What Happens When the Cookies Crumble?

The impact of cookie deprecation on media buying will be significant. Advertisers will no longer be able to track users across multiple websites, making it harder to create targeted ad campaigns. Google announced its move away from third-party cookies more than a year ago, but it’s made it crystal clear that 2024 will be the year the cookie starts to crumble. 

In the interim, Apple required app providers to get explicit permission from consumers before tracking them through device identifiers as part of its app-tracking-transparency (ATT) framework. And with laws such as GDRP and CCPA—ensuring brands are more transparent around data collection—it’s apparent that privacy will be a big part of the advertising ecosystem. 

You can couple this with the new cliff that will impact the enrollment “ecosystem” (i.e., the search cliff). Announced last year, the College Board will shift to a digital PSAT and SAT format, taking with it a loss of nearly 40% of names for licensing due to privacy laws. In their own words, enrollment leaders must act quickly to diversify their sourcing. 

This year will need to be the year higher education marketers begin to prepare for not only a cookie-less future but a future that will be a little more reliant on first-party data not secured by the old college-search methods. Familiarizing yourself with the evolution of contextual targeting opportunities, securing and using first-party data in new ways and exploring data clean rooms are three ways to start that preparation.

1. Get Comfortable with Contextual Targeting

According to McKinsey, it’s no longer possible to reach an entire user base with ID-based targeting. When much of your targeting utilizes behavioral data, it’s important to get comfortable with alternative forms of targeting, like contextual targeting.

Contextual targeting is the practice of placing an advertisement next to relevant content or in a media environment that matches the mind state of the viewer. For example, you could place an ad for an eyewear brand next to a New York Times book review or a seasoning brand can place an ad within a recipe on Bon Appetit. 

In relation to programmatic or display advertising, this is either done via a demand-side platform (DSP) or a direct buy with the publisher. A viable solution to the loss of cookies is to use topics or keywords instead of using ID-based data to target audiences.

There will be a moment, in the not-too-distant future, when many of the behavioral signals we’ve relied on will fade.

The deprecation of cookies has caused publishers and retailers to strengthen their first-party data—ensuring the ability to better assess effectiveness. Data brings advertisers better opportunities to target mindsets and environments through a combination of mid- to long-tail websites, websites that are brand safe and can reach audiences accessing the web via their iPhones. 

For higher ed marketers

Start testing contextual or interest-based targeting to benchmark performance against behavioral targeting outcomes. This can be as easy as communicating with your agency or programmatic partner to set up this specific targeting or developing a Google Ads campaign structure that allows for an appropriate level of testing.

The scale may be an issue early on, but there’s a good chance you’ll see a lower cost per viewable impression and a more engaged audience due to your audience’s mindset. One pattern observed when taking this approach is latent marketing outcomes. Meaning you may see a decrease in clicks but a likely increase in organic/direct traffic or leads–noting most people likely take action outside of an ad click. 

A second option is to explore endemic opportunities. Endemic advertising is a form of sponsored content meant to mimic or look native to the publishing platform. This could be advertising as part of a newsletter blast or a sponsored article on Inside Higher Ed. 

Once again, as publishers seek to ramp up first-party data capabilities, the ability to target mindsets will allow higher education marketers to leverage moments as well as media. Be mindful that depending on the publisher you may not see reach figures like you would elsewhere but the pay-off is generally tighter targeting and high-intent moments. Start researching opportunities with college search sites or for graduate programs city business journals, job search sites and news partners. 

2. Strengthen First-Party Data

It’s often said that the inherent value of data is based on its proximity to the end user. This is why first-party data has continued to be discussed even beyond the loss of cookies. First-party data is data that is collected by a company with permission. 

Although many brands have turned to retail media to strengthen their relationships with consumers due to the loss of cookies, first-party data can be a higher education marketer’s competitive advantage. When done well, marketers can leverage this data to develop enhanced strategies and experiences that are aligned closely with their wants and needs. And as privacy and personalization become more at odds, the importance of first-party data should become more of a focus.

For higher ed marketers

First, this speaks to the importance of data maintenance. The more reliable your first-party data the more actionable and the more predictive it can be. Below are five data management strategies to improve your first-party data.

• Do you have a process for auditing current data collection?
• Do you have the staff in place for data cleansing, as well as a defined procedure for correcting inaccurate data and formatting issues outside of CRM?
• Do you have the systems in place to deduplicate CRM records?
• Have you determined who is responsible for data management in relationship to marketing campaigns?
• Do you have a frequent audit or monitoring schedule in place? 

Second, it speaks to the value exchange that exists between the audience and the brand. If you want to deepen your first-party data, there needs to be a perceived value in the experiences you provide across all interactions (some calling this zero-party data). 

To start, map out the prospective student’s journey. Identify moments of high intent. These are moments when a student is in information-seeking mode and is more likely to exchange data for pertinent information. In other instances, collecting data could be seen as part of the experience- perhaps asking about their desired major or a student organization as part of a virtual tour launch. 

Finally, marketing isn’t the only function that can collect valuable data. Admissions or event-related activities can be more one-to-one moments of value exchange in an environment where personalization may be viewed as impactful to the college search process.

Remember, yield is year-round and first-party data can be that advantage to move engagement and interaction further up the funnel, coupled with stronger results down the funnel.

3. Explore Data Clean Rooms

While this might sound a bit technical, it’s pretty straightforward if you find the right partner. A data clean room is a privacy-centric technology that gives higher education marketers the ability to target audiences without cookies or other tracking methods. (It’s also CCPA- and GDPR-compliant!)

For higher ed marketers

Work with your agency or media vendor on ways to leverage data clean rooms. Here are a few questions to consider.

• Is there a spend minimum that you must maintain? 
• How often should you update your lists?
• Can you combine your first-party data with other types of data to strengthen your targeting? 
• Can you supplement pixel data to expand the reach of your first-party data and increase your market penetration?

Inside a data clean room, data from one or multiple sources is collected; personally identifiable information is removed; and the marketer is left with an anonymized audience to target. What’s more, you can still unlock the powerful potential of lookalike audiences—giving you the ability to extend your reach—as well as layer contextual categories based on demographics. 

The caveat for many higher education marketers will be advertising spend. As this technology evolves, service or subscription-based options may make this price effective for those outside of the brand or potential admissions. Companies like LiveRamp, as well as Google Ads Data Hub, are great places to start exploring this option.

Although the end of the cookie seems more like a slow burn up to this point, there will be a moment, in the not-too-distant future, when many of the behavioral signals we’ve relied on will fade. This will cause costs to rise, but those who’ve taken the right measures will have much less to manage when the time comes. 

In the end, it is a step forward that benefits all players in the system. Perhaps, we don’t have too much to fear in a cookie-less future.