Again this year, Maciej Zawadzinski and the Piwik PRO team invited me and 30 other experts to participate in their annual "Marketing Technology Forecast". This time around, it's not a coincidence they added "#privacy" to the title. Here's the excerpt from my contribution - be sure to get the full report here: https://lnkd.in/dmp66c6a --- Mastering all the elements of marketing, technology and legal frameworks is difficult, but we’re making progress. Since the birth of #digitalmarketing, companies have prided themselves on being customer-centric. Over the past decade, the buzz has been about data. But now, "Privacy is a top priority for us" is the new mantra. Whether it's customer focus, data or privacy, a brief conversation with executives and the evidence of brand behavior speak for themselves. ChiefPrivacyOfficer@corp.com is the new webmaster@corp.com. The carefully crafted responses will obviously claim “we are committed to protecting the privacy and integrity of our customers' data.” While the #GDPR has put the brakes on an unbridled #MarTech industry, the current approach is mainly to mitigate the risks to the business. An ethical and customer-centric approach would be to embrace a privacy-first mindset and, to quote Lucifer Morningstar in one of my favorite TV shows, simply ask the customer: "What do you truly desire?" We are going through a complex transition that will last several years. Even those close to the ground – myself included – cannot master all the elements of marketing, technology and legal. But collectively, marketers, analysts, managers and customers are making progress. Take the Patagonia brand for exemple. It is well known for its values of transparency, collaboration, improvement and commitment to the environment. By 2022, brands committed to an ethical approach to privacy in the digital environment will develop a sustainable competitive advantage that will outweigh the risks and consequences of a careless approach to data protection. #digitalanalytics #NoConsentNoTracking #dataprivacy