A three-step guide for advertisers to be future-ready

The advertising industry has moved to an addressable media future while the uncertainty reminds of the Y2K scare, when everyone thought a computer bug would break the digital systems.

Y2K bug, also called Year 2000 bug or Millennium Bug, was a problem in the coding of computerized systems that was projected to create havoc in computers and computer networks around the world at the beginning of the year 2000.

Programmers avoided the Y2K bug in two ways – entirely rewrite their code or adopt a quick fix called “windowing”. It treated dates from 00 to 20, as from the 2000s, rather than the 1900s.

An estimated 80% of computers fixed in 1999 used the quicker, cheaper option.

Today, marketers have the opportunity to prepare for the new era of digital advertising by laying using first-party data. If they fail to act, it will lead to serious issues like reduced capability to address consumers, loss of personalization, and ineffective optimization.

Marketers will also have little to no visibility into the consumer journey, and measurement will be fragmented and inaccurate. As a result, marketers can adopt these three steps to avoid another Y2K-esque panic with the proper use of targeted media.

Build first-party data strategy

While first-party data has always been important, it will become even more crucial to help marketers understand each person’s buying journey. In the future of addressability, marketers will require alternative ways to reach and engage consumers online. Media owners will need first-party data to ensure they sustain yield and deliver exceptional on-site experiences to users.

Get ahead of further identity changes

While growing your own first-party data is important, it can generate a great value through the First-Party Media Network. The connections across durable identifiers will be protected from further changes to online tracking. Such IDs include first-party visitor IDs, hashed emails, encrypted phone numbers, postal codes, household IDs, and data passed from third-party identifiers such as RampID, netID, and Unified ID 2.0.

Grow target audience

Alternative identity and targeting options that meet specific advertising objectives while also reaching new audiences should be tested. Marketers and media owners alike have a unique opportunity to accurately test what addressability looks like while third-party cookies are still in use, enabling them to adjust their strategy for the future of addressability.