Past, Present, and Future of targeted search

I first experienced the impact of targeted research 30 years ago.

Before becoming a Digital, Sales, and Marketing Consultant, I owned a company that provided logistics services for the Board of Directors of Fortune 500 type companies.

I first witnessed the value of targeted research and its financial impact while working on a Board Meeting for a large Swiss multinational company in Dallas in 1990. In addition to the Board Members and its entourage, a dedicated group was tasked with collecting relevant data/information, which was provided to the Members in a newspaper every morning.

A staff member told me a story of the impact of his work. He wrote an article to a Board Member about a forthcoming FDA announcement about orange juice nutrients. An hour later, orange juice container labels were being changed worldwide to showcase the new findings resulting in millions of dollars in recent sales by merely educating their audience about the unique benefits of using their product.

This is an excellent example of how personalized research and data collection translated into profits even 30 years ago.

Whether you are an online retailer today wanting to know if you like red or blue or a Board Member 30 years ago looking for a product benefit, the result is the same, accurate data means sales and profits.

So, what is the future of personalized search, and how will it impact your business? According to Netflix Documentary, ‘The Social Dilemma,’ Facebook has 52,000 data points on each person and growing every day, so if the present is an indicator of the future, we know where we are heading,

The question that lies ahead is what factors can alter this path? For example, will regulatory agencies halt or restrict personal data collection because it violates our privacy and civil rights? And do the people want the government to get in the middle of their online buying experience?

These questions will most likely determine the future of personal data research.