Online Privacy in the Digital Age

Its not a coincidence that a bulk of the online advertisements I see are for Tom’s Shoes and Save the Sea Turtle.  In fact, these advertisements are tailored especially for me, given my demographics, browsing history and what I “like” on Facebook.    The use of “browser sniffing” has not been the subject of multiple lawsuits, including, as Forbes.com reports, one by two California men who filed a lawsuit against YouPorn, the most popular site doing the “history sniffing.” The charge is violation of privacy.
But, what does privacy mean in the digital age?  Recently, as the debate over Wikileaks has reached a fever pitch, the public has seen that not even the government can manage to keep their secrets online.  Is everything we do online open to scrutiny?  This past week, the FTC issued a report, entitled "Protecting Consumer Privacy in an Era of Rapid Change: A Proposed Framework for Businesses and Policymakers," which is "intended to inform policymakers, including Congress, as they develop solutions, policies, and potential laws governing privacy, and guide and motivate industry as it develops more robust and effective best practices and self-regulatory guidelines."  This report comes despite the fact that online giants such as Yahoo! and Google have committed to working out a self-policing online privacy policy.   The crux of the FTC report is an endorsement of a “Do Not Track” program that will allow internet users to opt-out of online tracking, or browser sniffing, that is used by online marketers to tailor online advertisers.   This could have a profound impact, according to USA Today, on the $25.8 billion-a-year advertising and marketing industry that's expected to swell to $40.5 billion by 2014.   Furthermore, the  “Do Not Track” feature will also force marketers from for-profit and not-for-profit industries to re-evaluate their strategies.

And, as Dr. Anthony Miyazaki at E-Marketing for Sensible Folk ask, will the “Track me Not” button work?  I’m not sure about you, but I’ve listened to the FTC’s advice on how to “Just Say No”  to Unsolicited Mail, Telemarketing and Email.  And yet, “neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night” –nor “Do Not Mail”—stops mail carrier from stuffing my mailbox full of unwanted advertisements (oh, how many trees sacrificed themselves for those Publishers Clearinghouse Mailings?).  Essentially, the Do Not Track button will work much the same in that online advertisers must adhere to the customer’s wishes.  In the case of Facebook,Microsoft, Google, and Yahoo!, they might.  These large companies are already working on the next new innovation in online marketing, but how about the smaller and more concerning online marketers?  Those who troll your Internet data not to target you, but to maliciously collect your information or blast you with pop-ups?  How can the FTC regulate the equivalent of online Publisher’s Clearinghouse envelopes?   These are all questions that will continue to be hashed out moving forward.  For me, although privacy concerns are important, a part of me is glad that the advertisements I see are for companies and causes that I actually care about.  I'd rather be targeted by Tom's Shoes than subjected to advertisements that are not for me. 

Further Reading:

Online Privacy Problems? The FTC Says It’s Got Your Back, But Does It? (E-Marketing for Sensible Folk)

Leibowitz: FTC will push Net privacy (Politico)

Do Not Track effort could revolutionize online ad industry (USA Today) 

Creative Social Good Campaigns for the Holiday Season

Mashable.com recently posted a round up of 5 Creative Social Good Campaigns for the Holiday Season. Among them include campaigns run by big hitters American Express and Yahoo!.

Certainly holiday time should be primetime for cause marketing and social good campaigns since they thrive on the two themes of the season: giving and buying. Furthermore, as any non-profit will tell you, on average 50% of annual donations are collect in the month of December, just in time for the end of the tax year.

What other cause marketing campaigns are making waves this holiday season?

• AdWorks reports that MasterCard is working with more than 90 businesses in New York's Times Square this holiday season to raise up to $1.5 million for Stand Up to Cancer.
• During the Twelve Days of Gifting, Living Social will give a portion of the proceeds of every deal purchased in your city to a local charity.
• Macy’s Believe campaign is back for a third year, drop of letters to Santa Claus to earn a $1 donation to the Make-A-Wish Foundation – up to $1 million.  Purchase the "Yes, Virginia" DVD and book and 10% of the proceeds go to Make-A-Wish! 

