Google has decided to keep internet cookies active, ending a discussion that had been ongoing for just over five years. During this time, many solutions were considered to ensure the proper functioning of advertising and marketing structures within organizations, the secure browsing of users, and the experience of consumers, who navigate the internet and have been impacted by marketing and advertising actions based on these tertiary data for years.
Despite these efforts from various fronts and the resolution of the cookie phase-out issue, the truly satisfactory solution for all parties did not come from cookies but rather from the adoption of primary data collection (first-party data) by various organizations. Primary data is essentially something provided by the user themselves. In other words, it is more reliable, more detailed, and willingly shared information, with the user knowing what they are or are not disclosing about themselves to each organization. With data collected directly from consumers, not only have marketing and advertising actions gained new life, but other tools have also been able to and continue to gain space to develop.
This is the case with generative AIs applied to conversational contexts, something that basically represents one of the essential vertices of customer engagement today. Training an AI is an extremely complex task, but doing so with inferior quality data is much more complicated and can continue to generate noise that negatively impacts the user experience.
The truth is that currently, keeping cookies is not a decision that will significantly impact companies already more committed to creating superior customer experiences, nor those that want to create and train truly revolutionary AI models to assist in their communications.
The combination of AI with the context of engagement and the use of primary data are central issues in a true reshaping of the paradigm of communications between brands and consumers. The supposed end of cookies accelerated this, which is positive, and even though cookies remain, it has already been established that change is necessary, prioritizing higher-quality data.
Only 16% of companies strongly agree that they have the data they need to understand their customers, and only 19% strongly agree that they have a comprehensive profile of their customers (Twilio Customer Engagement Report 2024). This data gap should not be treated lightly, and we are at a moment where there is an opportunity to address it in a way that forever transforms marketing and advertising.
Initially, at least, collecting primary data may be something that increases costs and is a more arduous task. It is indeed complex work that takes time. Despite this, the current scenario proves that we need this restructuring. Third-party cookies will continue to exist, but companies that increasingly respect the user experience will become those with real differentiators, with better-trained and more efficient AIs, and those that can say ‘we respect your data’ with 100% certainty and customer approval—the main focus of this relationship.
This behavior will increasingly become an important differentiator until it is understood as the real way to compete in the market. That is why my advice to organizations is: start investing in collecting primary data, invest in training your AIs with it, and focus on the customer. This will determine your future and survival in a time that is not as distant as it may seem.
