The vast majority (92%) of UK brand-side marketers believe that Google will stick to its 2024 deadline for the removal of third-party cookies, but 73% are still unprepared for the cookie-apocalypse.
This is the revelation drawn from new research launched today by LiveRamp in collaboration with Censuswide. The research surveyed 250 UK brand-side senior marketers, and was carried out to better understand how marketers intend to reach audiences beyond the walled gardens once cookies deprecate.
Half of the surveyed marketers (51%) said they are concerned about identity/addressability post-cookies. The group also flagged other concerns on their minds: 60% are troubled about reaching audiences at scale; 56% about frequency capping; and 50% about measurement.
Over half (60%) of the surveyed marketers are still developing a first-party data strategy, and 8% have no first-party data strategy. This is despite 45% of marketers looking to first-party authenticated data to combat the loss of third-party cookies. One channel that’s forecast for a boom this year is retail media, due to its first-party data opportunities. You can learn more about the retail media ecosystem, as well as how to get involved, by checking out our in-depth guide.
Travis Clinger, SVP of Activations and Addressability at LiveRamp, advised that marketers intimidated by the complexity of developing post-cookie strategies should “seek the support of reliable partners rather than trying to manage it internally.” He added, “What they’ll find is that people-based marketing helps address many of their concerns, including frequency capping and measurement, as well. Most importantly, marketers should know that these solutions work today and can have an immediate impact on the reach and ROAS of their Q4 and Q1 campaigns.”
There is still time for marketers to sufficiently prepare for Google’s withdrawal of third-party cookies, which is projected to begin at the end of 2024. However, this ought to be prioritised over the current year if marketers hope to have a successful post-cookie strategy.
