Abby is a data-driven content marketer with certifications in inbound marketing and content marketing. She’s written hundreds of articles covering digital marketing topics — a few of her specialties include first-party data, marketing and data analytics, marketing strategy optimization, and SEO. When she isn’t writing or optimizing content, Abby loves to spend time reading the latest mystery novel, having movie marathons with lots of snacks, and jamming out to Shania Twain.
With the Internet becoming more privacy-conscious than ever, several tech companies have already said goodbye to third-party cookies and data tracking. But how can you implement targeted campaigns that reach your target audience without third-party data? The answer: A first-party data strategy.
Keep reading to learn more about how you can maximize your digital marketing results with first-party data!
And if you’re new to the world of first-party data, we’ve got the perfect guide for you! Read our free first-party data marketing guide to learn how you can drive more revenue with first-party data!
How to create a first-party data strategy in 4 easy steps
Having a data strategy is important for any business, particularly when it comes to first-party data. Are you ready to maximize your digital marketing results with first-party data? We’ve got you covered.
Here’s how to create a first-party data strategy in four easy steps:
1. Consider which data and information you want to track
Before you start collecting first-party data, it’s important to consider which data points and customer information you want to track.
You should think about your business goals and what audience information can help you achieve those objectives.
For example, you might want to remarket to the users who abandoned their shopping cart, create more personalized advertisements, or better understand your customer journey stages.
Your goals will ultimately influence the data you want to collect from your audience.
2. Collect your data
Now that you’ve thought about your goals and the information you want to track, it’s time to collect it.
There are numerous ways you can collect first-party data from your audience, such as:
CRM software helps you track interactions between your company and your customers. It collects and stores critical customer data, like their contact details and sales records.
A CDP enables you to track your audience’s interactions after discovering your brand. It can track information like website behavior and demographic data to help you better understand your audience.
These data storage platforms can help your company easily track and store critical first-party data from your audience in one central location.
4. Analyze your data and optimize your strategies
Now that you’ve collected and stored your first-party data, it’s time to analyze it and use it to optimize your marketing strategies.
Luckily, plenty of marketing tools and data platforms make this step a breeze. For example, analytics platforms like Google Analytics help you track, store, and analyze valuable data about your audience in a user-friendly format.
When you analyze your data, you should look for trends and commonalities. For example, you might notice that a majority of your customers live in the same city and are between the ages of 30 and 40.
With this information, you can improve your marketing campaigns to reach more consumers that fall into these demographics.
As a result, you expand your reach and drive more leads and conversions for your business.
What is a first-party data strategy, anyway?
So, what exactly is a first-party data strategy, anyway?
A first-party data strategy is your plan for using first-party data to support your marketing goals and objectives.
First-party data is information you collect directly from your audience. Instead of purchasing data from other businesses, your audience provides you with their information directly.
Creating a first-party data strategy helps you implement a plan to collect and analyze valuable information about your audience to inform your marketing strategies.
What are the benefits of a first-party data strategy?
Implementing a strategy for harnessing the power of first-party data can provide many benefits for your business.
Here are three key benefits of a first-party data strategy:
1. Reach more of your ideal customers
You collect first-party data from your website visitors, social media followers, email subscribers, and current customers. That means you gather valuable information about the consumers who already interacted with your brand.
As a result, you can implement marketing messages that reach more of your leads and ideal customers and encourage them to convert.
2. Create personalized experiences
When you collect first-party data, you can learn more about your audience. If you’re in a business-to-business (B2B) company, you get to gather B2B intent data. For example, you can analyze their demographics, interests, and purchase history to better understand who you’re targeting and what they like.
As a result, you can create personalized marketing messages that resonate with your target audience. In addition, you can craft highly-targeted advertising campaigns to ensure that your promotions reach the consumers who are most like to purchase your products and services.
3. Improve your marketing return on investment (ROI)
Perhaps one of the biggest benefits of a first-party data strategy is that it helps you improve your marketing ROI. When you invest in digital marketing, your number one goal is to earn a positive ROI for your efforts.
You learn critical information about your current and potential customers by tracking first-party data. You can use this information to optimize your strategies to encourage your prospects to convert into loyal customers.
Meet WebFX:
Your world-class, tech-enabled marketing agency with over 1.6 million hours of combined expertise.
Implement a revenue-driving first-party data strategy with WebFX
Are you ready to implement a revenue-driving first-party data strategy but aren’t sure how to start? WebFX can help!
At WebFX, our team of over 500 marketing experts has more than 28 years of experience helping businesses track and leverage first-party data to drive impressive marketing results.
For example, we’ve helped clients drive more than $10 billion in revenue in the past few years. And we can help your company achieve incredible results too.
Craft a tailored online marketing strategy! Utilize our free Internet marketing calculator for a custom plan based on your location, reach, timeframe, and budget.
Craft a tailored online marketing strategy! Utilize our free Internet marketing calculator for a custom plan based on your location, reach, timeframe, and budget.