Category: Strategy and Management

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Europe In the News Legal & Compliance Strategy and Management USA

Data privacy fears threaten $250bn transatlantic trade

data privacy

us-eu-flags-2The uncertainty is being fuelled by a double whammy of scepticism about how robust Privacy Shield is and fears that the alternative method, used by 80% of companies – the so-called standard contractual clauses (SCCs) – could be soon be rendered illegal.

According to a survey of 600 data professionals in the US and EU, only 40 US firms have so far adopted Privacy Shield, with just 34% intending to use the new data privacy framework, compared with 50% which used its Safe Harbour forerunner.

The situation is not being helped by EU data regulators sitting on the Article 29 Working Party (WP29). Although they approved the framework in late July, they have set off alarm bells by pledging to keep a close eye on how Privacy Shield develops.

Data privacy Shield assessment

At the time, they released a statement which said: “The first joint annual review will be a key moment for the robustness and efficiency of the Privacy Shield mechanism to be further assessed.”

US think tank the Brookings Institution has estimated that “digitally delivered services” between the EU and the US – including customer data storage – were worth nearly $250bn (£188bn) in 2015.

IAPP president and chief executive Trevor Hughes commented: “The legal uncertainty of standard contractual clauses and the scepticism about Privacy Shield may be a hangover effect from the Max Schrems case that invalidated Safe Harbour in the European courts. Clearly, organisations face an extremely complex regulatory landscape as they look to build their businesses for the digital future.

“It will be vital for them to employ privacy professionals at the highest levels of management to help navigate that landscape and capitalise on opportunity.”

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Europe Global In the News Strategy and Management UK

Sites with pop-up ads face punishment from Google

target marketing

Now Google eyes up DunnHumby bid.jpg newWebsite owners are being warned that the days of big pop-up ads are drawing to a close, after Google revealed that it is updating the algorithms used to rank search results in a move which will push them down the placings.

Set to come into effect on January 10, the search giant insists the move is designed to make using some of its results less frustrating, although observers point to the ongoing battle the company is mounting against ad-blockers.

In a blog post, the company said: “Pages that show intrusive interstitials [elements that cover the content] provide a poorer experience to users than other pages where content is immediately accessible. This can be problematic on mobile devices where screens are often smaller.”

Detailing its decision, Google cited three examples of the kind of practices it wanted to eliminate:

  • Pop-ups that covered part of the main content when the user clicked on to a page
  • An intermediary webpage that had to be dismissed before the main content could be seen
  • An ad that filled the web browser’s screen so users had to scroll down ‘below the fold’ before they could see the material they wanted

Pop-up ads: alerts are the exceptions

However, some pop-ups will be exempt, including those which alert readers to the use of cookies, as well as ones which require log-in details to let visitors get behind a paywall.

Daniel Knapp, a senior director of advertising research at the IHS consultancy told the BBC: “Google is one of the largest advertising companies in the world, but it’s in a very different position to Facebook, Snapchat and other global media consumption apps.

“Google is still very reliant on the desktop and mobile web to make money, and it’s much more difficult to clean up that experience than the native app environments. That’s why it needs to tighten the screws on everyone with this crackdown.”

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Best practice Data Strategy Global Strategy and Management

Multi-channel marketing: do you need to cover all channels?

multi-channel marketing

This era of multi-channel marketing and customer engagement means many small and mid-size businesses feel pressured to establish a presence anywhere and everywhere. Is this a bad thing?

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Data Management Europe In the News Strategy and Management UK

Consumer data shared by companies more times than you think

data collection

data mistrust 2The study suggests there are at least 100,000 copies of each individual’s personal data being held on physical devices and cloud storage platforms.

Commissioned by Ground Labs, the consumer research quizzed individuals about how many organisations they believed had access to their personal data.

The majority (84%) guessed at fewer than 20; almost a third (28%) guessed fewer than ten, but once shown a list of 50 online services and retailers, two out of five consumers realised that their original estimate was way wide of the mark. This was based on their knowledge of interactions in the past 12 months alone.

Data security company Ground Labs VP EMEA John Cassidy said: “Unless customers have an accurate idea of who has access to their data, they are unable to take the precautions necessary to protect themselves online. We only asked people to pick from 50 of the biggest online companies, in reality, the number of organisations who have access to any one individual’s data is much, much higher than our survey suggests.”

Consumer data stored on and offline

Ground Labs insists that the total number of companies consumers interact with is actually irrelevant. With automatic backups, log files, emails and legal third-party sharing, hundreds of thousands of potential copies of individual’s data is being stored both on and offline. On top of this, many companies will keep records of former customers for years.

