Rise of First-Party Data in Campaigns: Strategic Leverage in a Post-Cookie World

The tightening of digital privacy rules and the limitation of third-party tracking by browsers have led to a radical change in the marketing sector. The dependence on the use of cookies for audience targeting has changed to methods that are based on data collected directly from the customers, such as CRM systems, email lists, loyalty programs, and other owned touchpoints.

It is necessary for companies that want to remain competitive to make the move towards first-party data marketing. This type of marketing is not only required to maintain performance over time but also to ensure growth that is in line with privacy regulations.

The Decline of Third-Party Cookies: Where Things Stand

• Such browsers as Safari and Firefox have already either totally prohibited or largely limited third-party cookies  (Marketing Insider).

• There have been numerous changes and delays in Google’s decisions to stop third-party cookies via Chrome (Business Insider).

• The change marking the beginning of third-party cookies restrictions in Chrome, affecting only 1% of users under the Tracking Protection program, was in early 2024  (Google Blog).

These changes mean one thing: marketers need to transition to a period where the use of cookies for targeting that is both ineffective and legally bound is not new. 

Why First-Party Data Is the New Powerhouse

First-party data is generally more reliable and informative as it is directly gathered from users, whereas third-party data that is bought and lacks accuracy is not trustworthy.

• A study done by Digiday + Adtelligent (Q1 2025) reveals that 71% of publishers indicate that the main source of their ad revenue is first-party data, which has increased from 64% over one year ago. (Adtelligent Report).

• The same survey projects that 85% of publishers expect first-party data to increase in importance by 2026, with 44% anticipating that over 40% of their ad impressions will rely on owned data.

These numbers demonstrate that owned data is not just an alternative — it’s the foundation of sustainable advertising growth.

Email & CRM Data in SEM (Search Engine Marketing): Turning Relationships Into Conversions

The customer relationship management system (CRM) and email list are two of the most important first-party data that you have collected. They hold information about actual customers that have been confirmed and agreed to — from basic personal information to how socially active they are.

Here’s why they matter:

• Businesses earn $36 for every $1 spent on email marketing (PowerCommerce).

• More than 50% of marketers saw their email marketing ROI double between 2022 and 2023 (PowerCommerce).

• Personalized emails generate up to 6× higher transaction rates than non-personalized ones (Forbes Advisor).

Integrating CRM data for ads allows businesses to build custom audiences for Google Ads audience targeting, engage lapsed customers, and create tailored ad experiences that convert efficiently.

Cookie-Less Advertising Strategies That Work

To thrive without third-party cookies, brands are investing in innovative and privacy-friendly strategies such as:

Challenges and Mitigation Strategies

• Data fragmentation: Data that are separated into silos across different systems limit the ability to gain insights.
  Solution: Use customer data platforms and application programming interfaces to connect the systems.

• Privacy & compliance: Both GDPR and CCPA require that consent from users be obtained explicitly.
  Solution: Implement open consent management platforms and formulate policies.

• Measurement difficulties: It is more challenging to do attribution without cross-site cookies.
  Solution: Employ modeled data, first-party analytics, and clean rooms.

• Technical complexity: The identity resolution that is across devices and different types of users can be quite limited.
  Solution: Focus on the use of deterministic identifiers (for example, login IDs or hashed email addresses).

Industry Statistics That Prove the Shift

• Brands shifting 30% of ad spend to first-party data campaigns saw a 2.9× return on ad spend (ROAS) within six months (Marketing Insider).

• Only 15% of publishers feel confident reaching audiences reliably across all browsers — showing widespread readiness gaps (Adtelligent Report).

• 41% of marketers rank email marketing as their most effective channel (Email Monday).

The Road Ahead: Building a Privacy-First Future

Third-party cookie elimination is not a termination of individualized promotion — rather it signifies the start of more intelligent, permission-led interaction. Companies that allocate finance to direct customer data systems will receive:

✅ More control over advertising and evaluation
✅ Elevation of consumer trust and loyalty
✅ Increased effectiveness of promotion with reduced expenditure

Such a scenario that places privacy at the forefront will be a win for honesty, novelty, and trust — and marketing with first-party data is the mainstay of it.

Partner With Atalia Marketing Solutions

At Atalia Marketing Solutions, we are committed to helping companies make a change into the future of data-driven marketing, but still maintaining ethical practices, using their brains, and being effective.

We are skilled in the following areas:

• Design of first-party data architecture (CRM, CDP, data integrations)
• Audience targeting based on CRM for Google Ads and Meta.
• Development of cookie-less advertising strategy.
• Google Ads audience redefinition by the use of privacy-compliant segmentation.

Welcome the future of performance marketing, where data is the king — your very own.

📞 Why not create your cookie-less marketing plan with us?