“How do I get more first-party data?” — Every marketer ever

So goes the punchline of my track session at Forrester’s upcoming CX North America Forum. First- and zero-party data have become strategically important to marketers as they grapple with data deprecation, the four forces of which — consumers’ privacy-protecting behaviors, limitations from big tech companies, the proliferation of privacy regulations, and the rise of walled gardens — have kneecapped companies’ ability to covertly collect data on consumers.

The proposed solution is a logical one: If we can’t get this data covertly anymore, let’s ask customers for data directly. It’s a good strategy (and certainly more transparent than covert data capture, which I applaud). But it’s also complicated.

As I’ve written before, “get more data” isn’t a strategy. The goal isn’t clear and the metrics even less so. Instead, marketers must collaborate on an enterprise data strategy. As more consumers take privacy-protecting action, asking them to share data without a clear use case or benefit in return just isn’t going to cut it. A winning data strategy has to be specific and detailed. It becomes a matter of connecting the business’s goals with the marketing team’s needs and translating that into a data strategy.

We’ve probably all experienced moments when we ask ourselves, “Why does this company want to know this about me?” It’s a weird, sometimes creepy or aggravating customer experience — and something marketers should actively aim to avoid.

How should marketers frame up a viable data strategy that balances their needs with customers’ expectations? I’ll be diving into this topic at the CX North America Forum in my session, “When ‘More Data’ Isn’t Enough: Building A Data Strategy.” I’ll also be hosting a roundtable discussion on consumer privacy trends and behaviors Thursday morning. I hope you’ll join me in Nashville from June 13–15 for three packed days of all things marketing and CX! Check out the event agenda here.