Every time you completed a postcard to win a new car, or subscribed to a magazine, or ordered from a mail order catalog, they knew more about you. The discount cards now popular at grocery store chains are a veritable personal information database to which you contribute every time you shop. Marketers have been buying and selling your data for years before the web. Even during last year's elections, candidates and public television got into the act. You trade your personal information every time you opt in for lower prices or convenience.
Personal information is the real currency.
With the web, marketers now have ways to cull the information to create more complete picture of consumers. Right now marketers would be best served to build the trust of consumers by being honest, skipping the legal jargon, and not trying to pull any funny business. With more than 12 years' experience in public relations and communications, Emily is a Vice President with GreystoneNet Inc. , an Internet strategy consulting firm specializing in healthcare. Greg has been an Internet user since the late 1980s and worked on the first web site in the U.S., launched in May 1991. Voice your opinion.