After years of back-and-forth between Google and regulators, news finally came yesterday that Google was abandoning its plans to remove third-party cookies in Chrome.
Unsurprisingly, advertisers had their say on the matter.
Emotions ranged from lack of surprise to relief. Many see this as good news for advertisers, while some have mixed feelings.
Most importantly, they implore us to continue our focus on first-party data and a privacy-first strategy with our customers.
Skepticism and lack of surprise
Paid media expert Niki Grant said she has always been skeptical of a magical 2024 world where third-party cookies are deemed obsolete. She was therefore not particularly surprised by the news:
- “Those of us who have had to actively search for alternatives are all too aware of the limitations of most cookieless solutions, and I personally think that the privacy concerns surrounding third-party cookies have generally been grossly exaggerated to begin with!
- “It seemed nice that companies like Google were being very proactive in looking for an alternative, but I would have been surprised if they had actually identified a viable alternative in just a few years. The proof will be in the Chrome usage pudding; In the meantime, I appreciate Google’s candor instead of a complicated face-saving “make and fix” solution.
Julie Bacchini, president and founder of Neptune Moon, is also not shocked by Google’s change of direction:
- “The Google Ads ecosystem (and all advertising platforms to be honest) is so dependent on cookie data that it has always been difficult to imagine how the platform as we know it could function without cookie data. There are still a lot of questions about what exactly it means to offer more control to users. But it’s a bit of a sigh of relief because it’s one less thing to deal with in the next few months or year!
Gil Gildner, the co-founder of Discosloth, compared this to the fable “The Boy Who Cried Wolf”:
- “Google always seems to announce imminent changes, then push back the date or abandon plans altogether. This is how they try to motivate users (who otherwise wouldn’t care) to adopt new technologies. They did it with GA4 and they will do it next with something else.
Paid search specialist Sarah Stemen believes that the delay in Google’s phasing out of third-party cookies is probably strategic:
- “As the dominant owner of the browser, Google is under close scrutiny for its antitrust behavior. The proposed Privacy Sandbox, while marketed as a privacy-enhancing tool, likely raises hurdles for competitors. This could lead to less competition and greater market consolidation in the ad tech sector.
- “By delaying the deprecation of cookies, Google buys time to either refine the Privacy Sandbox or make its implications less transparent. Another alternative is that they simply don’t have a solution, but I think that’s probably a delay.”
Relief and positive reactions
Digital and performance marketer Asher Mirza said it was great news to wake up to as a performance marketer and shocking as a consumer.
- “It looks like big companies have gone too far into the new era of privacy and realized it would be a loss for everyone and decided to make a massive U-turn. What a time to work in marketing where no one can decide what happens tomorrow.
Sophie Fell, director of paid media at Two Trees PPC, said this was good news for advertisers as many of them still don’t have a good understanding of their first-party data and this proved to be a major obstacle for them to overcome.
- “I think the question now is, ‘What’s next?’ It will be interesting to see what the adoption of the privacy “toggle” is as a percentage of Android and Chrome users, and then how that affects audience targeting. For example, will fewer people aged 55 and over change their privacy settings and therefore marketing to this age group using cookies will be much easier than marketing to under 35s who may be more likely to use them? Lots of very interesting data coming in the coming months and no doubt a few more hurdles for advertisers along the way.
Digital marketer Brett Bodofsky wondered if similar audiences might return now.
- “Google Ads has discouraged Lookalike Audiences due to third-party cookie limitations. Now that the plan is scrapped, I wouldn’t hate to see them return. I understand that there have been launches to explain their depreciation. But honestly, I liked similar audiences.
Digital marketer Robert Brady said the removal of the worrying deadline (which kept getting pushed back) was positive.
- “Google needs to manage expectations and there is simply too much uncertainty from regulators and the technology itself to put a firm date on deprecating cookies. I fully expect Google to continue its efforts.
Mixed feelings/need to adapt
John Gbemileke Adeoti, head of growth marketing at Expedier, said the news was both annoying and relieving.
