# Why a replacement to third party cookies is key to post-pandemic recovery Author: Pal Sinha, Barnali Author URL: https://financedigest.com/author/pal-sinha-barnali Published: 2021-06-03 Category: BUSINESS Category URL: https://financedigest.com/category/business Meta Title: Prepare Your Financial Brand for a Post-COVID Digital Meta Description: Prepare your financial brand for a post-pandemic world - Learn how to adapt to changing consumer behaviours and overcome new challenges in digital marketing. URL: https://financedigest.com/why-a-replacement-to-third-party-cookies-is-key-to-post-pandemic-recoveryhtml ![undefined](https://prod.superblogcdn.com/site_cuid_cm5qst7v3003gwirgwqtxn8i8/images/third-party-cookies-1736838298559-compressed.jpg) _By **Carolyn Corda,** CMO at ADARA_ As the UK (hopefully) starts to close the door on COVID-19 restrictions on June 21st, financial brands are gearing up for a much-anticipated return to normalcy. While the timeline for a full recovery is unknown, mass vaccination efforts are gaining momentum with the Health Secretary, Matt Hancock, declaring this week that the UK government has administered at least one shot of the vaccine to 72% of the adult population. With [reports](https://www.ft.com/content/a1ee290c-851d-41fb-8205-5615d211cd87) also showing that businesses are growing faster than any other time over the past two decades, financial brands seem to be in a great position to take advantage of the eventual uplift in economic growth. However, while normalcy returns to the economy and everyday life, there is an oncoming storm that could derail [financial institutions’](https://www.financedigest.com/what-financial-institutions-will-be-like-in-10-years.html "What Financial Institutions Will Be Like In 10 Years") ability to recover. After making an announcement in 2019, Google is finally set to join Apple and Firefox in phasing out the use of third-party cookies on their browser in January 2022. While this may seem minor in comparison to the disruption caused by the global pandemic, Google’s decision to phase out the use of third-party cookies on Chrome will have far-reaching consequences for the [digital marketing](https://www.financedigest.com/the-nitrile-gloves-market-to-walk-through-digitized-destiny.html "The Nitrile Gloves Market to walk through digitized destiny") ecosystem. This [comes at the same time as sweeping changes to Apple’s IDFA system which means app](https://www.financedigest.com/why-pay-by-bank-app-will-come-into-its-own-in-2022.html "Why Pay by Bank App will come into its own in 2022 ") tracking is now ‘opt in’ only.  Early results suggest only [4% of users are likely to do so](https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2021/05/96-of-us-users-opt-out-of-app-tracking-in-ios-14-5-analytics-find/). These two [changes represent the biggest changes to digital](https://www.financedigest.com/digital-marketing-trends-that-will-change-how-brands-operate-in-2021.html "Digital Marketing Trends that will change how brands operate in 2021") advertising since (and even including) GDPR. **The relevance of tracking** Tracking consumers from website to website across the web, third-party cookies inform marketing strategies and allow [financial institutions to create highly personalised marketing communications](https://www.financedigest.com/how-mifid-ii-will-impact-financial-advisor-communications.html "HOW MIFID II WILL IMPACT FINANCIAL ADVISOR COMMUNICATIONS") based on user patterns and behaviour. The same can be said for [Apple’s app](https://www.financedigest.com/apple-given-fourth-dutch-fine-in-app-store-dispute.html "Apple given fourth Dutch fine in App Store dispute") trackers, which mean businesses can gain a full picture of customer behaviours and interests. Without this, [financial brands](https://www.financedigest.com/how-music-sound-can-help-financial-brands-differentiate-in-a-competitive-world.html "How Music & Sound Can Help Financial Brands Differentiate in a Competitive World") risk being at a major disadvantage. Reaching the right people has been key in reducing budget wastage and maximising returns. For the consumer, this has meant they operate in a [world where they see](https://www.financedigest.com/in-u-turn-iea-sees-world-weathering-lost-russian-oil-supply.html "In U-turn, IEA sees world weathering lost Russian oil supply") relevant ads, rather than ones that may be irrelevant and even intrusive to the viewing experience. Losing this will put the brand at a double disadvantage. With reports showing that the pandemic has completely upended consumer habits, understanding how people shop in the post-COVID-19 landscape will be [key to recovery](https://www.financedigest.com/could-ai-hold-the-key-to-business-recovery.html "Could AI hold the key to business recovery?").  Financial [brands that target](https://www.financedigest.com/gumgum-granted-first-mrc-accreditation-for-brand-safety-and-contextual-targeting-for-ctv.html "GumGum Granted First MRC Accreditation for Brand Safety and Contextual Targeting For CTV") consumers based on outdated pre-COVID behaviours will find that they are failing to get through to consumers and are losing out to competitors. For example, financial institutions that assume that consumers are going to purchase products in brick and mortar stores will find that they are sending irrelevant messages to those that have got used to [shopping online](https://www.financedigest.com/the-high-street-is-dead-long-live-online-shopping.html "The high street is dead – long live online shopping! ") during the pandemic. Financial marketers, therefore, need to update how they understand their audiences if they’re going to get the insights they need in order to take advantage of the uplift in demand during the post-pandemic landscape. **Reassess [first-party data](https://www.financedigest.com/investing-in-a-first-party-data-strategy-can-save-the-day-for-retailers.html "Investing in a first-party data strategy can save the day for retailers")** The first [step any financial brand](https://www.financedigest.com/from-static-office-to-dynamic-brand-hq-five-steps-to-reviewing-your-real-estate.html "From static office to dynamic brand HQ: Five steps to reviewing your real estate") needs to take in replacing these tracking technologies is reassessing the data they already have. Financial institutions have a wealth of first-party data such as payment history, age and [credit score](https://www.financedigest.com/1-in-5-uk-adults-have-no-idea-what-a-credit-score-is.html "1 in 5 UK adults have no idea what a credit score is") that they could be using more effectively. First party data can be used to [understand which financial products](https://www.financedigest.com/understanding-management-theories-and-maximising-productivity.html "Understanding management theories and maximising productivity") a person has already bought into or even looked into, alongside key information like location or age. These can help assess which products might appeal. Furthermore, co-branded [products like credit cards with airline reward point schemes  can give even further insight into the customer and their lifestyle preferences](https://www.financedigest.com/two-thirds-of-consumers-would-prefer-to-deal-with-a-single-provider-for-insurance-products.html "Two-thirds of consumers would prefer to deal with a single provider for insurance products"), meaning communication can be adapted accordingly to likely interests. However, this alone is not enough to understand the customer. **Data partnerships** The issue with first-party data is that it’s limiting to marketers as it only provides [insights into how a consumer](https://www.financedigest.com/incoming-starbucks-boss-to-bring-consumer-insight-to-coffee-culture.html "Incoming Starbucks boss to bring consumer insight to coffee culture") interacts with your brand. Unlike third-party cookies, it can’t show how consumers react to other brands. For banks that are used as secondary bank accounts, for example, the lack of data around [consumer behaviours](https://www.financedigest.com/gumgum-powers-into-europe-as-new-research-shows-consumers-reject-behavioural-ads.html "GumGum Powers into Europe as New Research Shows Consumers Reject Behavioural Ads") is especially limiting as they will have less activity history to fuel personalised marketing strategies. Marketers need to look beyond first-party data and find new data sources in order to tailor messages to consumers. [Data partnerships give financial](https://www.financedigest.com/how-data-governance-as-a-service-can-transform-the-financial-sector.html "How Data Governance-as-a-Service can transform the financial sector") brands a broader view of their consumers, allowing them to send highly relevant messages in a privacy-centric manner. In other words, they can give [financial brands insight into how people interact with a group of other businesses and therefore data into a wider set](https://www.financedigest.com/why-teaching-your-children-financial-literacy-from-a-young-age-will-set-them-up-for-success.html "Why teaching your children financial literacy from a young age will set them up for success") of behaviours and patterns. With privacy concerns being a major reason behind the death of the cookie, it is clear that these external partnerships need to be secure and safe. At Adara, we’ve developed a future-proof solution to the third-party cookie that combines data partnerships with strong data rights [management capabilities and our Privacy Token](https://www.financedigest.com/rambus-bell-id-simplifies-tokenization-management-for-banks.html "Rambus Bell ID Simplifies Tokenization Management for Banks") – a secure way to obtain and share customer data that doesn’t rely on third-party cookies. With the ADARA Privacy Token, all shared [data is obscured in a way that no external party](https://www.financedigest.com/new-gleif-challenge-facility-extends-ability-to-trigger-updates-of-legal-entity-identifier-data-to-all-interested-parties.html "New GLEIF Challenge Facility Extends Ability to Trigger Updates of Legal Entity Identifier Data to All Interested Parties") would be able to reconstruct. Adara’s tokenisation solution is purpose-built for safe data sharing and allows for brands to share and receive data, [secure in the knowledge that sensitive information won’t be leaked to external sources](https://www.financedigest.com/exclusive-amazon-to-secure-unconditional-eu-approval-for-8-5-billion-mgm-buy-sources.html "Exclusive-Amazon to secure unconditional EU approval for .5 billion MGM buy – sources") since it never leaves the firewall. Analytics or data science teams are then able to provide the best and most relevant insights for marketing and [customer experience](https://www.financedigest.com/the-new-client-adviser-experience-in-the-age-of-the-customer.html "The New Client-Adviser Experience in the Age of the Customer") teams. This enables them to send personalised messages through extensive and validated identity graphs. So even as ecosystem policies and privacy regulations constantly change, [financial institutions can ensure a privacy protected](https://www.financedigest.com/protecting-the-uk-financial-services-sector-from-cyberattacks-now-and-in-2023.html "Protecting the UK financial services sector from cyberattacks now and in 2023") digital business without sacrificing performance. As the country [opens up and consumers start to return](https://www.financedigest.com/andalucian-open-returns-to-costa-del-golf-as-golfers-go-in-search-of-the-perfect-pad-close-to-the-fairway.html "Andalucian Open returns to ‘Costa del Golf’ as golfers go in search of the perfect pad close to the fairway") to normal, financial brands need to realise that the upcoming changes in tracking mean that they need to adapt if they are going to take advantage of the uplift in demand. A privacy-focused [future does not need to mean a loss in effectiveness – as long as the work](https://www.financedigest.com/meetings-in-the-metaverse-how-likely-is-this-the-future-of-work.html "Meetings in the metaverse – how likely is this the future of work?") is put in now to build new solutions for the brand. --- This blog is powered by Superblog. Visit https://superblog.ai to know more. ---