Data is one of the most valuable assets in modern marketing, but there are growing challenges to fully leveraging its powerful insights. As consumers grow more concerned about how their data is being used, and governments consider stricter privacy regulations, marketers must balance data-driven strategies with the demand for data privacy.

In the evolving data landscape, where both new opportunities and concerns are continually emerging, marketers must still answer an age-old question: how to effectively understand and communicate with their customers while building and maintaining trust.

The Changing Data Privacy Landscape

Over the past few years, a wave of privacy regulations has reshaped how businesses collect, store, and use consumer data. Starting with the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in 2018, followed by the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), and more recently the California Privacy Rights Act (CPRA), data privacy regulations are becoming more strict and far-reaching. These laws give consumers more control over their data, including the right to know what data is being collected, the right to request deletion, and the right to opt-out of data sharing.

GDPR and CCPA have set the stage for similar legislation to emerge. States like Virginia, Colorado, and Utah have also passed data privacy regulations and many others are introducing bills. The regulatory landscape creates a unique dilemma for marketers who must appeal to consumers’ expectations for personalized experiences while also respecting their desire protect their personal information.

In this environment, businesses must make privacy a central consideration. Marketers must be proactive in understanding and addressing the concerns of their customers with strategies that infuse transparency, compliance, and trust into their programs.

 

The Balancing Act of Data-Driven Marketing and Privacy

At the same time, marketers must find ways to create targeted, personalized marketing campaigns while respecting consumer privacy and comply with evolving regulations. Is it possible strike this delicate balance?

The key lies in shifting from a data-maximization mindset to a privacy-oriented mindset. Instead of collecting as much data as possible, marketers should focus on which data is important to enhance the customer experience and meet their business goals. This approach embodies several key principles: 

• Identifying and collecting only the most important information. 
• Being transparent about what data is collected and why. 
• Implementing mechanisms that help customers stay informed and in-control of their data. 
• Accessing high-quality consumer data sources that are aggregated and analyzed with privacy-conscious methods. 

By adopting these principles, marketers can still target and personalize their marketing efforts without compromising individual privacy. 

 

Privacy-Conscious Data Marketing Tactics

There are a number of privacy-conscious marketing tactics that help businesses remain competitive and effective in the current landscape. For marketers who want to better understand what that looks like, here are several ideas. 

First-Party Data Strategies

In response to the growing restrictions on third-party cookies and other forms of tracking, marketers can turn to first-party data—information that customers provide directly to the business. First-party data is valuable because it is accurate. reliable information that is highly relevant to an individual business. Importantly, it is collected with the consumer’s consent, making it a more privacy-friendly option.

To build first-party data strategies, marketers should focus on creating value exchanges that encourage customers to willingly share their information. This can include feedback loops, loyalty programs, personalized content, product recommendations, and interactive experiences that are tailored to individual preferences. The goal is to provide consumers with a reason to share their data, while making sure that they understand how it will be used to enhance their experience.

IP-Targeted Advertising

IP-targeted ads can offer a more privacy-conscious approach to digital advertising. It leverages IP addresses to target audiences without relying on cookies, census blocks, or geo-location tools, minimizing the collection of personally identifiable information. One of the key advantages is the ability to reach specific demographics without compromising privacy.

IP addresses can be determined using offline data like physical addresses. Appropriate individuals who are likely to be interested in a particular product or service can be targeted with less reliance on data collection and tracking.

B2E uses IP-targeting to helps client implement "captive audience" strategies, where ads are delivered to venues where target populations gather, like for example, a conference or special event. This creates the opportunity for efficient and relevant advertising, as ads can be delivered directly to potential customers while they are actively engaged in online activities. For additional impact, B2E can incorporate "venue replay" into campaigns. This targets devices after individuals leave specific venues, reaching targeted individuals without the constant tracking of their online behavior.

Privacy-Focused Personalization

While personalization is a key aspect of modern marketing, it must be done in a way that respects privacy. Marketers can use data-driven personalization techniques that do not infringe on consumer rights or violate regulations. B2E offers national consumer data that balances personalization with privacy by focusing on aggregate demographic insights rather than individual-level tracking.

B2E’s consumer data provides a comprehensive understanding of the highly-targeted consumer segments relevant to a specific business. This empowers marketers to tailor their messages and offerings based on characteristics such as age, income, education, and lifestyle so they can create highly relevant and engaging experiences without relying on personally identifiable information.

