What the hell are "cookies" and why is everyone talking about them?

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Have you ever said to yourself, "What the hell are 'cookies' and why is everyone talking about them?"

Let me be the first to say, you're not alone. People that understand what cookies are, know that cookies are a way for a website to track your online behavior. What most people are now learning is that they're going away. Q3 of this year in fact. Google released a statement that on January 1, 2024 they began turning off cookies in Chrome browser for 1% of users. By the end of this year, they plan to ramp that up to 100%

What does that mean for your dealership?

It means you need to begin finding a solution for tracking customers online through their behavior and actions. The bad news is, it's no small task. The good news is, there are MUCH better ways than cookies to get user's data and that's what you'll want to leverage in your ad campaigns.

Below I will explain what cookies are, why they are important, the data behind their use, and what you should do when they actually "go away".

For starters, less than half of everyone claims to know what a cookie is.

However, 40% of all internet users blindly accept cookies when they visit a website. Have you ever seen the little pop-up at the bottom of your browser that asks you if you would like to "accept" or "reject" the cookies/cookie policy on a site? That's what nearly half of all people click on to allow cookies to track them.

Unbeknownst to them, these cookies allow for the website to natively create a better experience because cookies allow more advanced sites to alter the content that user is experiencing on each visit.

24% of people believe they'll be redirected from or kicked off a site if they opt out of cookies, and baby boomers are twice as likely to reject cookies than Gen Z.

If a user accepts cookies, here are some of the ways they can be useful:

• Enabled auto-fill features when logging into accounts and completing forms

• Customized ads based on your browsing activity

• Streamlined checkout processes when online shopping

What information do cookies collect?

Cookies typically store data related to a user’s:

• Browsing activity

• Purchase history

• Username and password credentials

When you visit a site and allow it to use cookies, here’s what happens:

1. The site sends information in the form of a “cookie” to your browser, which then stores the cookie in the browser folder of your hard drive.

2. During future visits to the site, your browser then sends the cookie back to the website, complete with your identifying information.

3. This allows the website to load with a personalized user experience based on the information contained within the cookie.

Study conducted by: all about Cookies

Now let's talk about the "cookie-less future"

As a dealership, you actually rely on cookies more than you probably know. The reason why your ads can be relevant without owning the data (end user) is because of cookies. That's where things are changing...

Now that cookies are going away, you must have an action plan for how you are going to deploy your ads now and in the near future.

I have interviewed a lot of companies that specialize in 1st Party Data, de-anonymizing users, and tracking behavior. Here's what I know:

• You need a solution for properly tracking user behavior not just on your site, but also the sites they visit that aren't yours.

  • What else are they purchasing?

  • How much money do they make?

  • What are their hobbies and interests?

  • Do they have children?

  • How often do they make large purchases and at what intervals?

  • What car do they drive?

  • How many miles are on their vehicle?

  • All of this information has been gathered from users' online behavior for decades. You just need to get your hands on that data and know how to use it to your advantage. The more data you have, the better your ads will perform.

• Buying data records of in-market shoppers or service intenders is the next big thing. You no longer have to "use" a vendor's records or data. There are actually resources available for you to not only use consumer behavior data, but to OWN IT.

  • That way, you can continue to market to these consumers for months, or even years down the road by taking them from a prospective buyer, to a sales customer, to a service customer, and so on and so forth.

  • If a vendor tells you you can't own the data, they are lying to you.

Times are changing (just like they always do) in the automotive industry. Don't be left holding the bag later this year scratching your head trying to figure out why you aren't getting as much traffic and leads as you have in the past.

I'm not one to be negative, but if you don't find a new snack, you'll be left feeling very, very hungry when the cookies are all gone.