Hey, Search Marketers—Why Your Career is About to Skyrocket

Search marketing growth. In this post, learn how market forces in consumer privacy will absolutely benefit the search marketing industry. If you are a search marketer, you are about to be much more important. Read on…

Last month, at Google Marketing Live, Chetna Bindra, Google’s Senior Product Manager, User Trust and Privacy spoke about the next era of marketing will find brands “having to do more, with less data”. (around 1:43:00 at this recording)

Google’s Senior Product Manager, User Trust and Privacy, Chetna Bindra

Targeting audiences gets harder

The evolution that she was referring to is that in the new world of consumer data privacy, the biggest shift for brands will be in how they are able to target audiences. Since the inception of digital advertising almost a quarter century ago, marketers have been collecting and leveraging user data to drive relevant messaging to consumers. This free-wheeling data gold rush has resulted in a backlash of negative sentiment towards data collection and fueled by headline-making data breaches, widespread cases of misuse, and a general mistrust between consumers and marketers

Because of these issues, there are now forces at work which will dramatically be impacting a marketer’s ability to target advertising. GDPR and the California Law are examples of the first wave of government oversight and regulation which limit the way data can be collected and used. The most popular web browsers have begun adding anti-tracking tools—some engaged by default—to put the power back in the hands of people. Giant publishers have been some of the biggest targets of consumer data angst and are now focused on regaining user trust by publically announcing sweeping policy changes.

Regulations such as the EU GDPR restrict consumer data usage by brands

So, in a world where marketers will “have to do more, with less data” so many audience targeting tactics which have become commonplace in advertising will disappear.

What will remain, however, is Search. This means search marketing growth will skyrocket.

And so will your career.

Consumer privacy changes fuels search marketing growth

With online advertising now eclipsing offline spend and with Search as the biggest piece of that pie, Search is truly one of the most important channels in the world. However, once the user data gap is truly closed, the Keyword once again becomes the most valuable audience data for marketers. The same strengths that made it so valuable twenty years ago—matching highly relevant brand advertising with a user query in real-time as a consumer actively researches a purchase decision—now lifts Search even higher than before.

What will this mean to the Search industry and all of us that have built careers in this channel? You become more important too. There will be more investment, more innovation, and more opportunity than before.

No matter how bright the outlook for search marketers has been over the last two decades, it’s about to get even brighter. For those of you wondering if you should take your career down other avenues, I say to you “Stay in Search!”

In fact, double-down on Search. Triple-down (is that even a thing?)

Pat yourself on the back. Search marketing growth is about to make your career skyrocket.