By focusing on broader demographic trends rather than individual browsing behavior, businesses can deliver personalized experiences while minimizing the risk of data breaches and misuse. What’s more, this data can help businesses identify emerging trends and opportunities within specific markets by identifying the evolving needs and preferences of different consumer segments. This helps businesses stay ahead of the curve and develop products and services that resonate more deeply.

Marketing Success in a Privacy-First World

The future of successful marketing lies in balancing the power of data with the growing demand for privacy. It’s entirely possible for marketers to drive effective, data-driven campaigns while respecting consumer privacy and complying with evolving standards.

Those who successfully navigate this landscape will strengthen their relationships with consumers and build a foundation of trust that leads to long-term success. Need help navigating the new terrain? Reach out to schedule a free consultation and learn more about B2E’s data marketing services!

 

 

When it comes to marketing campaigns that are able to fuel business growth, clean and accurate data is the foundation success is built upon. New technologies combined with rapidly shifting consumer behaviors mean marketers must go beyond basic data hygiene practices to stay on top of keeping data fresh and functional.

Today’s consumers are far more discerning. The information you have about them must be accurate and relevant, paving the way for well-targeted and personalized marketing communications to engage them. Yet, recent studies show that more than half the data used for ad targeting is wrong.

Dirty data not only stands in the way of effective personalization, but the negative impact is amplified across wasted resources, missed opportunities, and decreased ROI. Good, solid data should be every marketer’s immediate priority.

Why Clean Data Matters More Than Ever

Several current trends highlight the growing importance of clean and accurate data.

AI and Machine Learning: Advancing technologies rely heavily on high-quality data to deliver accurate insights and predictions. Clean data ensures that these technologies can function optimally and provide valuable customer insights.

Personalization at Scale: Consumers expect highly personalized experiences. Clean data enables marketers to create detailed customer profiles, segment audiences effectively, and deliver tailored content that resonates with individual preferences and behaviors.

Omni-Channel Marketing: With consumers engaging with brands across digital and in-person channels, consistent and accurate data is essential for creating cohesive and seamless experiences. Good data allows for effective cross-channel tracking and integration, ensuring that marketing messages are consistent and relevant across all touchpoints.

Enhanced Customer Experience (CX): The most successful brands and businesses know customer experience is a key differentiator. Accurate data helps marketers understand customer needs, preferences, and pain points, and create more meaningful and engaging experiences.

Data Privacy and Security: As data privacy concerns grow, maintaining data properly is critical for building trust with consumers. It ensures that personal information is handled responsibly, maintaining customer confidence and the credibility of your brand.

Advanced Strategies to Keep Data Fresh and Valuable

In a data-driven landscape, marketers must elevate their data management strategies beyond basic hygiene to unlock the full potential of their customer insights. By implementing advanced data cleaning, enrichment, and governance practices, organizations can create a robust foundation for accurate, actionable, and customer-centric marketing campaigns. This can include: 

• Automated data cleaning tools that detect and correct errors, remove duplicates, and update outdated information in near real-time.
• Data enrichment from top-tier data sources that fill gaps, improve accuracy, and create a more comprehensive view of your customers. At B2E, we use Experian data, one of the most expansive datasets available, which has also been top-ranked for data accuracy.
• Regular data audits and monitoring to identify and rectify issues promptly. Without continuous attention, data accumulates errors and degrades significantly over time. 
• Data governance policies that define data standards, roles, and responsibilities. This will help maintain data quality and integrity across the organization.
• Breaking down data silos by integrating data across different systems and departments. A unified data infrastructure ensures everyone has access to the same accurate and consistent information for decision-making.
  
  

Marketing Excellence is Backed by Good Data

The path to marketing excellence is paved with clean and accurate data. As emerging trends and technologies are increasingly data-powered, quality becomes more paramount. With sound data management, marketers can unlock the full potential of their data and drive more effective campaigns. 

Do you need access to superior quality data, or help maintaining data integrity? Reach out to schedule a free consultation and learn more about how B2E can help!

 

 

When it comes to reaching the right audience with precision, the tools marketers use make all the difference. As the landscape shifts toward privacy-first approaches, the challenge of targeting consumers without relying on traditional methods, like cookie tracking, has become more pressing. Marketers are left searching for solutions that not only align with evolving public sentiment and regulations, but enhance their ability to drive meaningful engagement. 

