5 Surprising Ways That Companies Use Anonymity Online

Anonymity on the web is a familiar topic for most large corporations.

09:41 16 October 2019

You will be surprised to find out just how much companies go “invisible” to gather data and stay competitive.

This post highlights how companies use proxies to gather public web data and, more importantly, how the data itself is used in gaining a competitive advantage.

If you are serious about web scraping as a business entity – either as a new business or a big brand, managing proxies is crucial to the success of any data gathering project.

Using proxies to gather public information at any reasonable scale is an absolute must if you want to scrape effectively. If you’re new to this concept, you may struggle with the use of proxies and spend considerable time troubleshooting. So let’s take a look at how companies use this technology to stay ahead of their competition.

Proxies

Proxies are 3rd party servers that allow a user to route its request via their servers and use its IP address in the process. 

When a proxy is in use, the target website doesn’t see your IP address. That way, you can gather public web data for various purposes without the risk of getting your corporate IPs identified and blocked. So you can now see the need for a proxy when you go on that web scraping mission. Without it, you won’t be able to do much – it is critical in today’s business.

A note of advice for businesses trying to gather web data for any purpose – use 3rd party proxies to set the ball rolling. Building one in-house might be too capital-intensive.

Five ways companies use Anonymity Online

There are various ways companies use anonymity online. It is either because they lack data on a specific topic or to compare their competitors value in the online space. You cannot win the competition without data, and you need lots of it to have an edge.

1) SEO Monitoring

Proxies are essential for SEO monitoring and companies find ways to indulge in this practice now and then. Ranking above your competitors is a must, and you can’t leave anything to chance, hence the need for monitoring the SERPs.

Regardless of the objective for gathering web data, businesses want to breakeven, and they can’t achieve that goal if the bulk of the advantage lies with their competitors. 

With the combination of SEO tools and proxies, with a large pool of IPs, you can scrape data endlessly and without hindrance. You can scrape prices, keywords and a lot more. Such information is vital for your business, and you can use it wisely.

2) Ad Verification

Hackers will create a fake website to direct visitors to it and make a mess of your ad campaign. You lose money and sales. But websites owners are getting smarter.

Because ads on the internet usually change or may appear differently, based on the host's IP address, website administrators are now using outside-the-box approaches. This valuable knowledge that ads may not look the same way to a foreign audience is why companies hire professionals to handle ad verification for them, with the help of proxies.

3) Brand Protection

Business can always be ahead of the competition or protect their identities from those trying to make a counterfeit of their products, by using anonymizing proxies. The market of counterfeiting is on the rise as commerce continues to move online. It is why companies invest a good chunk of cash trying to protect their identify the best way possible. 

4) Market Research

Most businesses already realize that using a residential proxy system will allow them to scrape for data they want and achieve business objectives.

A good number of companies or market research agencies use residential proxies in web data gathering. They rely on unbiased research data for businesses and hence subscribe to platforms that can offer them their money’s worth.

5) Price Comparisons

Retailers, travel and e-commerce sites understand that price comparison is a critical part of daily operations. Companies price their products relative to competitors, to attract customers. Competing websites keep track and are aware when their competition is accessing their site and can feed them the wrong information.

If you’re not comparing prices or watching over your shoulders, the race will be too tight for you to handle. Your competitors will outperform you, and you’ll be trailing – nobody wants to take a back seat in business.

To keep up regardless of your business niche, you must keep your eyes wide open. You’ll have to employ the best of strategies to monitor their pricing structure – and that is where web data gathering is essential.

Companies are aware that to remain on top, they must gather web data via proxies. They will spare no expense to achieve this goal. Whether it’s comparing prices, carrying out market research or SEO monitoring, proxies are critical tools for online success.