I like to refer to “synergy” as a combination of elements where the resulting whole is much greater than the sum of its parts. The union of applied intelligence and Customer Data Platforms (CDPs) is an exemplary example of this.
CDPs are software tools that collect customer data from various sources (from online transactions to interactions with apps or websites, from email communications or chat to interactions in external spaces like social media), unify it, and then provide a 360º view of each individual. The sought-after one-to-one marketing function.
Thus, a historical problem is resolved: information silos. Often, marketing, sales, customer service, operations, and purchasing departments do not share data and do not coordinate customer-facing actions because they use different, non-integrated sources. One draws from CRM, another from analytical tools, and a third from email interactions or virtual assistants. The CDP model proposes a new paradigm.
One View, Many Opportunities
All collected data, viewed together, constitutes a fundamental source of knowledge for business growth: the number of business questions a CDP can answer is limited only by the imagination of the area’s managers. Some examples include: the number, duration, and frequency of interactions a person has with a brand, those touchpoints, the types of products purchased, geographical distribution of customers, product sales by location, the number of returns by customer and region, the type of product that suffers the most returns, purchase propensity by time, purchase propensity based on product location in a physical store, the time it takes for a customer to decide on a purchase in an online channel… Trying to list everything is truly impossible.
The benefits of a CDP are exponentially enhanced when combined with applied intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML). With the development of models supported by these technologies, it is no longer just possible to evaluate what happened with a particular customer, but also to predict situations and behaviors. This allows a company, for example, to deliver the right promotion at the right time, propose cross-selling and upselling opportunities with the highest accuracy, provide experiences tailored to each user’s habits, create and distribute highly personalized content, or even anticipate – and satisfy – customer needs. This is applicable and actionable for all collaborators who work directly or indirectly with customers.
The Principle of the Challenge
A strategy combining CDP and AI includes an additional challenge that must be considered from the initial project design: data security and privacy. Customers seek and enjoy these new experiences as long as they can trust that their data will always be protected and will not be used for any purpose they have not previously authorized.
Another point to consider is that this is not a project with a beginning and an end, but a dynamic tool that updates constantly, incorporates new sources of information all the time, and must evolve and improve continuously to continue providing competitive advantages.
This is how synergy works: the CDP provides a unified view of the customer, and AI adds the necessary layer to make each customer feel unique, which in turn predisposes them to share their data and activate a true virtuous circle.
By Manuel Allegue – November 11, 2022
