08 Dec 2019 Search

(This is a copy of an answer that I posted to a marketing list.)

There’s a strong possibility that 2020 could be the year that two big trends collide.

  • Privacy opt-outs and objections, enabled by laws such as CCPA, which goes into effect on Jan. 1.

  • Public concerns over brand safety, Sleeping Giants style—amplified by the contentious online environment around the 2020 US election, and the anticipated flood of misinformation, extremist, and harassing content.

The conventional wisdom now around brand safety is that it’s a manageable concern, and that it’s acceptable to have a certain percentage of a brand’s ad impressions end up on really heinous material on “long tail” sites and social media. This is likely to shift. Many people who are already on edge politically will realize that they can communicate their concerns in a way that brands are legally required to act on, by using the tools available to them under new privacy laws and regulations. Instead of just tweeting a screenshot of a problematic ad placement, people will be able to rage-CCPA the brand responsible.

The cost of complying with GDPR and CCPA is likely to be a factor in “flight to quality” media buying decisions.