Third-party cookies, rising living costs, AI: 5 interesting stats to start the week

More than a third of UK consumers set to reject cookies

Almost two in five (38%) British consumers are likely to reject third-party cookies when Google introduces a one-off opt-in model to the Chrome browser next year, according to research from global transformation business Apply Digital.

A further one in five (22%) say they are undecided about their choice, meaning that as many as half of British consumers could opt out of third-party cookies in Chrome next year.

Consumers are fairly evenly split on whether they view cookies positively or negatively. Around one-third view cookies positively (35%), while a similar number view them negatively (32%). Nearly one quarter say they do not have strong feelings either way, while the remaining 8% report being unaware they’re being tracked online.

While feeling about online tracking is split, many consumers do want personalised experiences, the research finds. Over two in five (41%) of consumers say they are more likely to purchase from brands that offer tailored experiences, compared to 21% who are less likely.

Source: Apply Digital and Censuswide

Rising living costs most common reason for Brits to feel overwhelmed

Around two-thirds (67%) of British people report feeling overwhelmed in their daily lives, according to the new PopPulse report from Leo Burnett, which looks at the national mood almost 100 days into the new government.

The most common reason for feeling overwhelmed is the cost of living, with 79% stating rising living costs as a reason for feeling uneasy. Dissatisfaction with the country’s leadership (64%) is another commonly cited reason for people feeling overwhelmed.

Just 28% of the public feel hopeful, compared to 60% who said the same thing just nine months ago in January. Leo Burnett suggests people could be experiencing a “crisis hangover” after the last four years of upheaval.

When it comes to priorities for the new government, the economy (66%), cost of living (65%) and the NHS (62%) are, perhaps unsurprisingly, top of the list. Only around a third (34%) believe the government understands the reasons behind their frustration.

Source: Leo Burnett

Less than one in five consumers see the role of AI in their daily lives

With AI being one of the most talked about topics of the last two years, an overwhelming majority (90%) have some understanding of the technology, but just 15% of consumers know how it can be used in their daily lives.

The research from Samsung spans 10 European countries and encompasses 11,000 respondents. People in Poland report the highest level of full understanding of AI (23%), while those in the UK have the lowest level (11%).

The potential use cases for AI have been discussed in the marketing world and across many industries, however, when it comes to people’s personal lives, less than two in five (38%) express intrigue about AI’s role in their lives. However, 55% of consumers are keen to deepen their understanding of the tool.

Around three in five (57%) of consumers believe there is not enough information about how to integrate AI into their lives. Additionally, nearly half (47%) believe the conversations around AI currently focus too much on its risks.

Source: Samsung

Salary expectations biggest hurdle when recruiting new talent

Securing the right talent for your marketing team is a challenge every marketing leader will have to face – but it seems many are struggling to recruit due to mismatched salary expectations.

New data from recruiter Michael Page shows two in five (41%) marketing leaders cite matching candidate salary expectations as their biggest challenge when it comes to recruiting new staff. More than half (51%) of the sample admit struggling to hire new staff in the past year.

It’s not just salary expectations that are causing problems for marketing leaders. The data finds 31% of business leaders believe finding candidates with the right skills is a significant hurdle, with a further 33% citing a lack of candidates in the market.

All of this means retention has become key for businesses in a market where appointing a quick replacement isn’t necessarily that simple. According to the data, 31% of organisations are battling retention issues, with the main challenge, again, being offering a competitive salary (49%).

An additional 28% noted that work/life balance has affected employee retention, with more than half (51%) also saying career progression has impacted the number of workers staying in role.

Source: Michael Page

Most B2B video ads fail to gain ‘adequate attention or drive recall’

The majority of B2B video adverts do not grab viewers’ “attention” or “drive brand recall”, according to research from the LinkedIn B2B Institute and advertising research firm Media Science.

Of the 109 real B2B adverts shown to 770 users as they scroll through a LinkedIn feed, 53% of participants failed to recognise the advert and, of those, only 36% correctly identified the brand. The results come from biometric tracking while the user watches the advert, combined with a post-tracking recall survey.

Put another way, on average only 19% of participants both remember the advert and attribute it to the correct brand.

According to the study, 81% of the time the “creative and media dollars behind a campaign are wasted” as they fail to be noticeable or memorable.

Source: LinkedIn B2B Institute and Media Science