5 ways to generate revenue with a CDP

Exploring the business value of a customer data platform.

By now, we have all heard about the fabled 360-Degree view of the customer. There are a few arguments about the value of achieving this goal, but execution remains elusive. Because technology vendors designed customer experience platforms to support a phase of the entire customer lifecycle, 360-degree visibility is a challenge. In the absence of a customer data platform, valuable tools designed to enable marketing, sales, customer service, or loyalty may have the technical flexibility to tell the complete story. Still, other considerations often get in the way. Limited implementation strategy, integration problems, licensing challenges, or simply a lack of consistent training and enablement often prevent very technically capable tools from rising above their original intent.

Consider one scenario common in the airline industry. A customer leverages social media to publish dissatisfaction with their experience in real-time. Within traditionally siloed business units leveraging different data platforms, it’s easy to fumble the response. The person behind the social channel, often in marketing, has no idea who the customer is or what they've purchased. Naturally, this lack of context bewilders and annoys the customer, especially if they are part of a loyalty program.

In this scenario, the airline could have successfully implemented several platforms underpinning different customer lifecycle stages. But suppose the person responding to the customer in a time of need doesn't have access to every one of them, which is very unlikely due to the training, licensing, and authority required for such access. In that case, they are unlikely to succeed in providing a good customer experience.

Achieve a 360-degree view with a customer data platform

Unlike point solutions, we do not use a Customer Data Platform to solve specific problems for part of the business. Instead, we use it to collect, unify, and enrich customer data stored in other tools, making it easy to segment and manage while providing broad, transparent access to any person in any department. We can’t overstate the importance of a unified and enriched customer view because it's no longer a "nice-to-have." In the 21st Century, customers expect companies to know who they are, anticipate their needs, and deliver contextually relevant and personalized experiences.

A customer data platform can also offer programmatic hooks to trigger value-adding tactics such as automated content personalization at any stage in the customer's journey with a brand, at-scale.

A unified view of the customer might be the most compelling reason to invest in a Customer Data Platform, but there are other benefits to explore.

Other revenue-generating benefits of a Customer Data Platform

There are many ways to use a customer data platform to generate additional revenue. Let’s reconsider the airline scenario we previously explored, this time assuming the provider has an effectively adopted customer data platform in place.

With only the customer’s social handle, the service rep can access the customer’s loyalty status, purchase history, and current booking information. Armed with this knowledge, they solve the customer’s problem (without asking dozens of questions they should know the answer to). This interaction immediately makes the customer feel respected, happy, and valued. Using the time left, the service rep sells them a discounted upgrade, taking advantage of an empty seat in first-class to increase revenue and customer satisfaction at the same time.

But this is only one example of how improved customer data visibility across the organization can increase revenue while simultaneously improving the customer experience. Audience segment discovery, augmented by a complete understanding of the customer, allows marketing to generate better targeted and contextually relevant campaigns.

Knowing how someone became a customer allows the business to recruit them more easily into a loyalty program.

More data about customer trends will be helpful for the business to predict needs before they occur and create value-adding products and services.

Developing an obsessive understanding of the customer triggers a virtuous circle that unlocks unlimited opportunities to increase revenue while improving the customer experience. However, when properly integrated, configured, and adopted, a customer data platform can also solve problems that create unnecessary costs.

All of the data you’ve collected is brought together and aligned to optimize customer acquisition. By analyzing customer behaviors and characteristics, marketers can pinpoint high-value customers and personalize content that fits best with their needs. Data can determine which customers are more likely to spend faster, longer, and more enabling you to target the most valuable opportunities.

Inside Sitecore CDP 

Sitecore CDP consumes and activates behavioral data from all channels to create a unified source of customer intelligence for your digital ecosystem. Behavioral data is blended with enterprise customer data to surface insights and power targeting, segmentation, and audience delivery to your marketing, commerce, and CX tech stack.

Sitecore CDP is a cloud solution optimized to operate in real-time. Deploying it to a website is quick and easy with a simple JavaScript tag. Integration with any channel, or data source, is achieved via secure and well-documented APIs.

XCentium is the 2021 Sitecore Partner of the Year for North America and a certified Platinum partner with extensive training on Sitecore CDP. If you have questions about how Sitecore CDP will create value for your organization, we'd love to connect. Don't hesitate to get in touch with us for a no-cost/no-commitment consultation.

Download the full report here.