Marketing Briefing: Why marketers and brands like P&G are beefing up first-party data capabilities now

By Kristina Monllos

Marketers are exploring ways to bolster first-party data offerings by giving consumers something in return for their personal information. This move comes as the march toward the third-party cookie’s crumble continues — despite Google’s procrastination — and ongoing privacy shifts make it more difficult to serve people personalized ads.

Last week, during the ANA Media conference, Procter & Gamble Chief Brand Officer Marc Pritchard detailed how the Pampers brand’s in-house agency is incentivizing soon-to-be parents to opt into its Pampers Club for information and rewards for their diaper purchases. The Pampers team created tools like the Pampers Due Date Calculator, which shows up when people find out they’re pregnant and search online for when their baby might be due, as well as the Baby Name Generator.

“These interactions create value, which in turn, creates trust and willingness for parents to share data, and buy Pampers,” said Pritchard in his prepared remarks. “With Pampers Club, we now have the ability to engage directly with 50% of all parents with babies in diapers.”

Per Pritchard, the in-house media team for Pampers has “transformed their model by transparently collecting and leveraging first-party data provided by parents” which then creates a “one-to-one trusted relationship with parents from pregnancy through every stage of baby development.”

P&G, typically a first-mover, isn’t alone in its efforts to beef up first-party data capabilities and find efficiencies and more audience details. Marketers have been asking questions about first-party data capabilities over the last two years, more so in recent months as the ever-changing privacy landscape continues to disrupt targeting capabilities, according to agency execs.

“They’re asking the questions,” said Eric Beane, VMLY&R’s Chief Analytics and Data Officer. “It’s a conversation to see if there’s value. Is there ROI for this? Does that ROI outweigh what you would see without that data? Is it short-term or long-term? Do you need to rush in or do you slow-roll your way to a plan?”

While marketers are asking the questions, investing in first-party data capabilities doesn’t make sense for every brand. Certain categories, like consumer packaged goods, typically don’t have as much data on their customers, so building out a one-to-one relationship leading up to the end of the third-party cookie is likely more important for them, according to agency execs.

The push to get more first-party data has to be about “more than a name and email address,” explained Priyanka Goswami, evp of 1:1 and CX at independent agency No Fixed Address. Brands need to “figure out the role they can play in a consumers’ life,” Goswami said, adding that “there has to be a value exchange.”

In addition to the types of tools that are key to Pampers’ approach to first-party data, brands can also give consumers the opportunity to opt into “promotions, incentives, discounts, information, education, entertainment,” said Natalie Gomez, director of integrated strategy at Zambezi, who added that “offering value comes in many shapes and forms.”

Marketers are asking “how do we have this conversation with our …read more

Source:: Digiday