Brands are increasingly focused on offering personalized experiences while respecting consumer privacy. Addressability enables them to reach specific audiences with relevant messages, and personalization crafts unique content that aligns with each audience’s interests and needs. By combining these strategies, brands can create more relevant and effective marketing campaigns.
With new regulations and signal loss reshaping the landscape, alternative identifiers like the ID5 ID and The Trade Desk’s Unified I.D. 2.0 (UID2) are gaining importance. These tools give advertisers a more holistic view of consumers across channels, enhancing personalization and addressability even as traditional third-party cookies lose relevance.
To shed light on this topic, we interviewed experts from Audigent, Basis Technologies, CvE, ID5, MiQ and others. They shared insights on navigating privacy, utilizing new identifiers, and enhancing personalization with consent. Drawing from their perspectives, we’ve identified five considerations to help brands adapt and succeed in this evolving landscape.
1. Embrace a privacy-centric approach
With the increasing focus on consumer data protection, prioritizing privacy in your addressability efforts is essential. Implement strict data guidelines to protect personally identifiable information (PII) and maintain compliance with state-specific regulations.
To achieve this, empower consumers by providing clear and transparent choices about data sharing and honoring their preferences. Avoid targeting based on protected categories or sensitive information. By adopting a privacy-first mindset, you can build consumer trust while still delivering relevant advertising experiences.
“It’s important to champion consumer privacy and the free internet. We need to strike a balance between the two. This balance is essential for our jobs, the economy, news, politics, and all the valuable content and information we rely on.”
Drew Stein, Audigent
2. Personalize with consent
Consumers are more willing to share their information when they see clear benefits. In fact, over half of shoppers—and two-thirds of Gen X and Millennials—express a desire to receive holiday shopping deals directly from their preferred brands1. By offering value through loyalty programs, special offers, or interactive platforms, you can personalize experiences without compromising privacy.
To implement this strategy, encourage consumers to share their preferences and needs by being transparent and giving them control over their data. This approach builds trust, empowers your audience, and enhances personalization.
“Building personalization based on the data consumers have consented to share should lead to a positive experience that drives better engagement because it’s relevant to them.”
April Weeks, Basis Technologies
3. Personalize with contextual targeting
Contextual targeting involves delivering ads based on the content users are currently engaging with rather than user identifiers. By focusing on personalization through contextual targeting and dynamic content, you can align your strategies with your audience’s real needs and interests. This approach allows advertisers to reach consumers on websites with more visitors matching the demographics, behaviors, or interests they want to target.
“Personalization absolutely can thrive. We have various solutions, all utilizing IDs for targeting and personalization. Beyond that, we can also personalize using context, geo-contextual data, and creative strategies.”
Georgiana Haig, MiQ
4. Use alternative identifiers
As advertisers move beyond third-party cookies, exploring alternative identifiers offers reliable means to connect with consumers. Options like email addresses or device IDs provide direct connections, improving targeting accuracy.
Utilize identity graphs to link different signals and identifiers to establish strong ties to individual users or households. This approach maintains, and can even enhance, your ability to reach the right audience and measure campaign performance.
“It’s not just about maintaining addressability. It’s about massively improving addressability. When we run tests with some of our clients, they’re seeing 30, 40, 50, 60% incremental reach by using ID5 versus cookies.”
Mathieu Roche, ID5
5. Build partnerships
Navigating the complexities of addressability doesn’t have to be a solo effort. Partnerships between brands, publishers, and tech providers can lead to innovative solutions that benefit everyone.
Consider engaging in data partnerships to access new audience segments without maintaining extensive data. Collaborations focused on your tech stack can enhance your ability to deliver personalized content effectively and at scale.
“The rise of second-party data partnerships is going to be an interesting trend over the next couple of years. And if you need mass scale across the world, I think that’s a much more cost effective and scalable way to do it.”
Paul Frampton, CvE
Steering toward success
The future of addressability and personalization hinges on your ability to adapt to the changing privacy landscape while delivering meaningful, personalized experiences. By focusing on these five key considerations, you can navigate the complexities of modern advertising, build stronger relationships with consumers, and drive sustainable growth.
