Content Owners vs Big Social. The Challenge to Own Consumer Data.

Audience data is the cornerstone of marketing; it allows us to do our jobs effectively and provides indispensable insights into consumer behaviour, preferences, and gives brands crucial contact information. However, social media platforms such as Meta, X, and YouTube, guard this data like the treasures locked within their castles.

So, step forward, Active Content. We’ve made it our mission to give brands what we believe should be rightfully theirs, a fair due of tuppence. After all, it’s brands who’re constantly investing in and contributing to their content which makes them what they are today. Haven’t brands earned the right to know who they’re actually engaging with? Well, we certainly think so.

While these global tech platforms provide brilliant advertising tools for demographic targeting, their algorithms, and policies fall short when it comes to true audience identification. Consequently, brands don’t really have any visibility as to who they’re connecting with at an individual level. Despite the staggering amount of data collected, brands find themselves constrained in their ability to forge genuine connections and relevance with their audiences.

However, Active Content has the innate ability to disrupt the barrier imposed by social media platforms by fostering genuine engagement and incentivising audiences to willingly share their personal data in exchange for value.

By crafting compelling content strategies, brands can motivate audiences to participate in a value exchange, a model built where both the audience and brand “win”. Through purposeful storytelling, targeted partnerships (communities), interactive experiences, and meaningful conversations, brands can develop a sense of reliance with their audience, encouraging them to act on calls-to-action and share their data voluntarily.

By leveraging active content strategies, brands can empower audiences to become active participants rather than passive consumers, transforming the dynamics of audience engagement and data collection. Ultimately, by prioritising the people behind the screens instead of faceless audience demographic segments, brands can establish deeper connections with their audiences while navigating the complexities of data privacy and platform restrictions.

With that said, Active Content isn’t, and shouldn’t be treated as a “one size fits all”. You must carefully consider who you’re targeting, what value they’re most likely going to resonate with, and how best to directly reach them without spending thousands with the big social platforms and falling back into the same data trap. But that’s what we here at DC do best – we build the insight and ideas that have innate value to both the brand and audience. So, if you’d like to learn more about how we might approach this with you, please do get in touch.