The Elephant (in the Room)

When it comes to location-based services and personalization in mobile apps, there is a topic that usually goes unmentioned, an elephant in the room of contextualized hyper-personalization.

That elephant is user permissions.

The fact is that for many special features that apps can provide, it is now mandatory (and, let’s face it, reasonable) that the app request and receive the user’s permission in advance. For everything from using storage, to accessing the camera, to using location data and other sensors, users need to know what the app is doing with their mobile phone. 

And while it is true that for a long time consumers didn’t hesitate before granting permissions, there is a growing awareness and sensitivity towards the unlimited and sometimes unnecessary access that some apps request. Echoing that sentiment, mobile operating systems have made the process for requesting and approving these permissions much more deliberate, resulting in fewer permissions granted.  

The reason for that pushback is simple; a trust has been broken. The sometimes-massive abuse by even ‘respectable’ apps has managed to change the approach for some users from naivety that says, “What could go wrong” to a deep skepticism and borderline paranoia “Everyone is being watched at all times”.  

Why is this an elephant?

In many cases, the above scenario leads to the awkward question:

Are these users lost to us? Will they be excluded from our personalization efforts?

Not with JedAI. 

The exact percentage of the above mentioned ‘skeptics’ may vary from one app to the next, but no one can afford to leave them disengaged. The JedAI Suite allows you to employ various data points for segmentation and for triggering your campaigns, including those that are created by the JedAI SDK, as well as those that are based on app-usage and custom attributes from your existing data records that have been described to the JedAI Marketing Assistant (JeMA). 

You can create personalized, contextual engagement campaigns with JeMA that target 100% of your customer base: those who have given full permission, those who only granted partial permissions or even those skeptical customers who have given no permissions at all.

“Mr. Elephant, I have a Question”

Will we ever be able to get users to grant permissions again?

This can be fixed. At the end of the day, consumers do want personalization, it makes their lives easier, it introduces them to content, products and services that they may need and sometimes gets them a better deal. You need to give them a reason to trust you.

• They will trust you when you are transparent about the data you are collecting, and what you are using it for.
• They will trust you when they see that they can control the use of that data.
• They will trust you if you explain why you are using that data and how it is intended to benefit them.
• They will trust you when you show them that their data remains on their phone and is well-protected. Not stored somewhere until the next computer-hack.

And they will trust you if you allow that trust to be developed gradually; being pushy does not inspire confidence. 

JedAI builds trust for you. By letting you be transparent. By helping you truly give them control, and by enabling you to engage them with the best offers, even without new permissions. 

Say goodbye to the elephant.