What You Use Might Hurt You
Direct marketers are so busy gathering information on consumers that they often don’t take the time to consider the wisdom of using personal data. A new privacy study suggests consumers are indeed concerned about companies knowing certain things about them, though not as concerned about other types of information.
In September, Atlanta-based market researchers Brittain Associates (www.brittainassociates.com) talked with 850 adult heads of households across the country, evaluating 41 types of personal information.
Brittain then categorized the levels of consumer unease with marketers’ use of the data, finding seven to be “deadly,” seven “toxic,” nine an “irritant” and 18 “harmless.”
Strangely, the “deadliest” was the consumer’s Social Security number.
“I found it a little surprising that people hold their Social Security numbers so dear-or think they do,” says Bruce Brittain, president of the group.
“In fact,” he notes, “it’s one of the easiest things to get ahold of and it probably has the least amount of value to the direct marketer.”
Other deadly information included home mortgage balance (74% of respondents said direct marketers knowing this was unacceptable, 13% said it was bothersome and 13% acceptable). Medical information was toxic: 66% found it unacceptable, 22% acceptable and 12% bothersome.
Race or ethnic background was an irritant (49% acceptable, 34% unacceptable and 17% bothersome), while whether you rent or own your residence was harmless (58% acceptable, 23% unacceptable and 19% bothersome).
Other kinds of personal information in the survey are financial and investment profile, pet ownership, sexual orientation, car make and model, reading preferences, hobbies, and religious and political affiliations.
Brittain says he did the study because he wanted to know what the public thinks about the issue.
“I saw lots of consumer advocates saying, ‘We don’t like this or that.’ Then I saw people in direct marketing saying, ‘We use this all the time and it’s no big deal.’ I wanted to know what the consumers thought.”
He adds that it is especially important for marketers to understand that men and women and people of different ages and ethnicities have different attitudes toward use of the information. Brittain says the most surprising finding was the consistent pattern showing that African Americans are less concerned than are other groups, including whites and Hispanics.
The study also found, not so surprisingly, that women are much more protective than men of their weight and clothes size. “Men are slobs about it,” Brittain says. “Their personal perception of body type is different. It explains why a lot of guys take their shirts off at football games.”
