Understanding Customer Data Platforms

From my experience, there has been no shortage of clients or businesses that have claimed to have a single view of the customer - sadly, even in the modern age, very few companies even come close.

The reality for businesses is that departments often work in a silo. As a result, the tools and systems they use also work independently of each other, resulting in multiple "single views" of the customer.

A Customer Data Platform or CDP is the natural evolution to unifying data. I would imagine that many people would think that a CRM (Customer Relationship Management) or even a DMP (Data Management Platform) already fulfils this purpose - So why do we need a CDP?

I spent time reviewing the Salesforce CDP, and it's clear to see that a Customer Data Platform is designed for marketers. Imagine a place where every customer interaction is stored but not just stored; it's accessible - it's usable! You end up with a customer profile that includes their interactions with your web and mobile assets, emails, social media, and so much more.

Sounds impressive - right?

Historically, DMPs were the technical IT professionals' domain, and CRM solutions need to be controlled like a military solution, so marketers ran in the opposite direction.

A CDP, however, changes this - a marketer now manages the solution, and yes you need IT to get set up, but once it's done, that unified customer profile is in the hands of marketers.

Nearly every software company will attempt to spin their solution as a CDP, and it's up to a marketer to ensure that the solution they choose is right for them. 

CDP Solutions:

As mentioned, Salesforce offers a CDP solution as part of their marketing cloud but so do the other big players. Take a look below and let me know of any others you may have used:

• Salesforce CDP
• Oracle CDP (They called it their Customer Intelligence Platform)
• Treasure Data
• SAP CDP (They call it their Customer Data Management Platform)
• Adobe Experience Platform
• Redpoint CDP
• RecoSense CDP

I like how Oracle puts it, the point of the CDP is to allow you to:

"dive into the key intelligence about your customers and use it to optimize a process, whether service, sales, marketing or commerce. ...data-driven intelligence to determine the next best experience..."

Have I missed out a CDP that you might be using or think a CDP is not relevant while we have CRM and DMP solutions with overlapping features? If so, let me know in the comments below.