TRUSTe, a group which has helped industry stave off regulatory privacy safeguards, released a survey today that–surprise!–says people really aren’t that concerned about behavioral targeting. We have reviewed the survey questions they asked–and they failed to really inform those interviewed about how behavioral targeting truly works (including the context for interactive advertising).
This kind of research raises questions about TRUSTe’s ability to engage in serious scholarship. If they are going to conduct any future research, they need to engage the services of independent academic experts with a knowledge of the field, and who aren’t connected to industry.
The so-called survey released today has to be viewed as part of the online ad lobby effort to ward off federal and state consumer protection/privacy rules.
Hi Jeff:
In response to your post, I’d like to point out an important nuance pertaining to the TRUSTe behavioral targeting survey released today. In reporting the survey findings, TRUSTe is not insinuating that consumers as a whole “aren’t that concerned about behavioral targeting†– rather, it says that over 50% (50.5 percent) are concerned with it. What the survey did find is that consumers are more conscious than ever before that they are being tracked online, and as a result, doing things to protect their privacy as they become more aware – such as delete cookies more often.
The research was in the form of a consumer survey, and therefore meant to gain knowledge on consumers’ perspectives on the subject. Describing how behavioral targeting works is better tackled in qualitative research. Our survey was conducted by TNS, one of the most respected survey methodology companies in the industry and a third party. Over 1,000 consumers participated in the survey and were selected at random.
We also recently issued the Behavioral Advertising Checklist of Practices that Impact Consumer Trust, a whitepaper reviewing the current online behavioral advertising environment and providing a checklist to prepare advertisers, publishers and other businesses who wish to ensure they are engaging in behavioral advertising in a manner that provides transparency and consumer control in order to protect the privacy of consumers.
Carolyn Hodge