- “I am relieved to be able to put my worries aside. But I’m annoyed that advertisers and brands don’t need to go through these many changes in a short period of time. I mean, when you consider how many brands and marketers are still struggling to move from UA to GA4! To be honest, big tech needs to do better than play with our time and effort.
Veronika Höller, global head of research at Tresorit, said the privacy debate isn’t going away anytime soon, adding that having an alternative (like the Privacy Sandbox) doesn’t guarantee it will be effective.
- “The real priority should be enabling users to voluntarily share their data, for a truly personalized experience. It’s about building trust, brand awareness and thinking outside the box. We should not expect data to be handed to us on a silver platter. Most of it is already available, scattered across the different platforms we use. Let’s connect these dots, and suddenly every change is no longer a disaster.
- “And even if Google decides to pull the plug completely – which, let’s face it, is always a possibility – we’ll be ready. Ultimately, we control what users share with us. This happens best when we are honest, highlight benefits, combine data sources, and communicate directly with our audience.
- “Instead of waiting for incomplete analytics and complaining, let’s be proactive. Let’s build relationships and earn that data. This is a much more sustainable and rewarding approach.
Meanwhile, Optmyzr brand evangelist Navah Hopkins said advertisers have essentially “won” a game of chicken with Google, but:
- “It doesn’t change the fact that the world of privacy is here through GDPR, CCPA and other regulatory considerations. Just because we have an expansion in our ability to target website traffic and see users (based on devices) across multiple devices and domains doesn’t change the fact that many markets have adopted rules and regulations focused on privacy.
- “Just because Chrome offers the extension doesn’t mean other channels will follow suit. So while we can all laugh, smile, and rejoice in the fact that cookies are “here to stay,” people shouldn’t get complacent. So here are three essential things every user should do to prepare for the privacy-focused world, whether cookies are present or not:
- Build consent into everything you do.
- Make sure your stakeholders understand that the effectiveness of reporting will depend on the advertising channel and device.
- Think beyond Google and Chrome.
Focus on first-party data and privacy
Digital marketing strategist Nicholas James said Google’s reversal was expected for several reasons, including the unfinished state of the Privacy Sandbox and that with this move it remains unclear what impact it will have on its usage.
- “However, it remains crucial to refine your first-party data strategies, as success in this area will distinguish true leaders in an evolving digital landscape. »
Fraser Andrews, head of global research at JLR, said he saw this very similarly to the consent mode v2 update.
- “Ultimately, it will be more beneficial for advertisers to have consent data (provided they actually do something with it!). So my recommendation would always remain the same: access consent data and learn how to use it better to improve performance.”
Heinz Meyer, director and owner of Orris Digital, said the media was taking a slightly extreme stance on this.
- “Google doesn’t remove third-party cookie blocking on Chrome, it gives users the choice to accept third-party cookies. Therefore, my advice is: prepare for a world without third-party cookies like we were before. »
Wider industrial implications
Marketing strategist Reid Thomas said this was an admission by Google and the IAB in general that there is no tracking solution other than cookies.
- “Cookieless identification, thanks in part to efforts by browsers outside the largest DSP, never really took off. Essentially, Google worked with regulators and privacy advocates to try to find a solution, but just couldn’t.
- “For advertisers, I would continue to treat the world as if cookies were obsolete. For around 30% of users, they already are (Safari, particularly mobile; Firefox; Opera; and some Edge users). Otherwise, recent data shows that cookie-based targeting has a negative ROI (Ahmadi et al 2023) and is largely not significantly more accurate than random targeting (Neumann et al 2022).
- “Essentially, this is more of a capitulation to the fact that there is no ‘new cookie’ and that we need to rethink how we reach audiences, rather than celebrating the return of the ‘new cookie’ good old days.”
Lisa Erschbamer, director of digital advertising at Proficio, said she’s not surprised Google can’t make it work in a way that’s profitable for it (and without losing media budgets to other networks advertising).
- “But: more and more people are aware of data and privacy and hopefully more PPC specialists have started to think beyond Google Ads, treating it as part of an overall strategy. So not everything is bad.