Experts Divulge Secrets about Data and Privacy at November AiMA Event

The opening soliloquy by Vikram Somaya, Managing Director at Blue Kai, a data aggregator and reseller, set the stage for the evening’s presentation by marketing executives from three digital marketing segments: marketer, publisher and agency. In a clever play on words, moderator Somaya channeled Shakespeare’s “Merchant of Venice” with a rendition based on that character’s famed rhetoric to address the burning question, “What’s in a cookie, anyway?”

That question was the focus of a panel discussion featuring Mark Zilner, VP of Business Operations at Search Ignite, Stephen Robinson, Principal – Web Analytics and Site Testing for AutoTrader.com, and Maggie Tucker, Director of Web Marketing for IHG (InterContinental Hotel Group).

Zilner helped the audience understand how his organization uses data on behalf of one of its clients, Snuggies (everyone’s favorite Christmas gift!), to not only increase overall campaign ROI but also take advantage of retracting competition in the final days leading up to the Christmas holiday. These observations were also rolled into the company’s display media strategy.  Not to be outdone, Robinson demonstrated how ad placement testing on AutoTrader’s homepage led directly to more media dollars from a national automotive brand. He also revealed how comparing user profiles against  autotrader.com search behavior led to product development optimizations. The final presentation was made by Tucker, who conveyed the effects of her organization’s efforts to minimize duplicative global websites, create more efficiencies and build more contextual experiences for prospective travel customers. She cited the examples of hotel shoppers in France who may see rate specials in Toronto (a frequent destination for IHG’s French consumers) while hotel shoppers in China see predominantly Chinese domestic locations (due to Chinese political travel restrictions.)

An engaged audience asked pointed questions of each participant, who provided insights beyond the parameters of their prepared remarks. The panel, particularly AutoTrader.com and IHG, touched on their companies’ commitment to balancing privacy while building better online experiences for their consumers. Somaya also extended his role as moderator as he relayed his company’s ongoing conversations with Congress to educate lawmakers on the value of capturing and using digital data while dispelling misunderstandings about its dangers, particularly as they relate to privacy issues.

Takeaways for the evening featured cleverly-placed Chinese fortune cookies provided by event sponsor Yahoo!

Next up for AiMA: The Annual Holiday Party on December 2—reserve your tickets online today!

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