“A conservative estimate would suggest that for any given adult, hundreds of thousands of copies of personal data reside on physical devices and cloud storage platforms both in and outside of the UK. Most people are unaware of the multiplying effect when dealing with so many service providers and so the responsibility must fall on companies to protect this sensitive data,” Cassidy concluded.

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Data Strategy Europe In the News Strategy and Management UK

PwC to hire 1,000 experts as data security fears soar

data security fears soar

gloves, data securityThe firm said the new recruits will be join its UK Risk Assurance team within the next four years and cover all industry sectors across the country. As well as cybersecurity and privacy threats, the beefed up team will cover data management, business systems and IT risks.

More than 600 jobs will be filled by external hires, while over 400 will be transferred from other PwC sites. The firm will also be recruiting at least 200 data and tech graduates.

Digital disruption

PwC UK head of assurance Hemione Hudson said: “Business models that have served clients well for decades are being disrupted or destroyed due to the speed of digital disruption, the increase of regulatory scrutiny on technology risks and the escalation of cyber threat, requiring us to respond and build a strong team of specialists.”

Although there have fewer ‘car crash’ breaches following last October’s hack on TalkTalk, there is obviously a great deal of nervousness in the market.

PwC risk assurance partner Marc Bena added: “Our clients and their customers want to know that their technology is innovative and pushing boundaries whilst being safe and delivering what is expected. We have a duty to continue to build a team of technology experts able to help our clients do business with confidence.”

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Data Management Europe In the News Strategy and Management UK

Royal Mail tackles home mover data decay

data strategies, data decay

The Guide to Mover Marketing will also identify those who may be looking for move-related and home improvement products and services.

It has been developed in response to research from Royal Mail Data Services, which surveyed nearly 200 leading UK marketers to discover the key business challenges surrounding the use of customer data for marketing purposes.

The research revealed that 45% of marketers say recruiting new customers is their biggest challenge. The remaining 55% struggle with re-activation, upselling, retention and cross-selling to existing customers.

Further research suggests that 65% of consumers switch suppliers or engage with new brands during the home-move period as they track down the best deals.

Data decay – trends and characteristics

Home-mover marketing presents proven opportunities for brands, particularly in the utilities, telecoms, finance, insurance, banking, DIY, retail and home improvement sectors, to increase their customer retention, acquisition and re-activation rates, the firm claims.

The guide outlines the trends and characteristics of the UK home-mover market. It also offers strategies for data-driven B2C marketers to improve their customer acquisition, retention and engagement strategies by segmenting and targeting home movers with relevant, useful marketing communications.

It also explains how businesses can quantify the value of the home-mover market through analysis of customer purchasing behaviours before, during and after their moves.

Royal Mail Data Services managing director Jim Conning said: “The combination of price-conscious consumers, the breadth of choice to be found online, and fierce competition is making it more challenging and costly for B2C marketers to improve the performance of their marketing while boosting revenues. The key to success lies in a marketer’s ability to deliver ‘right-time’, contextual marketing that anticipates what customers need before they have to ask.”

The guide draws on Royal Mail Data Services’ experience of working with many of the UK’s leading brands to help them reshape their approaches to “right-time”, contextual marketing through the use of home-mover data alongside specialist data analysis and marketing services.

Conning added: “To be successful at ‘right-time’ marketing, marketers need access to timely customer information. This data must be accurate, permission based, and sourced via a first party. But it’s not enough to just provide great-quality data.

“Businesses also need insight into home moves period to help them understand when consumers are most likely to buy a company’s products or services or, indeed, to switch to the competition. And that’s where our specialist knowledge and experience come in. Our guide offers marketers a step-by-step approach to adopting effective marketing strategies and techniques to target home movers.”

The move follows the launch of eBay Advertising’s Home Mover ‘Advanced Targeting’ scheme, which cross references insights from eBay’s 19 million monthly users with Land Registry data to predict movers months before they actually settle into their new abode.

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Data Management Europe In the News Strategy and Management UK

Failing to manage returned mail costs £145m a year, says study

Mail box UK, returned mail

A new study by The Software Bureau reveals that 60 per cent of marketers do not practice reverse marketing; the management of returned direct mail, which costs firms £4.02 per piece of returned mail.

Approximately 90 million pieces of direct mail (2.5 per cent) are returned to sender each year. Forty per cent of these or 36 million are returned due to the recipient’s wish to be removed from the marketing database, equating to a loss of potential revenue of £116 million and £29 million in wasted production costs.

