2>\n
1. Collect data upfront<\/h3>\n
2. Respect customer preferences<\/h3>\n
3. Avoid the creep factor<\/h3>\n
4. Be as transparent as possible<\/h3>\n
5. Preserve consumer autonomy<\/h3>\n
6. Have good reasons for leveraging data<\/h3>\n