We’re entering an age where artificial intelligence services enhance marketing campaigns by rapidly analyzing data sets, advancing user personalization and the overall customer experiences.

However, businesses must balance these technological upgrades with data privacy best practices to protect personal data and comply with evolving privacy laws. 

Below, we discuss the future of data privacy in a world where AI drives our marketing efforts and provide steps you can follow to keep personal data safe. 

Why data privacy matters in AI-driven marketing

AI-driven marketing introduces new opportunities for businesses to create personalized experiences for consumers craving a more customized world wide web catered to their interests, wants, and needs.

But, because AI can rely on processing personal information from consumers, there are data privacy best practices businesses must consider to sustainably and legally use AI for marketing purposes. 

For example, privacy laws like the General Data Protection Regulation in Europe or the California Consumer Privacy Act in the U.S. give consumers rights over their data. Businesses must ensure their use of AI doesn’t impede protected users from following through on these rights. 

We’re also seeing legal frameworks, like the EU AI Act, forming across the world, which introduces further requirements that may impact marketing efforts that involve the use of AI. 

It’s also vital that businesses keep this information safe from data breaches, leaks, and unauthorized access. Marketers should vet AI platforms for security risks or gaps and only implement those that meet adequate data security standards. 

Responsible AI and the Future of Data Privacy

As AI becomes more common, we predict there will be higher expectations for businesses to prioritize and respect data privacy. We’ll likely see a growing push from consumers to use AI responsibly and ethically. 

For example, according to the PEW Research Center, 70% of consumers say they have little to no trust in businesses to make responsible decisions about how their products use AI. Despite this mistrust, the same study reveals that 62% of respondents who say they know about AI also say that businesses using it to analyze personal details might make their lives easier.

Obviously, both businesses and consumers desire to use AI tools. 

But businesses must prove to consumers that they’re reliable and transparent about what data is shared with AI, the purpose for doing so, and the rights consumers retain over that information. 

How to Prioritize Data Privacy in an AI-Driven Future

To prioritize data privacy and earn consumer trust, businesses that rely on AI to drive their marketing efforts can follow these essential tips. 

1. Disclose AI-use to consumers

Businesses should prepare to disclose to consumers when they're using AI. 

You might put this information in your privacy policy or create a separate AI policy that you link to the footer of your site. You can even use an online privacy policy generator that includes clauses focusing on your business’s use of AI platforms and how it processes consumer personal information. 

By including a list of what services on your platform feature AI, you’re being transparent and honest with your users, which helps you comply with data privacy laws.

It also shows that you’re genuinely responsible for your data processing activities. This helps reassure users, which fosters consumer trust.

2. Manage user consent

When using AI to drive your marketing efforts, you must respect consumers' consent preferences in a legally compliant manner. 

Privacy laws like the GDPR and CCPA require you to allow your users to opt out of data processing for targeted advertising.

You must provide users with a method for following through on this right, and once their request is received, you can no longer share their data with AI platforms that assist with targeted or personalized ads. 

To meet this legal requirement, you can use consent management software that provides your users with a cookie banner with a link to an accurate cookie policy. You can also add any necessary information to your privacy policy. 

If you don’t apply adequate consent preference controls for protected users, you could receive significant fines for violating privacy laws, which also causes harm to your brand reputation. 

3. Implement data safety and security practices

You’re required to keep any consumer personal data you share with AI platforms safe from unauthorized access and data breaches. 

The GDPR and the CCPA both hold businesses financially accountable if data in their possession is ever breached, leaked, or accessed by an unauthorized party. 

Under the CCPA, consumers even have the right to take private action against you if their nonencrypted and nonredacted personal information is stolen.

If you share data with an AI platform for marketing purposes, make sure your team assesses the tool for security risks, gaps, or other vulnerabilities. Consider following an AI and data protection risk toolkit provided by supervisory authorities. 

These risk assessments should be performed regularly, and you should prepare to implement any security updates or patches as needed. 

If customer data shared with an AI is breached, you must also have a recovery plan in place and inform affected consumers and regulatory authorities in a timely, legally compliant manner. 

4. Respect user's privacy rights

Your users have additional rights over their personal data, which are given to them by consumer privacy laws, and you must ensure your use of AI for marketing purposes doesn’t impede these civil liberties. 

For example, most privacy laws provide protected users with the right to: 

• Access personal data collected about them,

• Correct data a business collected about them,

• Delete data a business collected about them,

• Opt out of having their data processed for targeted advertising

• Opt out of the sharing or selling of their data

• Opt out of profiling

If consumers submit requests to follow through on these rights, you must be prepared to honor their requests. This includes recovering, deleting, or amending any data shared with AI marketing platforms. 

Failure to do so could result in getting fined for violating privacy laws and the cessation of any further data processing, which can cause significant harm to your marketing campaigns and business at large.

Final word

For AI to continue improving the customer experience, businesses must prioritize data privacy best practices, especially in their marketing efforts. 

Consumers are excited about a more customized online experience with better product recommendations that are more attuned to their needs and wants. However, they also care about how their personal information gets used online and want to retain levels of control, transparency, and choice regarding that data.

Several different data privacy laws also protect their personal information. 

By implementing ethical AI practices and prioritizing data privacy, you can ensure your AI-driven marketing efforts are legally compliant and conducive to creating a sustainable future Internet for all.