Introduction
Data today is the real MVP – it's like having your very own gold mine full of insights that can bring big wins. If you're a marketer, you're probably doing a happy dance every time you strike data gold, finding those golden opportunities that mean big bucks for your company!
Data can hyper-personalize your campaigns and messages, customize content to specific individual’s needs, and reach your target audience by addressing their pain points or requirements. However, with the stringent data regulations and data privacy laws, it might become a tad bit difficult to maintain a balance between leveraging data for insights and respecting the user’s privacy.
Now, most professionals might think that data privacy for marketers is like an albatross around one’s neck; however, what if we tell you the situation is the other way around? Let’s learn more about data privacy and how marketers can leverage it to make profits and drive growth.
What is Data Privacy and How it Impacts the Digital Marketing World?
Data privacy concerns the proper handling of sensitive data, including personal, confidential information, and financial data. In simple terms, data privacy focuses on obtaining proper consent and communicating with the customers on how the data will be collected and utilized.
Most data privacy laws around the world focus on three major concerns:
- How do companies collect and store their customer data?
- Will the data be shared with third-party?
- Does the company comply with GDPR, CCPA, and others?
It is essential to understand that there is a fine line between data privacy and data security. Some businesses believe that keeping private information secure and safe means complying with data privacy laws. It is slightly wrong. Data security protects data from external attackers and insider threats, but data privacy governs how the data is collected, shared, and used.
Data Privacy and Its Impact on the Digital Marketing Landscape
Marketers usually exceed their revenue targets by 83% when personalization techniques are used. However, with data privacy affecting the marketing teams' strategies, around 73% of marketers fear that data privacy concerns will affect their analytics efforts. Since, marketers represent the brand image, and ignoring the privacy policies can negatively impact the brand image.
As per one study, misusing the user’s data can have dire consequences, as 8 out of 10 customers willingly abandon the company’s services if they find out their data was used without their acknowledgment.
To conclude, it is essential to navigate the path of digital marketing while maintaining data privacy.
Tips For Marketers to Comply With Data Privacy
In this world with stringent data protection laws, it becomes the responsibility of every employee in the organization to ensure the security of data. So, marketers are no exception. Here are some ways, as a digital marketer, you can contribute your part in complying with the regulations:
- Marketers are responsible for maintaining the privacy policy governing the company’s marketing process. You must review and update it timely and form it in such a way that it is understandable by every employee and customer. Also, dedicate a portion of your website with a print of eminently readable size.
- Marketers are in a better position to explain what data will be required and where. So, while approaching the customer for marketing consent, ensure to spell out clearly and specifically if an email address is required for daily mail-outs regarding specific product details. You can even give them options to narrow down how the customer wants to move forward with the relationship, like through emails, phones, or texts, SMS.
- Marketers need to ensure data visibility is in accordance with the consent of the authority, like who has access to view and edit it. When it comes to data privacy for marketers, an identity access management tool can help define who can access it and change the data over time.
- Email marketing is a boon, but as a marketer, it is best to clean and verify email lists. Like, perform regular sweeps for addresses that are no longer current. Most data regulations mention that storing obsolete data does not demonstrate a careful approach to the duty of data protection.
- When the data comes from different sources, there is a chance of data disparity. A DRM (Data Relationship Management) can provide a way to keep on top of multiple data inputs and structuring them in a meaningful way.
Wrapping up
Data privacy necessitates the requirement to preview the processes that can improve the entire company’s operation, not only the marketing vertical. With the help of the right tools for compliance and privacy regulations, marketers can implement their data-driven marketing strategies while capturing customer trust and providing enhanced user experience.
