The results of a new survey by Piwik Pro, an analytics company that monitors the effectiveness of marketing channels, reveal a positive view of the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) held by 1800 chief executive officers and marketing executives in 27 European countries. After six years of GDPR compliance, the survey revealed that privacy compliance is no longer seen as an obstacle for EU companies. Instead, companies have grown more comfortable with the regulation as a constant factor influencing modern businesses.
Furthermore, the study indicated that European businesses are recognising the opportunities presented by privacy regulations and are actively exploring privacy-compliant marketing activities. The findings reveal a significant increase in the belief that companies must respect individuals' online privacy, with 92.1% of respondents expressing this view, up from only 71.2% in 2022. An additional 82.4% of the surveyed group acknowledged the importance of laws like GDPR, signifying a growing acceptance and understanding of privacy regulations.
One of the key drivers for compliance with GDPR was found to be the desire to build trust with consumers, cited by 69.5% of the respondents, with company values being reported by 52.0%. Interestingly, only 39.7% of respondents quoted legal obligations, and 15.6% claimed the risk of fines as a motivator for compliance.
Asked about the impact of GDPR, 38.6% of participants believed that compliance had a positive effect on their businesses, while 85.8% didn't observe a negative impact of compliance.
Regarding data collection processes, 56.2% of the respondents admitted that their marketing stack collects and stores personal data, down from 60% in 2023. An additional 28.0% claimed that their software doesn't gather personal data.
In terms of the legal basis for marketing data collection under GDPR, 49.8% of respondents reported using consent, while 37.2% relied on legitimate interest. Only 12.2% of respondents admitted to not knowing the legal basis, indicating a need for greater awareness and understanding of GDPR compliance requirements.
A majority of 57% of respondents cited company websites, with 44.6% claiming company social media profiles as the most commonly used sources for gathering marketing data. Less popular sources included transactional systems (30.4%), company mobile apps (29.2%), and digital ad campaigns (29.1%).
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