Salesforce Data Cloud

Wrapping up our April vendor spotlight with Salesforce , today we’re going to talk about Data Cloud. A real-time data platform that unifies and activates customer data from any source to deliver personalized experiences at scale.

Sounds a lot like a standard CDP right? Well yes… and no.

Back in 2019, Salesforce launched Customer 360 as a solution that would unify data across the core Cloud deployments (Sales, Marketing, Commerce) and 3rd party solutions. With an almost exclusive focus on marketing and ecommerce use cases, it was the first iteration of their inhouse built CDP. Fast forward to 2022, Genie was released as an evolution of Customer 360 with a new brand and complete re-architecture of it’s infrastructure preparing it for large scale, real-time event management and bringing in more scaled capability including real-time data ingestion, identity resolution, and activation. In 2023, it was rebranded as Data Cloud to align itself with the broader Salesforce G2M and to better articulate the unique value it provides across sales, service, commerce, and analytics, not just Marketing and ecommerce.

By veering away from the standard M&A approach Salesforce is well known for, they were able to build a data solution that plugs some of the gaps across their clouds and creates a more connected, unified, and cohesive experience for practitioners. In terms of value for organizations, it really depends on what other Salesforce Clouds you have, or are evaluating. Unlike traditional CDPs, Data Cloud is not a standalone solution and is designed to elevate the Salesforce cloud(s) it’s connected with.

While there’s a large number of capabilities dependant on the cloud(s) you’re using, there’s a couple on universal values we want to call out:

• Real-Time Unified Customer Profiles. The earlier re-architecting meant that it wasn’t just the data processing speeds that moved to real-time, core functions such as identity resolution and activation did as well meaning that you were able to aggregate and harmonizes customer data from any sources across clouds, apps, or streams into a single source of truth for every customer across sales, marketing, and services.
• Native Integration with the Salesforce Platform. Seems obvious but the idea of building this solution for the sole-purpose of super charging the wider Salesforce clouds means that businesses are able to activate unified data without data duplication or complex connectors. Add in integration layers like Mulesoft, and you’ve got a largely scalable solution which can be used, and re-used across all elements of the customer experience.
• Security, Trust, and Governance Built-In. Data Cloud brings in Enterprise-grade data governance, consent management, and compliance features baked into the platform, backed by Salesforce’s Trust Layer which is consistent across your Salesforce clouds.
• Low-Code/No-Code Data Activation. Marketers and business users can build segments, journeys, and activations with minimal IT involvement using intuitive tools inside Salesforce. The best part? What you build for one use can utilised in other clouds entirely without the need to duplicate efforts.
• External Data Strategy. Salesforce have formed some really cleve  partnerships with Snowflake and Data bricks to enable zero-copy access to external enterprise data warehouses. Traditionally, CDP’s require data to exist within it’s own platform in order to be used and activated and data that doesn’t, is often impacted by data latency and availability issues. Salesforce were very much the trailblazers (get it?) in this space for zero-copy data access and meant that enterprises who were already using Snowflake and Databricks meant that they could leverage all the existing efforts without needing to re-build, re-architect, or even share data.

Think of Data Cloud like the conductor of an orchestra. They don’t actually play the music, but they guide and manage the various orchestra sections (Clouds) to provide a harmonious experience. If there’s a limited number of musicians, or missing sections, then the value is easier to miss. But as your orchestra grows, and you bring in additional sections and rows, the need for a single point of guidance becomes rapidly apparent.  

For businesses already using other Salesforce clouds, Data Cloud will be a compelling offering as it’s designed to elevate the value of the other Clouds it works with. The wider the reach, the more consistent value you will be able to realise. For those who are exploring entering the Salesforce ecosystem, Data Cloud will most likely have some compelling value to add at some stage of your journey.

If you’re evaluating Salesforce Data Cloud, or would like to learn more about how it’s solving customer experience challenges for brands across the globe, then reach out to the team at Craft CXM and we can chat through your options.