First-party data is in demand, with the looming demise of third-party cookies putting pressure on marketers to gather and own information about their customers. We have Apple and Google to thank for the dramatic changes in the privacy landscape, with Apple giving users the option to decline ad tracking, and Google set to phase out third-party cookies by 2024.
While access to outside data sources is becoming scarce, it presents a great opportunity for brands to know their customers better and, in turn, supercharge their personalisation strategies. And the rewards are palpable, as McKinsey research tells us personalisation leads to a 40 percent revenue increase (McKinsey 2021).
So, how do you do it?
Create a single source of truth
It’s highly likely you’ll be collecting customer data already, perhaps from your website, e-commerce or call center. The key is to amalgamate all sources of customer data you have across every platform into one single pane of glass. By collating information about an individual across all modes of contact you get a clearer picture of who they are and their likes and behaviours. This could include social media, events, web or store visits or eCommerce, to name a few.
Build a value exchange
Add context to the data you already hold by asking for more from your customer. Creating a value exchange is a great way to do this by offering your customer a benefit, such as a discount, offer or better deal for sharing their personal information.
Address data quality issues
Did you know 21 cents out of every media dollar is wasted due to poor data quality (Forrester, 2021)? The cost of bad data hygiene affects marketing’s ability to personalise, therefore understanding what data quality means to your organisation, and having a defined process and clear metrics, can help standardise data. Many are turning to automation to cleanse data and remove duplicates to remove the time constraint of manual data management.
Get a 360 view
Having access to all data about each customer in one place is the gold standard brands need to achieve to enable a first-party data strategy. A 360-degree view combines everything you could possibly know about an individual, from their name, date of birth, address, e-mail, to eCommerce and browsing information and even household and relationship data, into one platform, or CDP (customer data platform).
There’s never been a more crucial time to build a first-party data strategy and, while the exponential growth in data and rising customer expectations are keeping marketers on their toes, the benefits are within arm’s reach.
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