Difference between revisions of "Cookie"
From DigitalJargonBuster
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the user has just seen so that a different ad will be rotated into the next page view. | the user has just seen so that a different ad will be rotated into the next page view. | ||
| − | + | '''What are cookies?''' | |
| + | They are small text files, stored on a user's computer inside the browser software. They are delivered when a user accesses an online service - typically a website or web content – and happen as part of the process of requesting the web content. They are specific to both a particular website and particular user and can only be accessed by either a website’s web server or the client computer. | ||
| + | |||
| + | '''What is the role of cookies in web marketing?''' | ||
| + | They are the most common tool for tracking activity on the web, used by almost every website and in many different ways. They can be used to identify individual browsers (for example an access to a website from a specific copy of Firefox on a laptop) rather than individual people. However they will often be used as a way of making inferences about the number of people using an online service. | ||
| + | |||
| + | Cookies work as part of website tools such as analytics packages (that count pages viewed and traffic on a website) advertising servers (that manage the delivery of graphical advertising messages) and content publishing systems (that deliver the content into web page templates). They are a simple technology, used widely to give these website tools a way of recognising a browser. Typically they track a user’s movements and interactions within a website and sometimes connect the identity of that computer to records an organisation already has on a specific customer. | ||
| + | |||
| + | An increasingly important role of cookies in marketing is to connect a viewer’s interests with the content they see; tracking exposure to different content types, and using this data to power the display of relevant content types back to the same browser. When this approach is used by advertising networks that deploy content across large groups of websites it can result in the users ‘interests’ being carried from one website to another though the behavioural profile built up on a shared adserver. This type of online behavioural advertising creates advertising exposures more relevant for the individual viewer and resulting in significantly improved response rates for the advertiser. | ||
| + | |||
| + | '''What are cookies used for?''' | ||
| + | This extract from Microsoft’s ‘frequently asked questions’ is a useful summary: “Websites use cookies to offer a personalized experience to users and to gather information about website use. Many websites also use cookies to store information that provides a consistent experience between sections of the site, such as a shopping cart or customized pages. With a trusted website, cookies can enrich your experience by allowing the site to learn your preferences or allowing you to skip having to sign in every time you go to the website. However, some cookies, such as those saved by banner ads, might put your privacy at risk by tracking sites you visit.” (Source: http://windows.microsoft.com/en-GB/windows7/Cookies-frequently-asked-questions) | ||
| + | |||
| + | From 2001-2010 there was a great deal of debate about privacy in the context of cookies. The European Commission moved to radically restrict the use of cookies in 2001 by pushing for their use only after continued explicit prior consent had been given – suggesting at the time multiple online pop-ups to gain consent. The use of cookies is still widely misunderstood by many internet users and marketers. | ||
| + | |||
| + | '''What’s inside a cookie?''' | ||
| + | Each cookie carries information for six fields | ||
| + | 1. Name – the name of the cookie as identified by the server | ||
| + | 2. Value (or “Content”) – distinct identifying value of the cookie | ||
| + | 3. Domain of the web service giving the cookie (eg DigitalTrainingAcademy.com) | ||
| + | 4. Path (the “/” means the cookie is valid anywhere on that domain) | ||
| + | 5. Expiration date – Cookies are set to have different lifetimes | ||
| + | 6. Secure (used for cookies that require a SSL connection) | ||
| + | |||
| + | '''What are the types of cookie?''' | ||
| + | These are several different types of cookies: Temporary, Permanent and Flash cookies. | ||
[[Category:Jargon]][[Category:Technical]] | [[Category:Jargon]][[Category:Technical]] | ||
Revision as of 17:30, 27 August 2010
A cookie is a file on a web user's hard drive (it's kept in one of the subdirectories under the browser file directory) that is used by websites to record data about the user. Some ad rotation software uses cookies to see which ad the user has just seen so that a different ad will be rotated into the next page view.
What are cookies? They are small text files, stored on a user's computer inside the browser software. They are delivered when a user accesses an online service - typically a website or web content – and happen as part of the process of requesting the web content. They are specific to both a particular website and particular user and can only be accessed by either a website’s web server or the client computer.
What is the role of cookies in web marketing? They are the most common tool for tracking activity on the web, used by almost every website and in many different ways. They can be used to identify individual browsers (for example an access to a website from a specific copy of Firefox on a laptop) rather than individual people. However they will often be used as a way of making inferences about the number of people using an online service.
Cookies work as part of website tools such as analytics packages (that count pages viewed and traffic on a website) advertising servers (that manage the delivery of graphical advertising messages) and content publishing systems (that deliver the content into web page templates). They are a simple technology, used widely to give these website tools a way of recognising a browser. Typically they track a user’s movements and interactions within a website and sometimes connect the identity of that computer to records an organisation already has on a specific customer.
An increasingly important role of cookies in marketing is to connect a viewer’s interests with the content they see; tracking exposure to different content types, and using this data to power the display of relevant content types back to the same browser. When this approach is used by advertising networks that deploy content across large groups of websites it can result in the users ‘interests’ being carried from one website to another though the behavioural profile built up on a shared adserver. This type of online behavioural advertising creates advertising exposures more relevant for the individual viewer and resulting in significantly improved response rates for the advertiser.
What are cookies used for? This extract from Microsoft’s ‘frequently asked questions’ is a useful summary: “Websites use cookies to offer a personalized experience to users and to gather information about website use. Many websites also use cookies to store information that provides a consistent experience between sections of the site, such as a shopping cart or customized pages. With a trusted website, cookies can enrich your experience by allowing the site to learn your preferences or allowing you to skip having to sign in every time you go to the website. However, some cookies, such as those saved by banner ads, might put your privacy at risk by tracking sites you visit.” (Source: http://windows.microsoft.com/en-GB/windows7/Cookies-frequently-asked-questions)
From 2001-2010 there was a great deal of debate about privacy in the context of cookies. The European Commission moved to radically restrict the use of cookies in 2001 by pushing for their use only after continued explicit prior consent had been given – suggesting at the time multiple online pop-ups to gain consent. The use of cookies is still widely misunderstood by many internet users and marketers.
What’s inside a cookie? Each cookie carries information for six fields 1. Name – the name of the cookie as identified by the server 2. Value (or “Content”) – distinct identifying value of the cookie 3. Domain of the web service giving the cookie (eg DigitalTrainingAcademy.com) 4. Path (the “/” means the cookie is valid anywhere on that domain) 5. Expiration date – Cookies are set to have different lifetimes 6. Secure (used for cookies that require a SSL connection)
What are the types of cookie? These are several different types of cookies: Temporary, Permanent and Flash cookies.