Reverse marketing enables organisations to compile in-house do not mail lists that can be screened against future campaigns reducing the volume of mistargeted mailings, saving money and improving the reputation of the organisation among customers.

The study revealed B2B organisations to be the worst culprits followed by retailers, credit card providers, retailers, pension providers and charities. Conversely, local government was found to be the most responsible.

Martin Rides, managing director of The Software Bureau, said: “The fact that every piece of returned mail costs businesses £4 is incredible – this soon adds up, amounting to thousands per year.

“Reverse marketing is a key component to reducing the volume of mistargeted direct mail. It is shocking that only four in ten organisations manage their returns and, more importantly, learn from them.

“Our new initiative, Lean DM, helps organisations to identify the areas which produce the most wastage in their direct mail activity and minimise it. With the advent of GDPR and increased scrutiny from the media and legislative bodies, it is crucial that organisations focus on data hygiene.”

The study was carried out by ‘mystery shopping’ last month.

Returned mail statistics:

£4.02 = 3.6 billion pieces of DM sent annually (OFCOM) x 2.5 per cent returned (Royal Mail) x 40 per cent of returns due to opt outs (DMA) = 90 million returns x lost ROI (£3.22 Royal Mail) and average cost of a mail pack (£0.80).

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Europe In the News Legal & Compliance Strategy and Management UK

Data breach has affected nearly a quarter of UK consumers

data breach

In a world where an ever-increasing number of transactions are carried out online – requiring consumers to share personal information – the threat of a data breach is never far away. In the last month alone, Netflix and Facebook have both been hacked and in June 2016, a breach at South Yorkshire Police Force’s website potentially put confidential data at risk.

According to new YouGov research commissioned by credit information provider, Equifax (YouGov online survey. Total sample size was 2,037 adults. Fieldwork undertaken between June 17-20 2016. Figures from YouGov Plc), nearly a quarter (23%) of UK consumers say that a company holding their personal information has experienced a data breach, with those in the South East being the most affected at 30% and residents in the North East being the least affected at 19%. When it comes to the generations, the 25-34-year-olds seem the most affected at 31%; the figure falling to just 18% for the over-55s.

Financial compensation after data breach expected

It seems that with the increased risk of a data breach, consumers’ expectations of how they are informed and assisted by any company holding their data are unsurprisingly high. Almost three-quarters (73%) of UK adults surveyed by YouGov on behalf of Equifax think companies should tell them that they have experienced a data breach at some point, with 63% expecting to be told within a few hours of the breach being discovered by the company. 61% would expect financial compensation if their personal data was misused as a result of the breach and 57% would expect to have a free monitoring service set up to alert them if their financial information is misused.

Not only do consumers expect fast action and compensation if their data is breached, companies also need to adhere to the Data Protection Act enforced by the ICO. Companies may receive a fine if they suffer a breach of customer data, and also may face legal action. Future regulation may also require organisations to notify all individuals if they suffer a breach.data breach equifax image1

Lisa Hardstaff, credit information expert at Equifax, explained: “A data breach isn’t just a huge logistical challenge for any organisation. It also can do serious damage to brand reputation, as our recent research revealed. 61% of consumers said they would be unlikely to purchase goods or services from a company if it had experienced a data breach in the past.

“It’s clear that consumers quite rightly expect companies to look after their data. But individuals have a part to play, too, in keeping their own details safe. It’s worth remembering that social media accounts hold a lot of personal information, giving fraudsters more than enough data to help them steal someone’s identity and rack up debt in their name. However, our latest research revealed that consumers are most worried about their bank account and credit card details being stolen (84%), while only 7% are worried about hackers gaining access to social media account login details, in the event of a breach.

“Fraudsters are continually evolving their methods and, while organisations tracking and stopping them do have high success rates, the financial incentive for fraudsters to invent new techniques means they stay one step ahead of those out to stop them. Consumer vigilance is therefore key and while the onus is on a business to take action to protect the personal information that has been hacked, there are steps consumers can take, too, including changing passwords.”

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Asia-Pacific Australia Best practice Global Legal & Compliance Strategy and Management

Why action and transparency matter during a security breach

security breach

Data Theft 101: Renée Frappier discusses why improperly handling a security breach hurts businesses – and what your organisation should do instead.

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Case Studies Data Management Strategy and Management USA

The race to the White House and programmatic politics

programmatic politics

Randy Wootton is closely watching the US Presidential campaigns and how parties are leveraging the very latest digital techniques: programmatic politics.

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