With cookies on the way out, many marketers are setting their sites on first party data. What pitfalls lie on this road—and how can you avoid them? Let’s take a moment to pause and reflect.
- The cookieless future is fast on its way to becoming cookieless present.
- As a result, many marketers are scrambling for new ways to get their hands on useful audience data.
- First-party data—data collected directly from your audience with their permission—is looking more attractive than ever.
- Therran Oliphant’s assessment of this situation made us chuckle: “If data is the new oil, then first-party data is a crypto farm sitting atop an oil field.” We are so living in 2022.
- Unsurprisingly, the quest for first party data is leading to a surge of interest in loyalty programs.
- But even if you were this close to pulling the trigger on a loyalty program before the dawn of the cookiepocalypse, you’re probably better off stepping back from a single solution and considering the challenge through a wider lens.
- The first step towards a holistic first party data strategy is to consider what specific kinds of data you want. And don’t want.
- The second is to consider all of the possible interaction points that could yield this data. Beyond loyalty programs, these might also include your website, your mobile app, point of sale, email, SMS or even customer care interactions.
- The last and most important step is to consider your customers. What do they want, need and appreciate? What value might you offer them in exchange for their data?
- As Tom Fishburne (aka The Marketoonist) points out, this question is skipped over too often: “Marketing teams sometimes forget the importance of the value exchange. Consumers need to feel that the trade-off is worth it.”
- At this stage it’s also worth reminding yourself of a universal truth that’s very easy to forget in our line of work: Most people don’t care that much about brands. So don’t overestimate the appeal of insider access or basking in the brand halo.
- It’s also probably worth looking at the perks you offer new customers and considering ways to make them available to existing customers who might otherwise feel left out.
- Ultimately, getting your hands on first party data isn’t about data at all. Like all marketing, it’s about human connection and delivering real value.
