Successful marketers are adding improved targeting to their e-commerce Web sites, making them more than just transactional. An e-commerce site is now an integral part of brand identity and influences online and offline customer behavior. However, better targeting comes at a price.
“The biggest story [in 2010] is going to be privacy,” says Patrick Byrne, CEO of Overstock.com. “There have been technologies offered by third parties that take information we learn from your Overstock visit and then adjust the advertising on a different site. Some people don’t like that. My guess is there’ll be some sort of congressional action to tighten up how much of that you can do. It’s a shame. Those marketing dollars [are] three to six times more potent.”
