The data value exchange

Today, businesses face the increasingly complex challenge of delivering quick and efficient digital services. However, it’s also crucial that these services fall on the right side of data privacy and public trust. 

That’s where the data value exchange comes into play. Across the world, consumers are sharing more personal information to access convenient and enhanced services, and the data value exchange essentially represents the value we place on the exchange of personal data.

The pandemic, increased tech adoption and rising consumer expectations are evolving the attitude towards data with other key driving factors, including:

• Ease, speed and convenience. Modern consumers tend to power ahead with new technologies in order to gain convenience – and in doing so, are open to share increasing amounts of data.
• Geographical location. How consumers feel about the distribution of their data typically often depends on geographic location and the applicable legal and cultural norms. For example, during the pandemic, while the uptake in track and trace apps has been successful in Singapore, citizens in Europe tend to be less likely or willing to share data, and uptake in the UK has been slower due to privacy concerns.
• Necessity. During the Covid-19 crisis, we have seen many essential services shifted online. For example, telehealth medical appointments were recommended and even mandated in some jurisdictions. We’ve therefore seen more ‘late adopters’ sharing data in a way that they would have previously been cautious of.
• Digital Natives. The world is digital and younger generations are surrounded by technology. Sharing data daily is commonplace, including using biometrics to unlock an app or mobile device.

As data sharing becomes intrinsic to our daily lives, however, it’s important to stop and question how the data is being used. At the same time, businesses need to give consumers confidence that their data is processed in a secure way. Ultimately, trust is key to a safe and successful data value exchange. Brands need to be transparent about how data is collected, used and stored to maintain consumer trust and stored.

At the end of the day, consumers will "vote with their feet" and if they don’t trust an organisation, they will choose to use a competitor. Alongside the risk of losing customers, broken trust – such as a data breach – can also have major reputational impacts and potential fines for organisations.

Consumers therefore need to fully understand the value exchange involved in sharing personal data if they are to benefit from optimised services. Transparency around data flow and data lifecycles lies in the foundations of a trusted brand, and if anything changes, that brand needs to make sure that their consumers are aware.

You can listen to the full episode here – and make sure to subscribe to our podcast series ‘Connected Commerce: Business Beyond Borders’ for more!