What does Google’s delaying the end of cookies mean for performance marketers?

If you’re a performance marketer worrying about the end of cookies on desktop/mobile web, Google just gave you some good news. The company announced that cookies in Chrome will be around until (at least) the second half of 2024. This is two years later than Google had originally announced.

According to Google, the delay will give marketers (as well as publishers) more time to test and evaluate the company’s new Privacy Sandbox technologies.

Given that many in the industry are still dealing with Apple’s termination of IDFA app tracking in apps, this move isn’t surprising. And keep in mind that Google derives 81% of its revenue from advertising. Apple, on the other hand, generates less than two percent of the company’s revenue from advertising.

Google benefitted from IDFA as app marketers moved budgets from iOS to Google due to the uncertainty with iOS. Nevertheless,marketers have no choice but to advertise to iOS users, particularly in markets like North America, where iOS leads Android. (In Europe, Android leads iOS.) So the delay will provide Google with some additional revenue, though that was not the motivation for the delay.

And keep in mind, cookies are an issue on desktop and the mobile web, but not in apps.

Google wants to make sure that publishers and marketers are more prepared for this significant change.

Publishers

According to consumer internet company the Leaf Group, many publishers are already used to the end of cookies. This is because many are currently working with up to 60% of their traffic being ‘cookie-restricted’. This includes Safari and Firefox browsers.

That said, publishers tend to have less control over the changes in the digital marketing ecosystem.

One publisher solution that is more data-rich for marketers, even with all of the privacy changes, is owned and operated content. These sites, with a robust and vertical content focus, are designed to work for relevant marketers because only prospective users will come to these sites. Comparison shopping sites are an example of owned and operated sites that continue to deliver targeted and converting users, regardless of privacy changes. The founding team at Creative Clicks recognized the conversion opportunity of owned and operated content years ago. Now, CC provides marketers with several owned and operated sites, which continue to deliver conversions.

Marketers

Historically, marketers were able to purchase targeting data to improve campaign targeting on the web. Currently, following privacy-driven changes from Apple and Mozilla (Firefox), as well as privacy legislation, marketers have been looking for new ways to find targeting data to improve ad campaign performance.

Due to the fact that the use of external data is currently more difficult, marketers are seeking to acquire their own first-party data. Some marketers have established loyalty programs to encourage users to give them first-party data. Pepsi launched the PepCoin digital rewards program a few years ago that offered a 10% discount on Doritos/Lay’s snacks and Pepsi drinks to customers who set up accounts paid via Venmo or PayPal.

Consumer packaged goods marketer Mondelez created ‘Oreo iD’, an online service enabling people to create custom Oreo cookies. The company’s Pokémon Oreos, which were sold exclusively online last fall and later at Walmart stores, was the fastest-selling Oreo edition ever according to Mondelez CEO Dirk van de Put.

Influencers rise as contextual returns

Contextual targeting is one targeting tactic that has regained traction in recent years. Contextual targeting facilitates running ads that are contextually relevant to the content next to which they appear. An example of contextual targeting would be running ads for a VPN next to content about online safety. According to a study published by Global Industry Analysts Inc., the global contextual advertising market is expected to grow from $199.8 billion in 2022 to $335.1 billion in 2026. 

A marketing tactic experiencing growth in part because it does not rely on targeting data is influencer marketing. By tapping into an influencer’s follower base, marketers don’t need to rely on targeting data. Marketers can start small by engaging with a few micro-influencers that have fewer followers, and therefore, are less expensive. Once marketers detect what works, they can expand their influencer marketing campaigns and work with influencers with more followers and on more platforms.

Though there are still about two years until the end of cookies on Chrome, the team at CC is happy to answer any questions you might have. And if you want to ensure your marketing is ready for the post-cookie world, reach out to Creative Clicks.