Have you used a loyalty card? Put it all out there on social media? Celebrated a CarFax report? Do you have a cell phone or subscribe to a service such as OnStar? Posted your birthdate and birthplace for public viewing on Facebook (identity thieves thank you)? Do you think what you do with these tools is private? Have you considered how your data collection marketing strategies may hurt your business?
The big recent head scratcher involves the throngs celebrating legislative amendments to the Video Privacy Protection Act. Politics aside (know though, there’s more to this than Netflix and Facebook), it’s puzzling that anyone would embrace public knowledge of private choices.
Is keeping anything personal now passé?
Sure, there are smart marketing strategies behind some of this data collection, but what will be the ultimate cost to you – or these businesses?
I just don’t get it. The latest Cypress events should serve as a wakeup call to anyone who freely shares information – and trusts that their personal property will be safeguarded by others. For those that haven’t heard, last week the Cypress parliament was considering allowing the seizure a good chunk of change out of every citizen’s bank deposit account to help with the climb out of the financial quagmire. Apparently they settled on simply those with more than a 100,000 euro balance.
There’s language written into some recent US health care legislation that allows for similar private account raiding. Scary stuff.
Big Brother is watching – and on the ready to collect data you share. Even sites with staunch privacy policies have been caving to government pressure. The simple truth is, if you give private information to others, there’s a good chance what’s offered in confidence will not be held as such.
The marketing strategy lesson on this one is two-fold. If you’re a business owner, be careful about how much you volunteer to ‘trusted sites.’ Even with good intentions – legislative decisions, threats and mere survival may ultimately put your information in unauthorized hands. If you’re a small business owner thinking that collecting tons of data for more personalized auto-responses (curious notion) is going to create more clients from prospects, you might be losing more business than you imagine. Even worse, consider how being forced to counter your privacy policy claims with seizure demands will undermine your credibility with clients. You can’t share what you don’t have.
Here’s a novel idea – how about adopting more marketing strategies that allow you to speak with prospects and centers-of-influence face-to-face? This article offers some easy ways to find more clients with old-fashioned approaches. Of course, you might need to turn off your cell phone and get out of your car, but people actually appreciate and remember you more when you give them the courtesy of your undivided attention.
It’s a Brave New World. Be careful what you wish for.
Am I wrong to be concerned about how thoughtlessly people are offering personal details about their private life? Does it bother you that so much of we do can now be monitored? Please contribute your thoughts in the comments below and share with the social icons (ironic, I realize J) to the left of this blog post.
7 responses to “Orwell’s 1984 is here getting help from voyeur marketing strategies”
This is scary stuff. I agree with you. It spooks me that if I’m on my e-mail or any website for that matter, I am barraged with targeted ads. If I just ordered tea from amazon, for example, I’ll get ads for other teas or whatever. Too much information out there and too many who know how to manipulate it. I am afraid that it all will come back to bite us someday.
Amy thanks so much for stopping in, reading, commenting. I don’t get spooked by the ads (I get this stuff is shared even when the claim is it’s not), but am worried, as you are, about what might result in the future. Of course, I continue to be shocked at what some people choose to make public (GPS locations, vacation plans, etc.).
I think what is more worrying is that “Big Brother” really doesn’t have a clue how to handle the online world. Old laws just are not cut out for it. People using the web post in all innocence without thinking, and yet also yell about privacy.
Well, there is no privacy online.
But the big brother who demands the information we so willingly share has been around before the web revolution. Back when I managed waste, we had to keep paperwork on everything that moved. I remember being cautioned and told not to leave my town without informing police and Customs because some idiot used waste packaging I had shipped to smuggle drugs. Paperwork was demanded – and by law, I had to hand over information I held, even on businesses who were ultimately not involved. That must have been 18 years or so ago now, and the rules are even stricter now.
What’s more frightening is the clamping down as we happily hand over our rights in the guide of “security” and “privacy”. At the same time handing over our details without thought to organisations (and individuals) who’s only thought is to scam or rip us off.
I think we need to be aware of the risks we take online rather than looking towards legislation to nanny us along. Big Brother is always watching and always was, don’t give him more power than he already has. Instead, educate ourselves and our kids just what to expect when they click that connect button.
Good points, Jan. I completely agree on the rights relinquished in the guise of security caution as well as your position that legislation isn’t a smart solution for those who would like to continue to enjoy freedom of choice. I’m very concerned about what I’m seeing relative to blind acceptance these days. Seems the best spin master trumps common sense.
1984 has been with us sense well, about 1984. It has just taken a lot more than a movie to make most people look around and actually see what is happening. Now we have unmanned drones, so you may still have the right to bare arms, but no way to defend ourselves with them. Taking our bank accounts is one way to do it, printing so much money that want we do have in the bank is of little value is another. Here’s a question for you. Have you ever wondered why Walgreens is on every major intersection across American with an empty tower in the front. Now picture 3 men with a machine gun in each tower, and guess what. You control movement in the whole country. just saying..look around and be worried, very worried, Greetings from my place in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, a third world country. 🙂
There was movie? Guess I missed that one :-). Actually, believe it or not, the book was published in 1949 (surprised me too – I read it decades ago for the first time and didn’t realize then it wasn’t a contemporary title). There’s so much to stir concern. It continues to amaze me how much can be monitored without our knowledge or consent. Sometimes, I think, there’s more cause for concern with what’s being offered (or lost) under the guise of protection. At least I don’t have cameras (unless they’re mounted on satellites) watching me in my rural digs.
So glad to hear you’re having some fun enjoying the warmer weather in Mexico.