Big Data is the Price We Pay

I saw this quote a few times this year,

If you’re not paying for it, you’re not the customer; you’re the product being sold.

And I’ve also heard people react to the way they are being tracked and targeted by “Big Data”.

Big Data is simply the information that is gathered about us electronically and organized online.

Some of it is very specific, other is general.

We have been voluntarily providing this information for years.

Your first email account perhaps was a hotmail, yahoo or aol email address. Or if you are younger, maybe gmail was and is your email service of choice.

These free email accounts were collecting information about me and you and that was just the beginning.

Facebook and every single social media platform is gathering data about you.

Your phone with its built in GPS, knows and tracks where you go.

When I got a new phone last year, I added some apps for gas stations, grocery stores, restaurants and a few others to take advantage of “discounts”.  You may have some on your phone too.

As the quote says, if you didn’t pay for any of these services, your data is what is being collected and sold to others.

We give our data freely.  In return, we are targeted with ads and offers that are customized to what Big Data knows about us.

They even tell us when we absent-mindedly agree to the T.O.S. (Terms Of Service) agreements that we click on without reading when we sign up for the free stuff.

It’s not bad and it’s not good. Data collection is neutral.  It’s like money.  It can be used for good or evil.

In reality, none of us who do anything online can escape and we really don’t need to.

If you want to use this Big Data to locate and target your future customers, I can do that. My company has partnered with the best vendors to offer these online services, more than I can explain today.  We call it Opt-In as part of the Federated Digital Solutions and radio divisions of our company.  Contact me for details on how we can do this.

In the meantime remember,

If you’re not paying for it, you’re not the customer; you’re the product being sold.

and relax.