The Online Behavioural Advertising Tripod: Understanding the Linkages between Users’ Knowledge, Privacy Concerns and Customers’ Attitude

Abstract

Online Behavioural Advertising (OBA) is a marketing technique of providing personalized advertisements to targeted customers, because it involves personal data collection that consumers feel privacy-conscious. This study aims to establish interlinkages between the knowledge about OBA, privacy concerns, customer atitude and OBA acceptance in the context of Indian consumers. Based on literature review, it was identified that the knowledge about OBA and privacy concerns are the two consumer-controlled factors. A study framework was developed to guide the study based on literture review. With the help of an online survey, a sample of 104 responses was collected and the results were identified with equal number of males and females. The results suggest that increasing the knowledge about OBA with reduction in the privacy concerns is the need of the hour. Marketers and other stakeholders must work to increase the knowledge about OBA among consumers. Reducing the privacy concerns could increase the positive attitude towards OBA. This will further increase the chances of OBA acceptance. The observations of the current study could be used by future researchers as well as by marketers while formulating their policies involving targeting advertising.