Customer data platforms (CDPs) can be a bit of a buzzword in the analytics world, but they’re also one of the most powerful ways to find insights into customer behavior. If you want to take full advantage of your customer data and make better choices based on it, then you need to understand how a customer data management platform works and how they can help you meet various business goals.
Siloed Data
Whether you’re a small business, mid-sized company or global enterprise—your data is probably siloed. In other words, it’s stored in different locations and formats. And if you don’t have the right tools to access and use that data, some serious issues can arise.
Getting your hands on the right information at just the right time is so important for any business. But if you don’t have access to all of your customer data or if it hasn’t been collected properly in the first place, then it won’t be of much use when establishing relationships with new clients or improving existing ones, and this could cost your company money down the road.
Adobe Real-Time CDP experts say, “Data collected across systems and channels is normalized into a standard taxonomy.”
Lost Chances to Engage
Another issue is lost opportunities to engage with customers. For example, if your customer data is siloed in different systems, it’s hard for your teams to see the full picture of a customer and their journey with you.
Also, when data isn’t available to the right people at the right time, it can be difficult for them to act on it effectively. This is especially true when you don’t have access to real-time information—and if that’s not enough, there’s also a lack of access across all departments if only certain departments have access (or if no one does).
Poor Customer Experience
You want to give your customers the fastest, most seamless experience possible as an online retailer. The only way to do that is by having all of their information available when they need it, in one place and in real time.
With a customer data platform (CDP), you can collect data from multiple sources and synchronize it across your entire organization, so everyone can access the latest information at any time. This means there’s always someone on hand with answers when a customer needs them most—whether that’s during checkout or after they’ve made a purchase.
Lack of Data Governance and Visibility
As you can see, the lack of data governance and visibility is a huge problem for many businesses. The customer data platform provides a set of tools that help solve this problem by giving users the ability to:
- Know what data is available and where it’s located.
- Update stale or inaccurate information in real-time.
- Integrate new sources of data with seamless ease.
As you’ve seen, customer data platforms are one of the best ways to resolve many common issues in your company. It can help you better understand your customer’s needs and wants and provide insights that will lead to better product development and marketing strategies.
