Changes to data privacy and you: how campaigns can stay agile

With so many changes in the right to privacy space, how do we make smart decisions as campaigners?

Have you ever noticed that when something’s on your mind, you start seeing it everywhere?

Lately, I’ve been reading a lot about the right to privacy laws and the regulation of free speech and political advertising. At the same time, I’ve been in the process of selling my flat. As some readers probably know, it’s a process that involves speaking to some of the many real estate agents out there and making a decision about who to trust with this stressful and complicated event. I made my choice of real estate agent and continued working on my pre-sale to do list. 

Then, something strange happened: an agency I didn’t engage with contacted me to say they noticed my property was going up for sale. The communication was addressed to “the legal owners of the property”. My first reaction was one of distaste. It feels strange and uncomfortable when people reach out to us with no prior relationship based on some secondary information they’re able to access. Since the first letter, we’ve had another five. I felt in some way that I was being observed, or that my privacy was somehow compromised even though it was all perfectly legal and acceptable.

The mainstreaming of advanced privacy

It’s ironic that I should feel uncomfortable about a real estate agent sending me unsolicited communication when discussions about advanced privacy are heating up in the corporate and political sectors. Apple seems to be moving towards treating sophisticated advanced privacy options as a competitive advantage, while Google is choosing to give people more power over their personal data. Meanwhile, the UK's information commissioner Elizabeth Denham has called upon the G7 nations to act on the prevalence of cookie banners and pop-ups. The British government is getting in on the action too. It has opened a data consultation with the stated aim to “maintain high data protection standards without creating unnecessary barriers to responsible data use”.

Consumer choice, it seems, is the buzzword du jour. In previous years, new legislation or some kind of scandal has prompted discussion about what communications consumers have a right to opt-out of. Now there’s been a shift in discourse. We’re starting to see a new idea: that putting consumers in the driving seat might actually be leading people to develop decision fatigue surrounding choices about their personal data. 

The challenge and promise of social media for campaigners

For better or worse, we’ve got to acknowledge that most of the communication channels available to us as campaigners are privately-owned, and subject to both changing corporate directions and government regulations. The general public has never been so easily accessible for campaigners, but we’ve also never lived in an era where the rules and guidelines are changing so rapidly. Add in the difficulties that these complex privacy options can present for the average person trying to make good decisions about their data, and you’ve got a recipe for confusion and uncertainty. 

This constant state of change also throws up questions for us as campaign professionals. What is the current legislation on privacy and communication? How does it impact my work today? When does regulation protect individuals and what are the unintended consequences? How do we continue to access people for the purpose of informing voters about their political options? How do you meet people where they’re at when where they’re ‘at’ is constantly changing? Are my metrics still meaningful (I highly recommend reading this piece by my friend and colleague Lison Laissus) and how do I test them?

How do we protect our ability to campaign?

Digital and data are sometimes seen as shortcuts to getting our message out. That’s not always a bad thing: we can use the data we have on the general public to target our digital messaging wisely and focus our effort and efficiency. But how do we do that in a way that respects the people we’re reaching out to? And what should we do to protect ourselves as the rules and technologies change?

Take a multi-channel approach

First, be sure to engage across different platforms and media. I always recommend this as the most foundational strategy to keep your member lists active and keep the door open to target people in different ways as needed. When you diversify contact options like email, phone and address, you can triangulate those people who move away from social media platforms. Relocating your lapsed members is much easier when you’ve got multiple ways to contact them. Don’t put all your faith in the idea of Facebook still being around or accessible in one, three or five years!

Establish meaningful checkpoints throughout the engagement process

Check-in with your members, your volunteers and your colleagues. It’s your responsibility as a campaigner to educate others. This is an area that a lot of people don’t fully understand, so take it as an opportunity to have an honest conversation about privacy and data use. 

And, establish evaluation checkpoints for your campaign at every step of the member engagement process. What metrics are you using? Are they returning useful, actionable data? If not, what needs to be improved? With Apple’s new privacy protection changes, for example, email open rates are rapidly going to be obsolete as a tracking metric. Keeping a dialogue open with your team and your member list is going to give you a lot of insight into how the digital media and privacy landscape is changing and what those changes look like on the ground.

Future proof: plan for the inevitability that things will change

Change is constant! One of the brilliant things about our jobs as campaigners is the multi-sectoral collaboration and how cross-cutting our work is. We truly do work at a unique interface of governments, corporations, the general public, and individuals. With this mix of actors, opportunities and threats abound. 

We’ve always got to be on the lookout for positive changes in the privacy landscape that will assist us, or provide important avenues to innovate and educate. We’ve also got to be vigilant about protecting our data, our campaigns and our reputations. Especially in the political sector, we should strive not to be the people who send vague leaflets and unclear communications. As always, be agile. Don’t fear adapting and changing.  Instead, work from a place of data integrity and clear communication: two campaign strategies that never go out of style.