Last Updated on 2020-12-31 by ppcguybklyn
Google announced in August thatGoogle’s advertising will be integrated with the European Transparency and Consent Framework 2.0 (TCF V2.0) , and a 90-day grace period will be given to owners who choose to use this framework to prepare for this change. This change applies to third-party advertisements on the Google platform, and Google’s own content will follow its own data collection consent process. Google’s advertising partners can choose whether to accept integration with the transparency and consent framework, or use the Ad Technology Providers tool provided by Google to ensure that the collection of advertising materials complies with relevant data collection specifications.
In September, Googlefurther announcedthe consent mode specially designed for advertisers who choose not to use TCF v2.0. Currently, it will be tried out by selected advertising partners in the form of BETA. What is this consent mode? What impact will it and the transparency agreement framework have on the future of Google advertising? In this article, I will roughly analyze my views on these things and how we can respond as advertisers based on the information I have collected and my personal opinions.
What is TCF v2.0?
To understand the purpose of the consent mode and how it works, we must first understand the European transparency and consent framework TCF v2.0. The transparency and consent framework is in response to the EU’s general data protection regulations GDPR’s data collection guidelines, and TCF v2.0 is the second version of this framework. Simply put, if website owners and advertisers want to use website visitors’ data, you must inform the website visitors that the information will be collected from them, and the consent of the website visitors must be obtained before they have the right to use the information for analysis and advertising.
In order to ensure that their website can meet this information collection criteria, owners usually choose to use the Consent Management Platform (CMP) to allow visitors to choose what information they want to authorize to this website. This is why when we visit some foreign websites, we usually see a notice saying that this website will use your so-and-so information, and let us choose whether to allow the website to use this information.
Source: Eurogamer
The implementation of GDPR and the transparency and consent framework can be said to be one of the changes that have had the greatest impact on advertisers in recent years. Websites and advertisers cannot use visitors’ personal data to conduct further analysis on them and promote marketing content without their consent. This means that our personal data and privacy as Internet users can be better protected, but it also means that if we want to deliver more accurate advertisements designed for specific consumer groups, it will be more difficult.
What is the consent mode?
As mentioned earlier, Google announced the formal integration with TCF v2.0. Website and advertising owners can choose whether to integrate or not, but even if they choose not to integrate, the website and advertising must still comply with GDPR in terms of data collection and use. In this regard, Google provides Ad Technology Providers Control and other auxiliary tools to ensure that owners who use various Google ads can comply with relevant regulations. The consent mod of Google advertising is the latest tool Google provides to owners who choose not to integrate with TCF v2.0. Its main function is to access visitor information based on whether the website visitor agrees or not, and report and record conversion data based on this information.
How the consent mode collects data
The consent mode uses a brand new "ad_storgae" tag to record conversions based on whether visitors agree with their information and cookies are used for advertising purposes. If the visitor agrees to the website to access their cookies and data, and there is a conversion behavior on our website, then our Google Ads or Google Analytics will report a conversion, and we will be able to use the visitor’s cookies and data to analyze or do remarketing advertisements. If the visitor does not agree to their data and cookies are accessed, but there is still a conversion on the site, we will still record a conversion, but we will not be able to use the visitor’s data.
The detailed conversion report process of the consent mode provided by Google is as follows:
For more information about ad_storage and the operating principle of the consent mode, pleaserefer to this article explained by Google
The possible impact of the consent mode on digital marketing and PPC advertising
Currently the consent mode is still in the Beta stage, and only a few advertising partners can participate in the trial. However, according to the way Google advertising operates, this thing should soon be popularized to regions where GDPR or similar regulations apply.This means that owners who choose not to use the TCF framework will most likely use the consent mode in the near future. What impact will these changes have on us as advertisers? I think there are roughly the following two points:
The analysis of advertising effectiveness and traffic cannot cover all visitors
Although the consent mode will report conversions regardless of whether the visitor agrees to the data access, because we have no way to use the visitor data who chooses not to agree, we will not be able to cover this part of the visitor with the analysis. This means that in Google Analytics, the traffic analysis does not represent all the people who visit our website. This also means that if we rely entirely on traffic analysis to understand the consumption habits and characteristics of visitors, we have the opportunity to miss some people, and we may miss these business opportunities in the future when generating marketing content or even designing products.
Remarketing and display advertising targeting specific audiences may be less efficient
Personalized remarketing ads and targeted display ads have always been one of the types of ads with the highest conversion rate. However, as Google pays more and more attention to the website and how advertisers collect and use visitor information, using these ads in the future Advertising is bound to become more and more difficult. As long as visitors choose not to agree to access their information, then we will not be able to broadcast these ads to them. Without knowing the full picture of the visitor, it will be even more difficult to narrow the range of customer groups in the display network, resulting in reduced efficiency.
How to deal with this?
Based on the above two points, how can we adjust our advertising strategy? I think we can do the following:
Utilize keyword researches
Although we will not be able to use the information of some visitors, keyword research is still one of the most effective ways to find the audience most interested in our products and services. If there is a way to find accurate and high-volume keywords and build website content and advertising around these keywords, we still have a way to reach visitors who can provide high-quality traffic.
Don’t rely too much on remarketing and targeted advertising
The most fundamental way is to design our advertising structure without over-relying on remarketing and display advertising that requires access to visitor information. I think that advertising on Google in the current environment, search and shopping ads is the most important. Use these ads to build brand awareness, and then use SEO to allow more visitors to use natural search or other channels to visit our website. This approach can ensure that our website can have a steady and high conversion rate, so that even if we have no way to access visitor information and help them tailor advertising, we still have a very stable source of advertising and organic traffic.
Conclusion
At present, although only Europe and a few other regions have special regulations that advertisers must seek the consent of visitors to access data and serve advertisements, as the public pays more and more attention to personal data and privacy on the Internet, there will be more and more regions join the ranks and regulate how owners use visitor information. As advertisers, we should prepare in advance to find the most suitable advertising and digital marketing strategy to ensure that our website and account can still perform well without accessing some visitor information .
