Macy’s: Marketers Should Defend Data Use But Show Restraint
Macy’s sees plenty of value in data-driven marketing and believes consumers should hear more from marketers about the benefits. But that doesn’t mean the retailer will be secretly tracking shoppers by their mobile phone signals and linking the data with their transactions and home addresses.
Speaking at the D2 Digital Dialogue conference in Cincinnati Sept. 11, Julie Bernard, the retailer’s senior VP-customer strategy, said marketers should speak up more often and forcefully to defend data use and counter negative media coverage. But she said they also need to show restraint.
“The media has spun this story so negative, and it’s really a shame that people in our positions have not taken a more dominant position on speaking on the macro and micro economic benefits of delivering relevancy by responsibly using customer data,” said Ms. Bernard during a question-and-answer period to an audience of more than 300 marketers and agency executives. The event was organized by Macy’s analytics firm Dunnhumby USA and the Cincinnati chapter of the American Advertising Federation.
