"The Cambridge Analytica scandal reflects Facebook's misplaced priorities regarding people and their privacy. Brands and technology vendors need to respect the fundamental rights of consumers against unreasonable search, seizure, and use of their private information. Marketers should go back to the basics of ethical marketing practices to re-establish trusting relationships between consumers and brands," said Tod Loofbourrow, CEO, ViralGains.
These include informed consent, customers' right to 'be forgotten', and the protection of private data. This, Loofbourrow believes, will give businesses and consumers access to more meaningful and relevant conversations.
"It is vital that brands enter into a more conscious mindset when using consumer data," said Loofbourrow. "They can put these ethical marketing practices into action by:
• Utilizing the informed consent model typically seen in the healthcare field. Similar to a doctor telling a patient upfront what the risks of surgery are, marketers and tech vendors need to explain in plain English what they want and what they intend to do with data
• Honoring the "right to be forgotten," by deleting all private data upon request by a consumer
• Protecting personal relationships and conversations as data owned by a consumer, not a tech vendor."
Helping to rebuild consumer trust is key for brands at this stage, says Loofbourrow. And, it won't be easy, but it could hold big rewards for those businesses that increase customer privacy.
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