The world of digital advertising is transforming. With the gradual phasing out of third-party cookies for tracking advertising campaigns, alternative methods for user identification are emerging.

Recently several browsers, such as Apple’s Safari and Mozilla’s Firefox, have decided to no longer support third-party cookies, in response to consumer requests for greater transparency and clarity on the use of their data on the web. Google has announced that it will phase them out of Chrome – which held about 80% of the market share globally in 2020 – starting in 2022.

In this new environment, the ability to offer quality content in the right context for brands seeking to engage users in relevant ways can be invaluable.

Engage talked with Claudio Vaccarella, CEO of Connected-Stories, Creative Management Platform that facilitates the centralized management of production, personalization, distribution, and analysis of video advertising and marketing content, about how his company is navigating the changing landscape. Through the platform, it’s possible to create different creative messages for different audiences, and thanks to machine learning, individuals are automatically shown the most relevant content. 

The post-cookie era is approaching for the ad-tech world. How are you preparing for this change?

“In terms of identity, Connected-Stories is aware of all the solutions proposed in the industry, and is active on all channels, ready to implement new tracking mechanisms,” Vaccarella said. 

Among these are first party data, which will assume an increasingly important role. There are two components to this: The Mobile Advertising ID, an identifier provided directly by the operating system of the mobile device that transmits information on user behavior, and the Universal ID – which is based on identity resolution platforms.

“In our view, there is still confusion among users regarding consent to the use of personal data and tracking for advertising purposes. Advertising is essential to the survival of the open internet, and this is a concept that must be communicated clearly. We expect that the consent from users, in the post-cookie era, will be very low at the beginning – then there will be a change with greater availability. People will realize that with consent, relevant advertising can work while maintaining respect for privacy.”

What will be the key to obtaining consent from users in the new scenario that is emerging?

“We work in the content sector, providing tools to creatives and media strategists to help them in their work: consumers are always the focus of what Connected-Stories does and we strive to provide them with an engaging, high-level experience. The contents, which are 95% video, are treated both from an aesthetic and functional point of view. With a quality advertising experience, it will be easier to obtain user consent.” 

“Another important pillar will be contextualization. Our product manages interactive and personalized videos in real-time. We developed a strategy that is consistent with the context in which the consumer sees the ads, so utilizing variables and data collected in real-time, we’re able to build an interesting advertising experience for the consumer.” 

How are you securing an increasingly targeted advertising contextualization?

“We made a significant investment in ranking publisher pages to ensure consistency between their message and advertising. Based on the topics, we try to keep the advertising experience as relevant as possible. In addition to this, we take into account any signal that is collected in real-time that contains information on geographical context, network, technology, and much more.”

What opportunities will market developments open for Connected-Stories?

“The targeting signals will be less effective. The primary interest of the advertising investor will focus on quality of content, to trigger a conversation with the consumer, and on contextualization. There will be an acceleration towards these types of advanced formats, already in the second half of 2021 and even more in 2022.”

“In addition, as a result of the pandemic, there has been a strong migration towards e-commerce. In this context, we propose an advertising method that becomes an on-site experience, reaching the point of engaging the user, who will be increasingly active, and connecting that user with the brand in a single step.”

With the decline of cookies, the importance of first-party data grows. What solutions have you implemented in this area?

“With the phasing out of cookies, advertisers and CRMs will have a new role with the collection of first-party data. We have set up a cloud-based architecture that allows us to integrate the first-party data of our customers with whatever we produce through the interactivity of our formats.”

How did 2020 end for Connected-Stories and what are the prospects for this year?

“We closed 2020 growing exponentially. This year we are growing at a rate of 2X and 3X year over year and we aim to close 2021 with a 300% growth compared to last year. The next big thing we’re excited to announce will be Connected-TV, which at this moment is developing nicely.”

This article first appeared on Engage.it and was then translated in the English version by Connected-Stories’ Marketing team. To read the original version written in Italian by Caterina Varpi visit Engage.it.

Written by: Caterina Varpi, Engage.it

Translated by: Connected-Stories’ Team.