Adobe has launched a new Real-Time Customer Data Platform (CDP) to help brands collect first-party data and gain a deeper understanding of customer wants, behaviours and buying habits.
In a cookie-free future, investment in infrastructure to gather and analyse first-party data will be the key to every marketer’s future success, according to Steve Allison, head of audience and data technologies at Adobe. "It's imperative for companies to recalibrate their customer acquisition strategies to place quality first-party data at the centre of all their customer engagements," he says. "This will allow brands to continue to have a single conversation with all visitors across their digital platforms."
Adobe’s CDP is designed to gather known data (name, address, purchases etc.) and unknown data (such as web-browsing activity), and pull it all together to create a real-time coordinated customer profile. So, whether brands want to help a customer find the right product, offer them a special promotion, or invite them to become an authenticated customer, the system can help target and time these interactions for the best results. It even identifies the right moment in between clicks to trigger registration and consent from the unknown visitor.
Rather than chasing a user across the web using third-party cookies, collection of customer data in real time can help deliver personalised content based on rules that brands define for themselves. As additional data is added and richer customer profiles are built, brands can use Adobe Target within the CDP to personalise experiences. The system also helps to measure how content is performing so it can be fine-tuned in the future to improve the customer experience.
A new era of privacy
The relationship between consumers and brands continues to evolve rapidly, and with increased privacy laws, efforts must be made to instil more transparency around data usage. Built-in governance within the CDP ensures that data usage policies are being followed responsibly and transparently across the brand’s organisation, giving the consumer more control over how their information is being used.
“As consumers, we now expect personalised brand experience while being in control of the data we share,” says Anil Chakravarthy, executive vice president and general manager of digital experience business and worldwide field operations at Adobe. “With Adobe Real-Time CDP, we are partnering with brands to deliver relevant, responsive and respectful experiences through first-party data.”
Increased collaboration across brands
With the right data-sharing permissions in place, the CDP allows for increased collaboration across brands. The Segment Match function allows companies to expand their own first-party data sets through partnerships. For example, an apparel retailer can partner with a jewellery brand to exchange non-sensitive segment data about their matching customers, like the types of dresses a customer is buying, so the jewellery brand can recommend accessories for those groups.
A recent of digital marketers suggests that despite optimism around the benefits of first-party data, marketers believe they have tapped only 47% of its potential. To reach previously dormant audiences, the CDP’s Look-Alike Segment allows brands to identify additional customers who share similar attributes to their best-known customers. For example, using a sample audience of existing customers, marketers can build a lookalike segment for other customers within the database who share comparable traits.
As digital marketing becomes more customer-centric, harnessing first-party data effectively will take the guesswork out of what consumers want and deliver it in real time. Interacting with individuals on this level allows brands and publishers to build a better relationship with customers in the long run, turning the use of their data into something that enhances their experience and dispels the perception that it is being misused.
"One of the main drivers of anti-cookie legislation was the lack of transparency that broke the bond of trust between brands and customers," says Allison. "To rebuild that trust, brands don't just need to be upfront about what data they collect and why they are collecting it; they also need to prove they can deliver better, more personalised experiences that clearly benefit customers."
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