Faced with a multiplicity of channels to be activated, ever growing competition and increasingly fragmented buying paths, companies need to stand out with relevant content and ultra-targeted messages. But customer data is too often divided into silos (CRM, website, offline...) complicating consumer knowledge. 83% of marketers recognize that information about their customers is scattered among different departments of the company, completely disconnected from each other[1]. This data is compartmentalized, not really usable and becomes obsolete very quickly. However, it is essential to the level of personalization demanded by consumers today. 72% say they are ready to change brands after one bad experience! Avoiding such a scenario is therefore a priority for brands.
CDP: an accelerant of engagement and loyalty
A clear and shared vision of customer data across all channels is a prerequisite for marketing innovation and an accelerator for improving customer experience. While it is a given that the Holy Grail is to know and recognize the customer and the interactions they have had with the brand in order to leverage high investments in customer acquisition - reconciling user data and activating it via the many channels available (email, SMS, social, display, etc.) is a real challenge. It is estimated that on average 28 different data sources are needed to create customer engagement[2].
Companies are therefore increasingly equipping themselves with Customer Data Platforms (CDP) to organize their data (captured via multiple online and offline contact points) and leverage it intelligently. This technology must allow them to centralize, remove duplicates and reconcile data to strengthen customer knowledge. Brands expect a CDP to optimize their marketing efforts and interactions with consumers. It should help create personalized experiences, improve marketing campaign results and evolve product offerings. However, this is only possible if the following prerequisite is met: being able to reconcile silos to make the data truly actionable!
A slightly more complex reality
In reality, many companies face a "silos and chaos" scenario because most data processing with CDP, DMP, ETL is based on probabilistic reconciliation. Blocked by poor data quality, the system cannot reconcile the data without a lot of preparation work (data engineering and the need for an ETL) upstream. This requires heavy technological investments and only ensures an average reconciliation of 25 to 50% of the data.
Increasing this ratio implies the creation of a larger number of false positives, which results in golden records combining different customers. This can negate the entire personalization effort.
Deterministic matching based on a rich, verified and secure identity would not only achieve 100% matching, but also improve the quality of the data that feeds the personalization algorithms. The customer data collection, cleaning and unification capabilities supported by advanced CIAM (Customer Identity and Access Management) would enable companies to move to a "silos and identity" configuration.
When CDP meets CIAM
CDPs centralize and store transactional data from the e-commerce and point-of-sale systems, but do not bring up information associated with customer identity. Without this missing piece of information, it can only deliver part of the value of the data. Identity information (email, phone, social identity, loyalty ID) is however a crucial variable.Moreover, one of the main challenges of a CDP is to be able to attach anonymous data to a known customer from the moment they create an account. A CDP is expected to be able to manage anonymous data from cookies and to propose solutions to compensate for the progressive disappearance of cookies.
In a world where consumers move from one device to another (cell phones, tablets, computers, connected TVs, etc.), it is essential that the message they receive can follow them wherever they go. CIAM allows marketers and IT to reconcile all available data points, including those collected in first and second party. A true complement to CDPs, CIAM solutions make it possible to manage identity and treat it as a data source in the same way as purchasing or browsing behavior. It links all the data and allows the CDP to express its full potential by ensuring that all transactions and interactions are correctly linked to the customer's identity. It also provides verified and secure data.
Complementing each other, CDP and CIAM technologies help identify the customer across all touchpoints and collect and leverage useful data associated with their identity. This combined approach ensures better recommendations, contributes to the development of relevant offers and products, and provides true personalization. But beyond that, this data-driven strategy is a critical component of overall business, from online and offline customer relationship building to product category management.
[1] Source : Acquia CX Report 2020
