Marketers have never had a greater opportunity to identify their audiences and accurately reach them across channels and platforms – but with this power comes great responsibility. Will they deliver truly contextual and meaningful engagement or cross a line of what's considered as the acceptable and ethical use of consumer data? What are the business opportunities or consequences?
2. Exploring the relationship between data, technology and ethics:
Can vs should, and why it matters in data-driven marketing
There’s never been
more data and marketing
technology than there
is today.
• Data production in 2020
will hit 35 zettabytes —
44 times more than in 2009.
• Between 2011 and 2016,
the number of MarTech
solutions increased >2200%1
1. http://chiefmartec.com/2016/03/marketing-technology-landscape-supergraphic-2016/
2009 2020
2
3. size of total data
enterprise-managed data
enterprise-created data
Exploring the relationship between data, technology and ethics:
Can vs should, and why it matters in data-driven marketing
The pace ofdata expansion
is astounding.
Driven by the growth of digital
technologies and the rapid
increase in data generation by
individuals and corporations alike.
Source: CSC
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4. Exploring the relationship between data, technology and ethics:
Can vs should, and why it matters in data-driven marketing
To succeed, brands need
data-driven marketers to:
• Find customers wherever
they are, online and offline
• Understand and react
to customer needs and
behaviors in context
• Engage customers in more
valuable and meaningful ways
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5. Exploring the relationship between data, technology and ethics:
Can vs should, and why it matters in data-driven marketing
But as marketers ramp
up the adoption of new
technologies and data to
compete and innovate,
it’s important we stop
and realize…
Justbecauseyoucando
something,doesn’tmean
thatyoushould.
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6. Exploring the relationship between data, technology and ethics:
Can vs should, and why it matters in data-driven marketing
There has always been
a divide between what
marketers can do with
customer data and
technology, and what
customers deem
to be acceptable.
In other words,
what we should do.
Technically Possible
Legal
Acceptable
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7. Exploring the relationship between data, technology and ethics:
Can vs should, and why it matters in data-driven marketing
Rightnow,ourabilitiesare
evolvingfasterthanever
before.Muchfasterthan
wecanconsidertheethical
implicationsofputtingthem
intopractice.
Theresultisaproblem
ofcanvsshould.
Andwebelieveit’s
oneofthebiggest
issuesdefiningboththe
perceptionandpractice
ofdata-drivenmarketing.
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8. Exploring the relationship between data, technology and ethics:
Can vs should, and why it matters in data-driven marketing
The trouble is, allthis
innovation is dramatically
outpacing both regulators
and consumerawareness.
Should your IoT-enabled
refrigerator be able to keep
track of how much ice cream
you eat in a month, tally up
the calories and email them
to your nutritionist?
% Calories per month
from ice cream
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9. Exploring the relationship between data, technology and ethics:
Can vs should, and why it matters in data-driven marketing
Should your internet-
enabled car automatically
report speeding to the
insurance company, or
the police?
Should your new fitness
tracker with a heart
monitor be able to send
readings to your doctor?
Or call 911 if you are
having a heart attack?
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10. Exploring the relationship between data, technology and ethics:
Can vs should, and why it matters in data-driven marketing
Passing effective
regulation takes time…
Government- and industry-
based consumer protection
agencies do provide rules
around the collection and
use of data.
The FTC, FCC and other
regulators are closely
monitoring how marketers
are now combining those
datasets to gain new insights
with new and innovative
technology.
But theverynature
ofpassing regulation
makes keeping pace
with innovation a near
impossible task.
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11. Exploring the relationship between data, technology and ethics:
Can vs should, and why it matters in data-driven marketing
And consumers aren’t sure
where to draw the line
Consumers are the ultimate
arbiters of whether or not
their data is being used
ethically. Only they know
what ‘acceptable’ looks
like. But it’s also completely
subjective, which means
it’s as changeable as they
are certain.
That means when it comes
to crossing the line, the line is
always moving, so we have
to accept it’s a case of,
“I’ll know it when I see it.”
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12. Exploring the relationship between data, technology and ethics:
Can vs should, and why it matters in data-driven marketing
It’s possible to be legally
compliant but stillin
breach ofwhatyour
customers deem to
be acceptable and
welcomed use of
theirdata.
This puts your reputation,
trust and loyalty at risk. And
leaves you with little control
over the way your brand
is perceived.
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13. Exploring the relationship between data, technology and ethics:
Can vs should, and why it matters in data-driven marketing
What’s more, those same
consumers are able to
express themselves
like never before. The
amplification of one
complaint on social media
can galvanize and publicize
many more that would have
once gone unheard.