Groupon for Good?

It’s hard to ignore Groupon.  First, there are the daily emails and Android App Notifications beckoning me to join the crowd in partaking in the day’s “great deal nearby”.  Second, the Internet is a buzz with the news that the Chicago-based startup reportedly just turned down a cool $6 billion offer from Internet giant Google (Mashable, Bloomberg).  Its easy to understand the appeal.  The “crowd sourcing” deal-of-the-day provider boasts nearly 7 million users- and counting- in 300 markets and 35 countries.  Just two years old, Groupon is reported to bring in $500 milion in yearly revenue, a number that according to Kara Swisher over at AllThingsD could be 4 times as great, totaling $2 billion a year.  The sputtering, yet still consumption-driven U.S. economy has got everyone from Mainstreet to Manhattan into the coupon-cutting craze.  Even with the creation of competitors and copycats (including LivingSocial.com which just scored $175 million from Amazon) its pretty clear that Groupon has got something going on.

Now, I love a great deal on hot shows and hip shoes as much as the next girl, but bless my bleeding heart, I can’t help but wonder—can Groupon’s dazzling star power be harnessed for good? 

Just a bit of investigation yields that yes, great minds DO think alike. Only a month ago, Groupon announced a new project, G-Team for “Groupon followers who want to do good, have fun, and make a real impact can now join forces through G-Team campaigns”.  Sounds cool, right?  But is Groupon just the latest web giant to make a half-hearted attempt to grow a social conscience?  It appears that the company, led by co-founders Andrew Mason, Eric Lefkofsky and Brad Keywell, may have been distracted making millions, plotting IPOs and telling Google to get lost, however, their true roots lie in creating a platform for social change.  It turns out, before there was Groupon, there was The Point.  Founded by Mason in November 2007, The Point is “a revolutionary way for individuals to combine their influence and make things happen they can't achieve alone”. The power of the collective action, and the premise that everything has a “Tipping Point,” is in essence what has driven Groupon’s success. 

According to Groupon, “after a desert vision quest where we invoked our ancestral spirits, we are repossessed with The Point’s powers”.   So now, we have the G-Team. 

What is unique about the G-Team, unlike eBay Giving Works or Living Social Charities, which automatically provide a portion of proceeds from certain sales to charity, the G-Team has a twist.  Only operating in Chicago for the time-being, the G-Team helps local organizations create a campaign page on The Point and connects them with a Groupon merchant. The campaign is promoted along with the merchant’s daily deal to Groupon’s subscribers.  The very local feel of the program has the potential to create meaningful relationships between local companies, consumers, and community groups.  However, reminiscent of Kickstarter, the unique “all-or-nothing funding” site where startup projects must be fully-funded or no money changes hands, the G-Team’s campaigns will only be supported if enough people pledge the cause, pushing them over the “tipping point”. 

Will it work?  Time will tell.  I predict that G-Team could be great resource for local organizations looking to increase their online exposure among their target audience (Community Blood Banks, Humane Societies, etc).  With 7 million Groupon users, the project is bound to receive some support.  However, the local-nature of the program limits the pace at which it can be scaled globally, so it might be some time before there is any true measure of social change.  The second drawback is that by the very nature of its foundation in The Point, G-Team requires active support from Groupon subscribers, and with a multitude of online campaigning platforms, including Kickstarter, Pepsi Refresh, MTV’s Do Something, and Jumo the new brainchild of Facebook founder and Obama-Pusher Chris Hughes, The Point faces some stiff competition for clicks from those who care. 

So, can Groupon be harnessed for good?  The G-Team is a great start for local causes.  However, with $2 billion in anticipated revenue, perhaps Groupon could afford to compliment it with a more universal giving program.