Cookies are leaving us in 2022. But what does that mean for our data?

The use of programmatic is growing throughout our agency in student recruitment for Universities – as well as early careers and experienced recruitment. We’re able to be granular with our targeting and make sure we’re reaching our target audience at various points within the recruitment funnel, along with a variety of innovative creative inventory.

Google’s announcement of the removal of 3rd Party website cookies in 2022 sent a wave of nerves through the industry, causing us all to question how this will impact campaign performance moving forward. Whilst we may not have all the answers at this stage, we have been developing solutions and strategies to help with the situation in the lead up to 2022.

Don’t panic

We, as an agency, have processes in place to make sure we stay ahead of the curve, and can continue to run successful and impactful programmatic campaigns.

As with everything; understanding, planning and preparation will minimise the immediate impact. Whether it be walled gardens, publisher led solutions, 1st party data or more advanced channel and contextual targeting – there are already ways to address the challenges. Even before some key players have made their move.

Time to rethink

To date, it’s not uncommon to analyse linear conversion data to monitor the performance of campaigns and channels along the conversion path proportionately. With the changes, we may well be forced to only measure the final touchpoint conversions, so how we apportion value to each channel may also change.

Whilst bums on seats will always be an important part for any campaign, we know that brand recognition and familiarity play a key role in recruitment cycles. We can be innovative through dynamic creatives both online and offline with the help of digital out of home, to deliver impactful and unforgettable campaigns which will boost recruitment.

Your audience comes first

With the removal of 3rd party cookies, there’s more significance on your 1st party data. The data you gather from those that have engaged with your site will be the key to staying ahead of the curve.

CRM integrated inventory options are currently being tested in Safari and Google Sandbox which will allow us to deliver personalised display to an engaged audience at varying stages of the recruitment cycle – whilst putting the user’s privacy at the forefront.

Into the unknown

It is still unclear what a future without 3rd party cookies will look like. But what we do know, is that we will still be able to deliver impactful targeted programmatic display campaigns. We are keeping an eye on the latest developments as they come in and will share what we learn as we go.