Beyond the opt-in: Engineering consent for better marketing

Compliance pressure is real, but privacy controls can power better personalization. Join us at the MarTech Conference to turn opt-ins into your best first-party data asset.

By Mike Pastore,
Head of Content & Media
Published on 2026-10-14
Last updated on 2026-10-16

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At the November 20206 edition of the MarTech Conference taking place Nov. 4, 2026, a panel of experts will explore how marketers can turn consent and preference management into a competitive advantage.

For years, privacy compliance felt like an administrative hurdle. The mandate has been clear: collect the necessary permissions, document them, and pass the baton back to growth teams.

But privacy regulations are changing rapidly, third-party signals are fading, and AI introduces new questions about data usage. Managing consent isn’t an obstacle to navigate around—it is the foundation of modern marketing strategy.

Moving beyond the checkbox is the real hurdle.

An opt-in click tells you a customer agreed to legal terms. It doesn’t tell you what content they care about, how often they want to hear from you, or which channels they trust. Having permission to collect data doesn’t make that data clean, actionable, or effective.

Giving customers meaningful control over their privacy fixes both issues at once. When preference management and transparency become part of the core customer experience, your team builds reliable first-party data while establishing long-term trust.

That’s the core focus of “Beyond the opt-in: Engineering consent for better marketing,” a panel discussion at the free, online MarTech Conference on November 4, 2026.

Turning consent into a core marketing capability

This session explores how marketing organizations can shift consent management out of legal silos and embed it directly into daily marketing operations.

Rather than viewing privacy requirements as barriers to personalization, the panel will break down how genuine customer choice helps you deliver better experiences.

Here is what the panel will cover:

  • Connecting consent to performance: How to align privacy strategies directly with customer engagement, retention, and long-term business value.
  • Building accurate preference models: Practical ways to collect zero- and first-party data that customers willingly share, turning it into actionable intelligence.
  • Fueling trustworthy AI: As marketing teams rely more heavily on machine learning models, clean and compliant customer data becomes essential.
  • Scaling trust without losing impact: Actionable frameworks to respect customer preferences while preserving your ability to deliver tailored experiences.

This discussion delivers practical frameworks your team can implement right away to bring privacy, customer experience, and revenue goals into alignment.

Meet the panel

This session brings together specialists across email strategy, data architecture, privacy technology, and marketing operations:

  • Moderator Jeanne Jennings, CEO and chief strategist at Email Optimization Shop, shares actionable insights on email engagement and customer lifecycle strategy.
  • Joss Merckaert, head of consulting operations (North America) at fifty-five, brings a operational perspective on data-driven marketing execution.
  • Zack Meszaros, senior principal solutions engineer at OneTrust, brings deep technical expertise in privacy platforms and preference management architectures.
  • Sal Tripi, advisor/consultant at Sal Tripi Consulting, offers strategic guidance on data governance and responsible marketing practices.

Together, the panelists will outline what it takes to make consent a functional engine within your marketing operations.

A live Q&A immediately following the presentation offers a direct line to ask questions about your specific preference management challenges.

Join us for “Beyond the opt-in: Engineering consent for better marketing” at the MarTech Conference on Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2026. This online event is completely free. Reserve your spot today and let’s tackle the future of privacy-first marketing together.