Data is still the absolute foundation of good marketing. The role of standard Marketing Automation had to change in order to keep pace with the modern, digital world.
The future of marketing automation lies in a more sophisticated, holistic way of interacting with our customers and prospects. Here is why the time has come for a Customer Data Platform (CDP).
Table of contents
- 01 How does a CDP address the challenges of modern marketing?
- 02 Why did we move to Marketing Automation?
- 03 What is a Customer Data Platform (CDP)?
- 04 Why omni-channel instead of multi-channel?
- 05 Why is personalization crucial?
- 06 How does a CDP increase the potential for a second purchase?
- 07 What role do Machine Learning and AI play?
- 08 Which KPIs do we deliver with a CDP?
- 09 Summary
01 How does a CDP address the challenges of modern marketing?
There is no doubt that marketing today is more complex than ever before. By consolidating all customer data in one central platform, a CDP can help you gain a single, comprehensive view of the customer. In other words, a CDP is the key to meeting the challenges of modern marketing.
02 Why did we move to Marketing Automation?
We moved to Marketing Automation to harness the growing volume and complexity of data that could no longer be handled manually. With marketing automation, we can target campaigns more effectively, send them at the right moment and run them with far less effort. It was a huge step forward - but Marketing Automation on its own works best when it has access to complete, consistent customer data. And that is exactly where the problem arises that a CDP solves.
03 What is a Customer Data Platform (CDP)?
A CDP (customer data platform) is a marketer-managed system that builds a persistent, unified customer profile and uses that information, supported by analytics, to drive marketing activities.
Scope and data sources
A CDP means unlimited possibilities for integrating data sources from online channels, a mobile app, brick-and-mortar stores and a call center. It is precisely this broad scope of data in the modern world that can take Marketing Automation to a higher level, enabling communication as a true 1-to-1 experience.
Using advanced analytics
The goal of a CDP is to gain better knowledge from customer profile data for churn predictions, purchase propensity and customer return, as well as recommendations, in order to run increasingly targeted campaigns.
Communication orchestration and personalization
A CDP delivers personalization across the entire customer journey in real time, at every point where the customer comes into contact with your brand.
04 Why omni-channel instead of multi-channel?
Just a few years ago it was enough to run campaigns across many channels at once - that is the multi-channel approach. The problem is that in this model each channel (email, SMS, push, social) operates separately and "has no idea" what is happening in the others. As a result, a customer can receive the same offer three times, or contradictory messages.
Omni-channel goes a step further: it is a consistent, continuous experience in which all channels draw on the same customer data and complement one another seamlessly. A CDP is crucial here, because it provides one shared customer profile that feeds every touchpoint - so the message stays consistent no matter where the customer happens to be.
05 Why is personalization crucial?
Everyone agrees that personalization is crucial today - but without the right data it usually stays at the level of "Hi, [first name]". Only a CDP lets you achieve personalization at full scale: based on real purchase history, on-site behavior, preferences and AI predictions.
It is the difference between sending the same offer to your entire base and selecting content, products and the moment of contact individually for each customer. The result is communication that is more relevant, less intrusive and simply more effective at driving sales.
06 How does a CDP increase the potential for a second purchase?
Turning one-time buyers into repeat buyers is one of the biggest goals for any marketer. By applying AI-driven predictive models, our client was able to increase the number of one-time buyers making a second purchase by 131%.
07 What role do Machine Learning and AI play?
Machine Learning will be important to your future. AI-driven Marketing Automation lets us understand what the customer wants ahead of time, instead of waiting for them to tell us themselves.
Takeaways: the future looks bright
A Customer Data Platform (CDP) will be the next evolution of your Marketing Automation. A CDP lets you stop worrying about data silos. With a CDP, you can send more effective, personalized messages across all channels. A CDP often results in lower marketing costs.
08 Which KPIs do we deliver with a CDP?
- Revenue Uplift - a 7-9% uplift across the loyalty user base
- Average Order Value - a 2% to 17% larger average basket vs. the control group
- Conversion - 5% to 30% better conversion vs. the control group
- LTV - 12-19% higher vs. the control group
- Churn - 4-30% lower churn vs. the control group
09 Summary
A CDP is the natural evolution of Marketing Automation - instead of working with scattered data, you consolidate it into a single, consistent customer profile and use it to power real-time personalization across all channels. The result is not only more comfortable work without data silos, but also measurable outcomes: a larger basket, better conversion, higher LTV and lower churn. If standard Marketing Automation is starting to fall short for you, a CDP is the next step.