Our work is not about collecting customer data in volume – it’s about collecting good quality customer data based on trust, transparency and value.
The Wall Street Journal recently ran a story with the bold headline: “Big Tech Privacy Moves Spur Companies to Amass Customer Data”.
As a result, marketers are staging sweepstakes, quizzes and events to gather people’s personal information and build detailed profiles.
However, in the new world of first-party data, the word “amass” indicates the point has been missed entirely
The opportunity within evolved customer data capture isn’t about how much of your customer data can be collected. It’s that you get the absolute best data, and you get it first-hand, directly (first-party) – and then retain and grow from that opportunity.
In this article, we explain how to do just that. Read on to learn more about how Edit can help you transform your customer data strategy for maximum engagement…
First-party data explained
First-party data has always been most sought after by marketers. The opportunity to execute value-adding marketing actions, such as customer segmentation, churn and propensity modelling, are much higher and more accurate than that of third-party data.
It’s also a key requirement for more advanced CRM operational applications, such as Next Best Action and Campaign Journey Orchestration (CJO), which enable brands to communicate in a way that considers the fact that not all offers, activities, services and conversations are relevant to everyone.
The most advanced marketers link all relevant data sources, online and offline, to define their target audiences and build a more complete picture of customers – here at Edit, we call this Multi-Channel Personalisation (MCP).
The house of MCP is built upon one foundational brick – data!
The fall of third-party data
The window of opportunity is closing fast for collecting data using a third-party strategy (information collected by an entity that does not have a direct relationship with the user the data is being collected on) and then being able to actively use it.
If you want to “amass” volumes of CRM data in your business as the WSJ article suggests, then you will still be legally able to collect third-party data to supplement your first. However, as Google and Apple’s “opt in” and cookie consent rules continue to tighten, with many more to follow, your opportunity to market in a highly personalised manner to unknown prospects will be greatly reduced.
Data quality over data quantity
So, if not volume, it’s quality over quantity then?
Yes, it is.
In this article, I’m not going to discuss and share the percentages and statistics of conversion rates of first-party data versus the volume of third-party. Instead, I want to talk about the best-in-class practice principles and the opportunity that an optimal first-party data CRM strategy can give you.
In the route that first-party data gives you towards MCP – the P, Personalisation, is the headline. The ONE takeaway opportunity in this article I would want to offer you is that the quality of your first-party data collection will allow you to create a strategy that will set you up for sustained success and greater engagement throughout your campaigns.
How to increase customer engagement with your communications
The three steps to increasing customer communications engagement are:
- Personalising messaging and product positioning
- Creating content that’s relevant for audience behaviours and mindset
- Optimising communications frequency for user preference
In the modern digital marketing landscape, if you’re not proving these three hypotheses to be correct – and worse still, are not able to report on them – then you won’t be able to achieve MCP.
The most probable reason why you aren’t proving one, two, or all three of these hypotheses as correct is because your CRM data is large but weak or, in first-party versus third-party data language, high-quantity versus low-quality. You either have too many “bad” customers or a good proportion of the “right” customers collected in a way that you can’t tell that they’re good.
How to be truly customer-centric
Within the last year at Edit, we’ve engaged with two online retail organisations, both with the same business challenge and the same aspirational KPI’s, but both with very different intended solutions.
Retailer 1 wanted to be more customer-centric, get more sales, reduce churn and ultimately maximise the value of their existing customer base.
Retailer 2 wanted to be more customer-centric, get more sales, reduce churn and ultimately maximise the value of their existing customer base.
The differences came from the expected solution each retailer proposed that Edit undertake.
Retailer 1 wanted to continue their existing strategy of high volume, high cadence CRM communications. As part of this, they also wanted to acquire a high volume of first-party data, quickly. This ultimately meant daily emails to existing customers with a generic template with an urgent “Buy Now” call to action.
The mass acquisition strategy was focused on a heavily discounted welcome offer with little or no programmatic or personalised targeting – they then had the strategic CRM approach to move any acquired customers from “Welcome” to “BAU” immediately, thus then becoming part of the of high volume, high cadence CRM communications.
Retailer 2 also had a current high volume, high cadence CRM comms approach. However, they had a clear vision of defining what a loyal customer looked like, analysing who their loyal customers are then gathering a deep and meaningful understanding of them – then using this insight to become actionable in creating a multi-channel approach to both personalisation and value exchange.
Edit mutually agreed to not work with Retailer 1 and instead focused on a transformational CRM strategic partnership with Retailer 2.
The reasoning for this was that Retailer 2 understood our response to the business challenge; that being truly customer-centric requires consideration across three principles:
1. Segmentation and data
Gathering and using learned, asked and given first-party data to personalise a customer’s experience in the most meaningful and timely way. Also, optimisation through continuous email campaign measurement and testing.
2. Technology
Connecting all technology and systems to enable us to personalise the customers experience wherever they are in their journey, across all relevant devices, in sequence.
3. Content brand and storytelling
Using all the content/messages and brand experiences that enable personalised experiences and provide experiences they would recommend to others. Developing a consistent story throughout all channels.
Retailer 1 only had a requirement of us to create, enable and facilitate a technical approach to the high volume, high cadence CRM approach – not an evolutionary process as we see above with Retailer 2.
From a “wider” level of reasoning, Retailer 2 understood our data-led solution led to transformational CRM with first-party data-level roots.
Combining the use of first-party data and insights to map the customer journey
By combining our deeper understanding of customer motivations, behaviours and advocacy we’ll then enable communication to customers with the right message, at the right time, across all points along their journey.
Now, six months down the line, we’ve created a transformational CRM roadmap across both existing and new acquisitions of first-party data audiences.
The result? We’ve set them up organisationally to create that all-important, actionable insight and data-led approach to prove our three core hypotheses mentioned above.
Are you ready to increase customer engagement?
If you are looking to reflect and re-organise your approach to customer communications to deliver a more personalised experience that keeps your valued customers returning, look no further than our team of data strategy consulting experts.
When you partner with Edit, we’ll strip everything back and use quality data to drive our approach, creating a bespoke customer data strategy that truly works for you.
This audience-first, customer-centric approach means that you can reach your customers in the right way, at the right time, resulting in increased customer engagement and exceptional customer experiences.
Ready to get the most out of your data? Find out more about how our team of Editors and data strategy consulting experts can help you implement a customer data strategy that works hard for you. Contact us here to learn more.
