Abstracts Category : Other

GDPR A handbook for digital marketer

by Sebastian Lindberg

In May 25th, 2018 the legislation of utilizing personal data in the European Union changes for good. That is the date when Regulation (EU) 2016/679 more familiarly known as General Data Protection Regulation takes into application. One of the most significant fields that is resorting to and benefiting from the use of personal data has been digital marketing and especially digital advertising. This thesis purpose is to find out what the application of the GDPR means for the industry and create an easily approachable product for day-to-day use for an individual person working on or studying the field of digital marketing.The thesis was conducted throughout the year 2017 whilst the author was simultaneously working for a large media agency group as a programmatic campaign manager. The experience from working in digital marketing is reflected on the thesis and evaluation of what parts of the GDPR are the most relevant for digital marketers. Main methodologies used were background research and analysing of both the GDPR and the current state of digital marketing. The products content was evaluated by a few superiors and a business associate of the author.The product of the thesis is a handbook for digital marketers. It serves two main goals. Its as relevant as possible from the digital marketing point of view and easy to understand without prior knowledge of the regulation. Going through too many details and scenarios wouldnt have served the purpose of the handbook. After reading the handbook one can grasp the key topics of the regulation and identify the pressure points of it in their own organizations and their ways of working. The audience of the handbook are people working for advertisers, agencies and publishers alike. The audience is not supposed to be lawyers and decision makers of these companies which is an important distinction to make. Anyone who makes decisions in their organizations regarding personal data should get to know the actual regulation from cover to cover.Structure of the thesis consists of three parts. The theory background covers what digital marketing is and how data is being utilized in it. Empiric part is analysis of the GDPR and arguing what parts of it are covered in the handbook and why. The conclusions chapter finalizes the thesis with assessment of the creating process of it.