The Price of Your Data

Every click, every purchase, every scroll—someone is watching.
The importance of data has never been greater.
Online shopping, social media, and loyalty programs generate large amounts of data
and retailers can use this. How exactly are they using all your data? What is its effect on
you? Let’s look into it.

What Data Are Retailers Collecting?

Retailers collect your data online and offline. Picture this, entering a grocery store, and
swiping your card for the goods you purchased, the cameras already detected your
presence and in fact, the goods you purchased are already recorded in the system. And
if you happen to use the wifi, you probably filled in your details like your name, email,
etc. All these data are gathered by the store. How often you shop, frequently shopped
items, age group, etc.
Online, your browsing across different websites is also collected, location, even
purchase history of items you’ve previously bought, and also your behavioral habits i.e.
your preferences, habits, and responses to ads or promotions.
Here’s what they typically gather: Your name, email address, age, how often you shop,
what products you shop, your browsing habits, and so on. The list is exhaustive.

Why Is Your Data So Valuable to Retailers?

This is the one-million-dollar question. Your data is what keeps the business running,
and makes the business profit as there’ll be no need for a business without acquiring
people’s data. Businesses need to understand their customers, needs, and habits so
they can make targeted ads. Put it like this, they need your data in other to serve you
well. If they are aware of your shopping needs, they can be able to work with that by
displaying ads that you’re likely to admire.
You’ve probably wondered why you see Instagram ads for items you shopped for on a
website earlier. That’s how targeted marketing works. The website tracks your buying
habits, then your data is sold to data brokers and advertisers who show you ads for
related or similar items, to the items that you purchased. Essentially, your shopping
habits give them an idea of what you are likely to buy so they make targeted ads,
specifically for you. And in your local grocery store where you frequently shop, when
you connect to the wifi details about your location, how long you shopped in an aisle,
will be shared with the store.
When you sign up for loyalty programs, you give them your details like your name,
email, and phone number, and these data are used to personalize discounts for you,

understand what keeps you coming back.

What Does This Mean for You?

A recent study by McKinsey shows a great proportion of people care about what their
data is used for. The IAPP’s Privacy and Consumer Trust Report surveyed 4,750
individuals across 19 countries, of which 68% of consumers globally are concerned
about their data privacy online.
The way companies and retailers have access to data is alarming and consumers don’t
have much say as regards how their data is used. That’s why in 2016, regulations to
control how companies use customer data were released to curtail how these data
were being used and to give consumers more power over their data. One of them is
GDPR.
Article 7 of the GDPR stipulates that ‘consent must be freely given’ thus means that
before websites can gather data about you when you visit their website, they should
get consent from you in the form of ‘cookies’. Cookies are the pop-ups that appear
when you visit a website for the first time. If you click ‘accept all’, you’re giving the
website access to your data. But if you click ‘reject’, then you’re not giving the website
access to your data. On some websites, you have to go through lists of cookie
categories (e.g., analytics, advertising, personalization) and toggle off each one
individually.
Article 17 provides the right to erasure. This means that you can request an
organization to delete your data. This is when you don’t desire for the organization to
have your data anymore, you can simply request that they delete every data of you.
While data collection can make your shopping experience smoother, it comes with risks
such as loss of privacy which is because many consumers are unaware of how much
data they are sharing, or who it’s being shared with. It can even cause a data breach. If
a retailer’s database is hacked, your information will be exposed.

How Can You Protect Your Data?

Here’s how to effectively manage your data:

1. We know reading privacy policies is tedious. It is also time-consuming, so you will
   probably just click ‘accept’ and continue. Carefully reading the privacy policy will help
   you understand how your data is used and you should strive to do so.
2. Ad blockers are an option if you’re uncomfortable with advertisers receiving your
   data.
3. Cookie rejection options are available on many websites.
4. Be cautious when using public WiFi and safeguard your personal information. Only
5. Consider using cash
6. Highly effective loyalty programs are designed to amass an important quantity of
   consumer data; however, if sharing such data causes discomfort, then participation in
   these programs, even with the prospect of large discounts, is entirely optional. Don’t
   participate. Even if it means missing out on sweet discounts.

Final Thoughts

You might think, “So what if these organizations have my data? I’m not doing anything
wrong,” and besides, I have nothing to hide.

The central idea is that you likely recognize the importance of your data to retailers.
Personalized shopping and targeted ads provide conveniences; however,
understanding how your data is collected and used is important. Considerably
improved data literacy is important for making better decisions. This empowerment
allows for more considerate choices about sharing your information, considering both
the timing and recipients.

Your data involves more than just shopping preferences; it also relates to your privacy
and security. A hacked retailer database may compromise your personal information.
The real price of your data exceeds monetary costs; it includes your complete online
history, all your digital choices, and your digital security.