• by Karl Greenberg , October 30, 2015

Money isn't the only asset consumers are trading for goods and services. Personal information is worth nearly as much. If it is a new currency, but how much are consumers willing to spend, and what do they want in return? 

The amount of personal information they are willing to share depends to a great extent on the brand, according to a study by the Center on Global Brand Leadership at Columbia Business School and marketing and loyalty analytics firm Aimia.  

In their survey of 8,000 consumers in five countries, home address, mobile phone, name, and date of birth were personal data consumers felt most sensitive about. Less so for social network access, email, Web history, purchase history, and lifestyle info. But nearly three-quarters will consider sharing even if they aren't required to, and how much they trust the brand is key, as over three-quarters will share data if they trust the brand. 

The study, which polled people in Canada, the U.S., the U.K., France and India, examines attitudes toward personal data sharing and privacy, and how a relationship with a brand might impact one's decision to share. Those polled were asked to note, within an industry, a brand that they have had a trusted relationship with for at least 12 months. The researchers said almost all of those surveyed have at least one brand they trust in the sectors the researchers focused on: financial, telecom, retail, e-commerce, Web and airlines. 

Based on the poll’s responses, the most trusted financial services brands in the U.S. are Chase, Bank of America and Wells Fargo. For airlines, it is Southwest, Delta and United/American. AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile are the most-trusted telecoms, and Walmart, Kroger and Target/Costco are most-often picked in the retail category. Facebook, Google, Yahoo are the most-trusted web brands, and Amazon, Walmart, and Ebay are most trusted for web commerce.

Women are about 10% more likely to share email for all offers, and men are about 4% more likely to share non-email data points like mobile phone, household income and purchase history. And 80% of those polled said they would share data for rewards, and a majority also said they would share for “experiential” benefits, such as  recommendations or a digital tool. Seventy-nine percent of respondents said they would share data for cash back; 77% for a coupon. The majority of people also said they would share personal data for location-based discounts, coalition rewards, and special-event invites.