Cookie Deprecation: Approaching a Privacy-First Future 

There may be a significant shift approaching soon in the landscape of digital marketing as the industry prepares for a potentially cookieless future. For years, third-party cookies have been the backbone of personalized advertising, enabling businesses to track user behavior and deliver targeted ads. However, growing concerns over privacy have led to a push for more consumer-friendly solutions, forcing marketers to reevaluate their strategies. While initial reactions to potential cookie deprecation were met with alarm, recent industry trends suggest a shift from extreme concern to pragmatic adaptation. 

The Decline of Third-Party Cookies 

Third-party cookies have long been essential to digital marketing, helping advertisers collect data on user behavior across websites to deliver tailored ad experiences. Although Google does not have a concrete plan to fully phase out third-party cookies, some suggest this shift may be approaching soon. Cookie deprecation presents new challenges for advertisers and publishers who have relied on this technology to measure the effectiveness of their campaigns, optimize audience targeting, and improve return on investment (ROI). As we approach this potential change, the question remains: how will the industry adapt? 

The reliance on third-party cookies in marketing is still high, but many are preparing for alternatives. Marketers are searching for solutions that provide accurate targeting without compromising privacy. While there is still time to adjust to this shift away from cookies, the process will require careful planning and adoption of new technologies. 

Enformion is closely monitoring the industry sentiment and trends regarding cookie deprecation. While concerns persist, there has also been a gradual shift towards pragmatism and adaptation. Recent studies shows, the proportion of publishers expressing extreme concern has decreased, indicating a growing acceptance and preparedness for this change.  

• 60% of publishers express concerns about the impact of cookie deprecation, but the number of those “very concerned” has decreased by 25% year-over-year: According to a survey by DoubleVerify, 60% of publishers are concerned about cookie deprecation, but many are transitioning to pragmatic solutions for the future. While 31% of advertisers express concern about their ability to target audiences post-cookie, the overall sentiment has shifted, with fewer publishers feeling extreme concern compared to the previous year (StreetFight). 

• 31% of advertisers are worried about effective audience targeting in a cookieless future: This statistic also comes from the DoubleVerify survey, which highlights concerns among advertisers about targeting capabilities as third-party cookies are phased out. Audience targeting without cookies remains a top concern for nearly one-third of advertisers (StreetFight) 

• Nearly half of publishers expect revenue to increase post-cookie deprecation: Despite challenges, nearly half of the publishers surveyed by DoubleVerify are optimistic about their revenue post-cookie deprecation. They expect first-party data strategies and contextual advertising to drive positive results (StreetFight) (CustomSoft). 

• Programmatic display advertising, a $160 billion industry in the U.S., still depends heavily on third-party cookies, with 75% of marketers relying on them for campaign execution: Programmatic advertising remains highly reliant on third-party cookies, with around 75% of marketers continuing to depend on these for campaign execution. The entire U.S. programmatic display advertising market is worth around $160 billion (CustomSoft). 

Enformion’s Cookieless Approach 

Enformion is embracing the potential shift to a cookieless future by implementing a range of innovative strategies designed to ensure both effectiveness and privacy. At the core of this approach is a focus on identity resolution, strategic partnerships, and advanced technologies that support audience targeting and data activation without relying on third-party cookies. By leveraging key tools such as their comprehensive identity graph, privacy-first solutions, enhanced consumer insights, and AI-driven technologies. These initiatives position Enformion to not only adapt to this industry shift but to lead in helping clients thrive in a privacy-centric digital landscape. 

This Approach Includes:

Enformion’s comprehensive identity graph, covering both business and consumer entities, is at the core of this strategy. This graph, built on over 6,000 authoritative sources and 120B+ records, provides a robust foundation for identity resolution and audience targeting without relying on third-party cookies. It’s designed to thrive in a cookieless world, offering a unified view of individuals and businesses across various touchpoints.  

Collaboration with industry partners which allow Enformion to offer an ID-less solutions through a reusable digital wallet. This white-label solution, already integrated within the Enformion database, represents a privacy-first approach to identity management and personalization.  

Consumer insights data assets are a key differentiator in this new landscape. Enformion has significantly expanded their behavioral data appends, providing deep, nuanced understanding of consumer preferences and actions. This rich dataset enables contextual and interest-based targeting that doesn’t rely on individual tracking, aligning perfectly with the evolving privacy-centric digital ecosystem.  

Investing heavily in Device ID and fingerprinting technologies, coupled with advanced AI/ML capabilities. This allows clients to link first and third-party signals effectively, creating a more holistic view of the customer journey. New AI models are also designed to predict user behavior and preferences without relying on individual-level tracking, ensuring both effectiveness and privacy compliance.   

Future-Proofing Digital Marketing 

The future of digital marketing will likely rely on multiple approaches, as no single solution can replace third-party cookies. Enformion’s approach incorporates a mix of identity graphs, ID-less solutions, and AI-driven strategies to offer a comprehensive, future-proof solution. 

By providing businesses with the tools to thrive in a privacy-first world, Enformion ensures that they are well-positioned to navigate the complexities of an eventual shift towards cookie deprecation and continue to engage with their audiences effectively. 

Final Thoughts 

As the digital marketing landscape evolves, Enformion remains committed to driving innovation and delivering privacy-first solutions. Cookie deprecation will not just be a challenge to overcome but an opportunity to build more ethical, consumer-friendly marketing strategies. By leveraging Enformion’s advanced technologies and comprehensive data & analytics solutions, businesses can stay competitive and future-proof their marketing efforts.