Google, the internet giant, declared the end of the Cookie Age last week. They announced that they will eliminate third-party tracking cookies in the coming year.

While this is undoubtedly great news for internet users it also has implications for brands and agencies. The Dawn of the Trust Era will be sprung, among other things. This will require a new way of looking at the world and a new approach.

The irreversible tipping point

The digital advertising landscape was once the backbone, but the overwhelming backlash from users against privacy issues online has reached an irreversible tipping point. It seems that tech giants are now moving ahead of government regulations around the globe.

According to Google’s official post, the huge proliferation of data harvesting by third parties has led to a massive erosion in trust in advertisers and platforms as a whole. A visible, dramatic, and rapid shift in behavior is required.

Google has made it clear that they will no longer support third-party cookies in Chrome or services they control and will replace them with other identifiers to track people.

This is in line with recent actions by Safari, and Firefox who announced bolder policies against the once-all-conquering cookie.

This is quite a dramatic move.

The shift to first-party data

Google is changing to be a privacy-first company. From my conversations with Googlers, and participation in various initiatives and projects, it is clear that there is a rising tide toward a human-centric future.

However, this does not mean that Google or other advertisers will cease collecting information about you. They may still serve relevant ads based on your online actions and habits.

Instead of using the old, intrusive data harvesting techniques and personalized profiles created by the Cookie Era, will instead hide individuals in large groups of people who share common interests.

The new Age of Trust is all about context and quality. Instead of relying solely on price manipulations and promotions, brands will need to be more focused on gaining attention, trust, and action from their customers based on real and meaningful factors of trust, relationships, and interest.

To earn trust, brands simply need to create something of value. It’s not a matter of “targeting and hoping”.

Creativity wins the race

This paradigm shift will ultimately result in the user being the winner. It is not surprising. We’ll see a return of the same elements that have made people engage with products from the beginning: emotion.

While rational advertising that is focused on clear, factual calls for action has a place in marketing, it’s important to remember that it’s not a substitute for good, objective advertising.

The truth is, especially in digital marketing agencies in Miami, that our brains are wired to understand emotional responses. As digital citizens, we have become more sophisticated about which ads are worth clicking on and which ones are just a distraction.

The goal of brands and their agencies is not to simply say what people want in the hope that they will sell something.

It’s time for brands to stop being so obsessed with probability and lazy advertising. Instead, they should focus on giving people real, meaningful reasons to interact with their ads and eventually buy their products.

The time is now for Big, Kobe Digital. This is the type that cuts through the noise, grab attention, and elicits emotions. It’s a step back to the days when creativity was as important, if not more than the technology that carried it to its intended audience.

This will require a shift in mindset across the industry. It is time to create a new approach. A new playbook that prioritizes how people feel, what they want, but more importantly, why they should care what you have to share — emotion is the most precious commodity in the Age of Trust.