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14. Exploring the relationship between data, technology and ethics:
Can vs should, and why it matters in data-driven marketing
So here’s the thing – if
marketers rely on consumers
and regulators to navigate
and make sense of the ethics
and capabilities gap, we’ll
always be reacting.
On the other hand, if we
define the standards for the
ethical use of data, we can
start to proactively build
trust across brands and
the consumers they serve.
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15. Exploring the relationship between data, technology and ethics:
Can vs should, and why it matters in data-driven marketing
We have to bridge
this gap together.
As responsible marketers
we need to act now by, first,
acknowledging that merely
complying with regulation
will never be sufficient
and second, starting a
conversation with our
consumers about how
their data is used.
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16. Exploring the relationship between data, technology and ethics:
Can vs should, and why it matters in data-driven marketing
Tackling this problem
at the ethical rather than
legal level means protecting
hard-won customer loyalty
by going beyond what the
law requires. This is about
differentiating your brand
with clearly defined
governance around the use
of customer data.
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17. 5 guidelines
forthe ethical
use ofdata
In September 2014, Acxiom
Corporation hosted a unique
forum at the National Press
Club in Washington, D.C., to
address the ethical challenges
of big data in today’s data-
driven marketing ecosystem.
The group identified
five guidelines:
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18. Exploring the relationship between data, technology and ethics:
Can vs should, and why it matters in data-driven marketing
Maximize transparency
and choice
Posted privacy policies
must be clear about how
the brand intends to use
and share consumer data
for marketing purposes.
#1
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19. Exploring the relationship between data, technology and ethics:
Can vs should, and why it matters in data-driven marketing
Classify data and
mitigate possible use risks
Different classifications,
such as second- or third-
party data, will help identify
possible use risks and the
appropriate mitigations.
#2
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20. Exploring the relationship between data, technology and ethics:
Can vs should, and why it matters in data-driven marketing
Limit downstream risks
When sharing data,
providers should
have contracts with all
downstream data users
to ensure appropriate
use. Consumer data
should be anonymized
wherever possible.
#3
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21. Exploring the relationship between data, technology and ethics:
Can vs should, and why it matters in data-driven marketing
Help to enforce
ethical practices
Have privacy discussions
with your marketing
partners early and often.
The ecosystem should
have a defined process
for investigating and taking
appropriate action against
bad actors.
#4
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22. Exploring the relationship between data, technology and ethics:
Can vs should, and why it matters in data-driven marketing
Educate consumers
about common
marketing practices
The industry as a whole
should seek to educate
consumers about common
practices so they can
exercise the choices they’re
offered in an informed way,
without fear of the unknown.
#5
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23. Exploring the relationship between data, technology and ethics:
Can vs should, and why it matters in data-driven marketing
Let’s be honest, opening a dialogue
with the aim of developing an industry-
wide consensus is not easy.
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24. Exploring the relationship between data, technology and ethics:
Can vs should, and why it matters in data-driven marketing
But the consumer reactions have
already begun. Ad blockers, ad and
app choices opt-out are all examples
of a consumer fight-back against what
they feel to be invasive, opaque and
untrustworthy uses of their data.
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25. We need a new,
ethics-ledapproach
to solutions.
Otherwisewe’ll
always be behind
the ball.
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26. Ifwe act now,we
can maintain the
flowofinformation
and take advantage
ofnewtechnologies
withoutfearofharm.
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27. Exploring the relationship between data, technology and ethics:
Can vs should, and why it matters in data-driven marketing
Most important of all,
it means earning our
customers’ trust by putting
ethics at the heart of what
we do with their data.
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28. Exploring the relationship between data, technology and ethics:
Can vs should, and why it matters in data-driven marketing
Read our ebook:
The NewCodes ofConduct: Guiding
Principles forthe EthicalUse ofData
for a more in-depth exploration ofwhat’s
at stake andwhat it takes to get this right.
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29. Acxiom provides the data foundation
for theworld’s best marketers.We enable
people-based marketing everywhere
through a simple, open approach to
connecting systems and data that drives
seamless customer experiences and
higher ROI.Aleader in the ethicaluse of
data for more than 45years,Acxiom helps
thousands of clients and partners around
the globework together to create aworld
where allmarketing is relevant.
www.acxiom.com
Exploring the relationship between data, technology and ethics:
Can vs should, and why it matters in data-driven marketing