As marketers evaluate new solutions, they’ll discover that while many firms offer the same type of services, they aren’t all alike. As one example, geoframing, an advanced technology available through B2E’s MotusIP technology, is a more sophisticated option for targeted marketing that we believe outperforms competing technologies like cookie-based IP targeting, and cluster IP targeting. 

Let’s take a look at why. 

Using Geoframing for Highly Targeted Marketing

If you aren’t familiar with geoframing, it offers a sophisticated and targeted approach to location-based marketing. Geoframing uses historical location data to target individuals who have visited a specific place or geographic area. This allows marketers to build audiences based on past visits to a defined area.

MotusIP is able to build a database of IP addresses (the numbers assigned to each device connected to an individual computer network) by drawing geoframes around locations such as homes or businesses. This process collects the mobile advertising device IDs (MAIDs) of the devices seen at the physical address and matches to a home address. Geoframing uses latitude and longitude data to inventory MAIDs within a highly precise area, down to the square meter level. When B2E matches a customer (or prospect) to the IP database, we can then target all of the devices in that home with relevant digital advertising. 

By connecting MAIDs to home addresses, you can reach multiple decision-makers within a single household. This allows businesses to engage with entire households, improving the chances of reaching the right people. What’s more, MotusIP can target based on past behavior. This allows businesses to re-engage with potential customers who may have visited their location or a competitor's in the past, keeping their brand top of mind.

As you can see, geoframing offers exciting opportunities for precise targeting and a retrospective understanding of consumer location behaviors. Let’s examine how it stacks up against competing technologies.

Geoframing vs. Cookie-Based IP Targeting

Geoframing and cookie-based IP targeting are both methods used to target online users with location-specific ads. But, relying on cookies today can be uncertain, inaccurate, and susceptible to privacy concerns. 

While cookies have long been a staple in online tracking and targeting, their future is very much in flux. Though Google recently walked back plans to phase out third-party cookies in its Chrome browser, marketers would be wise to find solutions that preserve their ability to target users without relying solely on cookies’ uncertain future. 

What’s more, Cookie-based IP location targeting can be inaccurate, especially for users with dynamic IP addresses or who use VPNs. By leveraging historical location data tied to a user’s physical movements, MotusIP’s geoframing-based solution can pinpoint where individuals have been. This enables marketers to build more detailed and precise audience segments, targeting users based on actual, verifiable locations rather than sometimes misleading data provided by cookies. 

By combining geoframing with other data sources, marketers can create even more sophisticated targeting strategies. For example, by combining MotusIP data with demographic, lifestyle, and financial information, marketers can target very specific segments of the population based on location and interests.

Unlike cookies, geoframing with MotusIP is privacy-compliant. As marketers continue to adapt to a more privacy-conscious world—potentially without cookies—MotusIP is already ahead of the curve, offering marketers a solution that is both forward-looking and effective today.

Geoframing vs. Cluster IP Targeting

Cluster IP targeting is another technique employed to deliver ads to specific audiences based on their location by grouping IP addresses within specific geographic regions. While this method can provide a basic level of location targeting, it suffers from inaccuracies due to the dynamic nature of IP addresses and the varying granularity of geographic clusters. Many IP addresses are shared or reassigned frequently, making it difficult to maintain precise targeting. Marketers may target a broader area than intended, reducing the relevancy of ads and increasing the chances of wasted spend.

Additionally, the geographic clusters used in Cluster IP targeting lack granularity.  Because cluster IP targeting is based on aggregated data from shared networks, it can only provide information around the general behavior of a group or cluster. 

With MotusIP, marketers can target individuals based on where they have been, allowing for more refined audience segmentation. Whether targeting visitors to a competitor’s store, attendees of a specific event, or individuals frequenting a particular neighborhood, MotusIP allows for more personalized and timely engagement. 

MotusIP offers a level of accuracy and precision that cluster IP targeting simply cannot match. Ultimately, geoframing with MotusIP stands out as the more powerful solution for marketers looking to achieve precise, location-based engagement.

Advanced Technology with High Data Integrity

While others may offer similar technologies, B2E offers both superior technology and a high degree of data security and integrity. We’re proud to have passed the SOC2 audit annually with no exceptions. 

