Valid GDPR Consent for Digital Advertising

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Organizations that handle user data today should be wary of the potential pitfalls surrounding the compliance standards demanded by privacy laws such as GDPR. However, those of an enterprising mindset would do well to recognize the opportunities that this heightened focus on valid GDPR consent presents.

Earning the trust of consumers can only be achieved by acting with transparency, respecting users’ choice and privacy, and delivering relevant marketing recommendations that they will want to engage with in return. It’s this value exchange between organizations and users that leads to business success.

Time to Focus on valid GDPR consent

For most consumers, the inner workings of digital advertising are still an unknown quantity. 71% of users believe that brands with access to their personal data are ‘most likely using it unethically’. And with the continual flow of fines being handed out for GDPR-related indiscretions making for eye-opening headlines, this may prove to be a difficult perception to shift.

A lack of integrity erodes confidence and brand reputation with the most important stakeholders of all; users. When 88% of consumers believe that transparency is key to increasing trust over how their data is handled, it’s time to take the matter seriously. Failure to clearly communicate with consumers prompts many to resort to more direct measures to avoid intrusive and irrelevant digital advertising.

Given how personal our mobile devices have become in the modern age, overbearing and irrelevant digital advertising feels like an imposition. Use of blockers – projected to cost the industry $75bn by 2020 – is symptomatic of consumers who have disengaged with marketing to the point of choosing to abandon it entirely. There’s only one effective method of halting the spread of these anti-commerce approaches. Treat the problem at its root by delivering the kind of relevant, valuable marketing that reflects their real interests and speaks to their passions.

Customized Digital Advertising Makes for Happier Consumers; And Successful Campaigns

Ensuring that user data activated for campaigns is consented at the point of collection is the only way to avoid toxic data. This eliminates the kind of rogue marketing practices that have regulators handing out significant fines and punishments. And communicating transparently over how user data is generated, collected, and used engenders trust with consumers.

When combined with purpose-built AI technology, compliant mobile user journey data becomes the fuel for outstanding campaigns. At Ogury, user consent and privacy rights have been a foundational principle since establishing the company in 2014. Each of our 400m+ mobile users are presented with a valid GDPR consent notice and have the opportunity to opt-out of data collection and personalized marketing with every campaign we deliver.

Consumers have to be in control of their digital experience and their data. For that to happen, crystal clarity, integrity, and a fair choice over how they access content must be the non-negotiable basis of the contract between consumer and brand. Through its technology and expertise, Ogury enables this exchange.

Case Study: How Bose Sleepbuds Enacted the Value Exchange

Sleepbuds are an in-ear solution designed to aid those who suffer from poor quality sleep by masking unwanted outside sounds with white noise and other soothing audio signals. Sleepbuds creator, Bose, faced challenges when promoting its UK launch. The company was entering unfamiliar territory with a brand new product line and needed to effectively identify and attract consumers who would most benefit from its sleep-enhancing solution. Additionally, Bose had to ensure that any technology partner it employed would deliver its campaigns with valid GDPR consent GDPR.

Bose worked with Ogury and its User Engagement solution to help uncover this new niche market. As all of the mobile user journey data that fuels Ogury’s solutions is generated with explicit user consent, the company was safe in the knowledge that its campaigns would be delivered in compliance with all privacy legislation requirements, with valid GDPR consent.

By studying Bose’s existing users and cross-referencing them with the audiences of sleep-related apps, anti-snoring websites, mediation services and more, Bose was able to build a comprehensive user profile for its campaigns. The insights gained from Ogury’s Total Profile reports included a number of revelations. They showed affinities for sites that deal with a variety of specific sleep-related issues, including snoring, sleep apnoea, stress, and anxiety. App usage and ownership indicated that users in Sleepbud’s audience were more than two and a half times more likely to own travel apps compared to the national average.

The insights were used to build a number of creative campaigns designed to reach these specific audiences, based on observed affinities from their consented user data.

The commercial benefits of this level of user engagement for Bose are clear enough. But crucially, the campaign is also an example of genuine value exchange for consumers. These users who were either researching around or actively looking for an answer to their sleeping problems were presented with a beneficial solution. Not just with another ad aimed roughly at their interests, but a tailored recommendation based on the specific issues that affect them. A campaign average click-through rate of 9.37% and re-engagement rate of 20.46% are proof points to that end.

Win Your Users’ Trust, Reap ROI

Compliance with privacy legislation may appear taxing for organizations that handle data. But for mobile marketers, this chance to act with transparency over consumers’ data is more than just a legal obligation. It’s a route to previously unachievable commercial success and to making digital marketing trusted and valued by both organizations and users alike.

Should you have any questions or queries about user consent, or about how Ogury’s MJM solutions can make your campaigns compliant with the most stringent privacy laws, contact us at hello@ogury.com

Matt Taylor, UK Commercial Managing Director

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