Every day, digital marketers face the challenge of finding new and better ways to provide customers with tailored interactions. The upcoming “Cookiepocalypse” only adds to these difficulties. As Google and other tech giants push forward with plans to deprecate third-party cookies, marketers scramble to find alternatives for reaching customers with personalised content.
As far as blocking third-party tracking goes, Firefox and Safari were way ahead of the curve. However, Gartner found that 63% of digital marketing leaders were struggling with personalising their company’s content before the use of third-party cookies began to dwindle. According to a recent study by Gartner, “most customers want all of their interactions with a brand to be personalised,” but “there’s an inherent tension between personalization and privacy.”
To say nothing of the myriad other problems that digital marketers face, Web 3.0 may provide a solution to the problem of online marketing personalization. The latest version of the internet is called Web 3.0, and it may combine AI, the semantic web, and decentralisation. Web 2.0 is a radical departure from Web 1.0, the first iteration of the World Wide Web, which relied on static content and a centralised server network to deliver information to readers.
In the late 1990s, as development of Web 2.0 began, the internet did become more user-friendly and interactive. User-generated content (UGC) from blogs, wikis, and other social media platforms has helped advertisers better reach their target demographics. Web 2.0 today still relies heavily on this centralised cloud utility infrastructure, though.
Will Web 3.0 have any effect on online advertising?
Although still in its infancy, Web 3.0 has the potential to enhance the internet user experience and advance the digital marketing industry. “Web 3.0 offers better control over data privacy and security and helps deliver a more personalised user experience,” wrote Shubham Gupta of Gartner Digital Markets. Here’s what to expect as Web 3.0 launches for your marketing campaigns.
1. It’s possible that decentralisation will improve data privacy.
Blockchain technology, upon which Web 3.0 is founded, has the potential to improve upon the current centralised data storage system by making data more secure and transparent. Blockchain relies on a distributed, decentralised, and immutable ledger to record and verify transactions, making it extremely difficult, if not impossible, for anyone to alter the data stored there.
According to Jordan Gutt, customer experience manager and Web 3.0 lead at immersive technology platform provider Glimpse Group, there is a scenario where both security and privacy are possible, but it will result in more security. “As he explained, “we can expect certain aspects of Web 3.0 to promote security and data privacy, such as the ability to control a Web 3.0 wallet by enforcing data confidentiality and integrity since each transaction requires the owner of the wallet to’sign’ it. It’s a novel idea that will enable consumers to grant access to their data to businesses and advertising agencies in exchange for financial gain.”
2. Increased rigour in data privacy regulations is possible.
However, Scott DePeralta, principal consultant at his eponymous sales and marketing consultancy, has speculated that Web 3.0 may also usher in stricter rules and regulations for user data collection, storage, and the use of data for marketing purposes. Without users’ knowledge or permission, businesses might not be able to collect and use personal information in any way they see fit. DePeralta speculated that this could lead to “more creative solutions for gathering customer insights without relying on personal information” like cookies or IP addresses.
How well-protected users’ personal information will be in the age of Web 3.0 is another important question. According to DePeralta’s analysis, preexisting regulations like the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation may compel social networks to reevaluate their business models in order to meet privacy and protection laws or face closure. He also noted that the power of large technology firms may be weakened in some markets as a result of the opportunities presented by Web 3.0 to smaller competitors.
3. When it comes to personalization, the Semantic Web is a huge step up.
Web 3.0’s semantic targeting could be the missing piece for digital marketers to personalise content in light of the impending demise of the third-party cookie. With the help of semantic web technologies, users can build their own online data stores, vocabularies, and rules for manipulating data.
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In an interview, Layla Acharya, CEO and founder of online e-learning consultancy Edwize, discussed how companies can target consumers based on their online activities, interests, and behaviours, allowing for more personalised campaigns and more accurate targeting. To further understand their audience, “marketers will be able to track consumer engagement and interactions,” she continued. “As a result, advertisers will be able to hone in on their target audience and create campaigns specifically for them. Better campaign performance and higher return on investment are the end result.”
4. Allowing for more creative licence in marketing efforts.
One of the difficulties of marketing on social media is maximising exposure for posts. Digital marketers will have more leeway in terms of content creation and distribution thanks to the decentralised nature of Web 3.0.
According to Rephrase Media’s founder and chief writer Matthew Ramirez, “many marketers have been frustrated by the restrictions and algorithms of social media platforms, which have made it difficult to reach audiences and grow their brands.” “With the advent of Web 3.0, advertisers will no longer need to rely on social networking sites to get their message out there. And they can do it all without worrying about algorithms or advertising budgets by simply catering to the people they know will be interested in what they have to say.” He also noted that marketers will “get real-time feedback on their products and services” if they engage with consumers directly.
More so, “decentralised platforms, such as those built on blockchain technology, can allow for greater autonomy and control over the distribution of content, as they are not controlled by a single entity or organisation,” as stated by Dan Riley, founder of Spotify Unlocked. Web 3.0’s increased content freedom, he warned, could eventually lead to more censorship or control over content because, as with all technologies, this is simply an unavoidable consequence.
Riley argued that people’s freedom to share and distribute content as they see fit could be curtailed if Web 3.0 technologies were used to create more centralised and controlled platforms for doing so.
5. Updating digital marketing strategies is necessary.
In order to take advantage of Web 3.0, marketers need to begin modifying their digital marketing strategies immediately. Glimpse’s Gutt emphasised the importance of marketers incorporating a Web 3.0 wallet into preexisting products, saying that doing so “will both educate new people about the benefits of Web 3.0 and also create a larger base of Web 3.0 users.”
Additionally, non-fungible tokens are gaining traction, but simpler names like “digital assets” or “digital collectibles” will replace the term, according to Gutt. They are more useful as a tool for companies to interact with their customers directly and less as a speculative asset thanks to the blockchain. Instead of having interactions with customers “mediated through another third-party app like Instagram or Twitter,” he said, businesses should “own the relationship.”
What marketers need to know about Web 3.0
Gupta of Gartner stated, “With Web 3.0, the future of marketing has just begun,” highlighting monetizing data insights, implementing blockchain, and keeping up with the latest trends as essential preparation for Web 3.0. Protecting user privacy, leveraging new data sources, and tracking marketing campaigns across the digital-first buyer journey are just some of the new opportunities that the internet’s next era will bring to B2B software marketers.
There is still time for marketers before Web 3.0 becomes the norm. They can get a jump on the competition and be ready to go as more Web 3.0 technologies become mainstream if they start laying the groundwork now.
