What is a customer data platform?

Posted by groupfio on February 25th, 2020

CDP Institute says a Customer Data Platform is packaged software that creates a persistent, unified customer database that is accessible to other systems.to prestigious publications like Forbes, companies that give priority to data-driven marketing are six times more profitable year-over-year than companies that don’t. 75% of those data-driven companies also see an increase in customer engagement. And, data-driven strategies often produce between 5-8x more ROI than strategies without.

Results like this support that the future of marketing resides in the data. But, not just any data- it’s a combination of several components. Its Behavioral data enhanced by AI (Artificial Intelligence) and machine learning that is accurate, real-time and interconnected.

How do enterprise-level marketers drive real business results?

By getting hold of and utilizing actionable real-time, accurate behavioral data. Companies that have, dominate in their respective industries. Examples of Data-driven companies that embrace a Customer-Driven Platform (CDP) are Amazon, Spotify, and Netflix.

So, what is a customer-driven platform?

Defined by the CDP Institute it’s “packaged software that creates a persistent, unified customer database that is accessible to other systems.”

At the elementary level, a CDP store connects and combines customer data to give a real-time, complete view of customers regardless of which and the number of devices or channels they interact with. It also supports customer acquisition and the “customer journey”.

So, all the data is captured if shopper “X” follows your company on social media, or browses your website, or subscribes via email, or uses your customer service ticketing systems. Their behavior, types of content they prefer and interact with, emails they open, customer service interaction are all stored and updated and available in real-time.

This is the 360-degree view of a customer that companies need and want. A central repository where everything knowable about your customer is captured so marketers can be better informed and personalize the experience for that single customer profile.