Connect with our addressability experts
Footnote
- Online survey conducted in June, 2024 among n=1,000 U.S. adults 18+. Sample balanced to look like the general population on key demographics (age, gender, household income, ethnicity, and region).
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We spoke with industry leaders from Ampersand, Basis Technologies, Captify, Cuebiq, CvE, Fetch, Madhive, MiQ, and Samsung to gather insights on how innovations in data and identity are creating stronger consumer connections. Here are five key insights to consider. 1. Build on trust with first-party data Stricter privacy regulations and growing customer expectations mean businesses must rethink how they gather and use data. A robust first-party data strategy centers on gathering high-quality data, such as behavioral and transactional data. By using behavioral, lifestyle, and purchasing data, brands can craft personalized strategies that align with their goals. This approach balances effective targeting with building trust and complying with privacy rules. Integrating identity solutions like Unified I.D. 2.0 (UID2) and ID5 into existing data strategies improves interoperability across platforms while keeping user privacy intact. These tools help create more effective campaigns. "We've been preparing and leaning into educating our clients around the value of first-party data. These are very important and primary considerations in any of our campaigns."April Weeks, Basis Technologies 2. Align metrics with business goals To demonstrate clear value, campaigns need to tie their outcomes to broader goals. Relying only on click-through rates or CPMs won’t cut it. Metrics that measure meaningful results, like driving sales or increasing customer retention, provide greater transparency than surface level data, like clicks or impressions. A continuous feedback loop between targeting and measurement ensures campaigns can be refined to better align with business objectives. This feedback helps marketers understand who they are targeting and how those audiences are driving key business results. Shifting focus to metrics that resonate with stakeholders ensures that marketing efforts are evaluated based on their true contribution to the company's objectives. "The television industry has access to more data than ever before, and at Samsung Ads, our ACR technology helps us provide valuable insights about what content and ads are being viewed. This abundance of data enables us to support clients in aligning their campaigns with business objectives effectively."Justin Evans, Samsung Ads 3. Personalize experiences to boost engagement Personalization drives stronger customer relationships by delivering tailored experiences to individual customer needs. Using data-driven insights to fine-tune offers and messaging makes interactions more relevant, strengthening brand loyalty. Combining behavioral, lifestyle, and transactional data provides a comprehensive understanding of the customer journey and ensures each touchpoint feels personal. Testing and iterating on personalization strategies also helps identify which data and approaches yield the best results. Scaling these efforts means customers receive the right messaging at the right time, and businesses see better outcomes. "Every business should be building a data strategy that thinks about the different versions of data that exist and how they bring that together. They don't necessarily need to own all of it but have a clear rationale and strategy about where you're using which data sets."Paul Frampton, CvE 4. Utilize advanced measurement tools for smarter decisions Improving the effectiveness of campaigns starts with using sophisticated measurement tools to gain actionable insights. Using analytics like brand lift studies, foot traffic analysis, app download tracking, incrementality, and share of search allows marketers to understand the full impact of their efforts. With these resources, teams can pinpoint what’s working, make real-time adjustments, and refine their approach. This adaptability ensures budgets are used as effectively as possible. Learn how Swiss Sense measured marketing outcomes using Mosaic® "We are playing a leading role in democratizing new tools for local advertisers. By mimicking the marketing funnel mentality, we've introduced solutions ranging from measuring brand lift to tracking foot traffic and app downloads."Luc Dumont, Madhive 5. Adapt quickly to stay competitive The only constant in advertising is change. Adapting quickly to new technologies and consumer behaviors keeps businesses competitive. A culture of agility fosters innovation, making it easier to respond to industry shifts and discover new opportunities. Companies that anticipate change and invest in modern data solutions position themselves for long-term growth. Whether it’s adjusting to privacy updates, exploring emerging tech, or staying flexible, businesses must continuously invest in adapting their platforms and strategies. "Falling behind is not really an option. There's always a change in advertising and in data where there's a new horizon. The people who stay close to that and innovate will always follow it."Amelia Waddington, Captify Shaping the future Building meaningful consumer connections requires advertisers to combine robust data strategies with flexibility and innovation. By focusing on these five considerations, marketers can adapt to today’s challenges while preparing for what’s ahead. Connect with our experts Latest posts