Everyone loves the start of a new relationship. Business partnerships are no different, and the second-party data relationships forming today certainly bring with them familiar feelings of optimism and promise. More specifically, brands today are recognizing the opportunity to join forces both when there’s a significant overlap with their own customer base and also when there’s limited overlap, which may support customer acquisition efforts.
A Crash Course on Second-Party Data
In a time when current and future data regulations are on the minds of many marketers, second-party data has a distinct appeal. Of course, data connected to another brand’s customers is desirable on its own, since it can unlock highly relevant and unique insights that would previously be inaccessible. These insights can be used to improve customer experiences in new and exciting ways – but what second-party data also delivers is an element of control.
First, marketers have the ability to thoroughly vet potential partners. By doing their due diligence, both parties can develop strategic business cases while mutually committing to uphold each other’s values and privacy-conscious policies governing the management of customer data. Once a partnership is formed, a brand can also retain more control over its first-party data, agreeing on the data use cases in advance and ensuring that such an arrangement will deliver beneficial value to both sets of customers. Of course, additional safeguards can be taken in the form of an investment in a privacy-first, secure environment, so no data is directly, and unnecessarily, shared with a partner.
When used with the proper safeguards in place, second-party data is an effective tool that can improve customer experience while also helping companies unlock incremental value and new revenue streams. Second-party data can provide value to both partners for better audience insights, segmentation, and activation. As with any good relationship, both parties should receive mutual benefit from their shared commitment, and in the end, the reality should justify and even exceed the optimism felt at the beginning.
Get Started with Second-Party Data
Whether you have an existing partnership you are looking to take further or you have recently approached a new potential partner, how can you confidently build a path to deliver on high customer expectations? Here are some questions you can start with to determine whether a second-party data relationship is for you:
- Do you currently have strategic partnerships?
- Do you run comarketing or sponsorship programs?
- Do you see value in partnering with non-competitors to provide incremental value to loyal customers?
- Do you see value in partnering with non-competitors to find new customers?
- Do you want to measure marketing campaigns that promote products sold through third-party point-of-sale locations?
If you answered yes to any of these, and especially if you are interested in understanding the effectiveness of these initiatives, then you may want to consider pursuing a second-party data strategy. Download our IdeaBook to learn more about our five foundational use cases and get your creative juices flowing!