As the digital marketing landscape continues to evolve at a rapid pace, businesses must stay ahead of the curve by adopting technologies that deliver precise targeting, measurable results, and the ability to engage their target audience effectively. Interested in learning more about geoframing with B2E? Let’s talk! Set-up a complimentary discovery conversation.

In July 2024, Google made a significant reversal in its decision to phase out third-party cookies from its Chrome browser. For years, the advertising and marketing community has been preparing for this change, and the unexpected move has prompted a lot of questions. 

Des Moines, Iowa – (Aug. 26, 2024) – 

Data-driven marketing service provider B2E Data Marketing has again successfully completed its annual SOC 2 audit with no exceptions. This achievement underscores B2E’s ongoing commitment to maintaining the highest standards of data security and privacy for its clients.

B2E has completed a SOC 2 examination with no exceptions for five years running.

 

The SOC 2 (System and Organization Controls 2) audit, governed by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA), is designed to evaluate a company's ability to securely manage data to protect the privacy of its clients. The audit assesses the effectiveness of an organization’s controls relevant to security, availability, processing integrity, confidentiality, and privacy.

 

Successfully passing the SOC 2 audit with no exceptions means that B2E meets or exceeds industry standards for data protection. The audit was conducted by a third-party firm, which rigorously evaluated B2E's policies, procedures, and practices.

 

"In today’s digital landscape, where businesses are more interconnected than ever, the data security of business partners is critical,” said B2E President Keith Snow. “Every year, the SOC 2 examination underscores our commitment to safeguarding data with industry best practices, so our clients know their data is in safe hands.”

 

In addition to meeting SOC 2 standards, Snow is a member of Infragard, a public-private partnership between the FBI and private sector focused on cybersecurity and national infrastructure protection. Members of Infragard participate in ongoing dialogue on cyber threat intelligence and best practices, and share industry-specific knowledge and insight on risks. The overall mission is to improve country’s collective ability address and mitigate threats to critical infrastructure. 

 

About B2E Data 

Established in 2003, B2E Data Marketing is a SOC 2-certified data marketing agency that helps organizations make data-driven decisions. Its data services span social and digital campaigns, email campaigns, data hygiene and enrichment, audience segmentation and profiling, analytics, identity/identity resolution, mailing lists, and marketing measurement. It serves companies in the financial, insurance, home services, education, and franchise/dealer sectors and is a strategic partner to advertising agencies. Learn more at www.b2edata.com. 

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Data visualizations aren’t new; charts and graphs have been common visual aids for decades —even centuries! It’s for good reason. Compelling visuals transform complex information into formats that are easier to understand, interpret, and act upon.

Traditional charts and graphs are being augmented with more sophisticated tools that provide deeper insights and more dynamic representations of data. Interactive dashboards, real-time analytics, and AI-powered visualizations are among the innovations that are redefining how marketers interpret and use data. Here’s a look at what’s trending.

Today, generic marketing messages just fall flat. They feel out of step with consumers who expect authenticity, relevance, and to be understood. 

From hyper-personalized email campaigns to dynamic ad targeting, AI is transforming how brands connect with consumers—practically as we speak. However, the powerful potential of AI comes with a responsibility to consider the entire picture. Marketers must also consider the ethical implications of using such sophisticated technology.

It’s 2024 and our inboxes our crowded. Yet, despite the volume of emails we receive, there is plenty of evidence that says consumers still want to hear from brands by email. Just last year, 60% listed email as their preferred communication method. 

Data marketing is a powerful tool that helps businesses make informed decisions, target
customers more effectively, and ultimately, boost the bottom line. But with great power comes
great responsibility …

That’s why we must set the record straight on several data misunderstandings.

Now, being a purveyor of truth and common sense is a reward unto itself, but our real concern is
that these myths may hold your company back, lead you astray, or leave you disappointed. Let’s
look at the most common confusions we encounter, and offer our perspective.

Data Myth #1: More Data, Better Insights

If data is good, more must be better right?

Not exactly.

Data quality and relevance are more important than data quantity. Without the former two, the
latter will be rendered almost meaningless. So, don’t collect data for the sake of having more.
Make sure it aligns with your strategic goals, enables meaningful decision-making, and is recent
and accurate.