We know content from brands needs to be relevant to the consumer. This is not an aspiration any more; it is a requirement.
Over the last five or six years, the acronym DMP (data management platform) has been abused to the extent most of us know that it is an enabler of precision marketing, however brands still struggle to
deploy DMPs properly. In the world of ITP (Intelligent Tracking Prevention) and GDPR, a successful deployment of a DMP isn’t a seamless experience. However, practice makes perfect. At Magna we
had the privilege to launch and deliver successful case studies using DMPs across MENA and we have therefore detailed 10 steps that will help brands to embark on their DMP journey.
1. AUDIT THE DATA YOU HAVE (FIRST-PARTY DATA)
The first point of call should be to address all the data that exists in your organisation – whether these are existing customers (CRM), site visitors, mobile app downloaders, etc.
It is important that these are sketched out to get a holistic picture of the opportunity. Involving the team responsible for CRM at this stage is essential as they have a good understanding of the data sitting within the organisation.
2. ASSESS THE SCALABILITY OF THE AUDIENCES
While the data audit is being done, it is important to gauge the size of the audiences to understand scalability. We have seen brands that have bought into DMP tech stacks without considering the size of their first-party data. In such an instance, by the time their data is onboarded to the DMP and then activated to a media platform (a DSP), the size of audiences reached will be too small to warrant such a tech investment.
3. DIVE IN TO THE DETAILS
This is absolutely essential. First-party audiences should not be created like third-party audiences. Not all site visitors are the same; not every person visiting a specific product page is the same. This is the problem we face with third-party data where created audiences such as “auto intenders” or “real estate intenders” are too generic. Therefore, audiences created through DMPs should be far more detailed.
4. GET CREATIVE
Once the detailed audiences are identified, even better audience use-cases come out of a thorough
brainstorming session to identify audiences at different stages in the consumer journey. The core benefit comes from linking audiences from the different first-, second- and third-party data sources; similar to how databases are created using SQL – using and/or logic. Always ask the question: Can these audiences be created without a DMP? If so, it is not a good enough use case.
5. GET MORE CREATIVE – DATA PARTNERSHIPS
As scalability is key, identify partners who have access to valuable data that can be used effectively for both parties. These can be brands or even critical media partners such as affiliates. In a recent example at Magna, we onboarded media partner audience data into our DMP to deliver better audience intelligence for both parties.
6. ACTIVATE ACROSS MULTIPLE PLATFORMS
Audiences created through DMPs should not be activated only through a DSP. Most popular DMPs do have integrations with Google and Facebook. These audiences can be used more intelligently than simpler remarketing lists through Google Adwords.
7. USE DYNAMIC CREATIVE
The whole idea of having precision audiences is to reach our audiences with increased relevance as opposed to a one-size-fits-all message. Hence, our message to a hot prospect lapsed lead should be communicated differently than to someone who is merely shopping around. Start with quick wins by leveraging more native ad formats instead of going through the mass deployment of dynamic creative using display media.
8. THINK BEYOND DIGITAL MEDIA
DMPs will deliver audience intelligence specific to your brand, portraying a more robust vision of your
audience. We can now understand profiles of users being exposed to campaigns, those researching on our website and profiles of customers. This level of intelligence should be fed into creative agencies to enhance brand communication beyond digital platforms.
9. BE COMPLIANT
Any activation of audiences should have the consumers’ privacy in mind and be compliant with market legislation and global standards such as GDPR. Most DMP providers, such as Adobe and Oracle, will be familiar with this. However, the brand needs to ensure that the first- and secondparty data collection complies with such legislation
10. GET YOUR HANDS DIRTY
DMPs are not only for data scientists. At Magna, we have trained all planners to create and activate
audiences using DMPs such as Oracle-BlueKai. There seems to be a mental barrier that activating a DMP requires time commitment with senior marketing and IT stakeholders.
This is a myth. Success comes from making a start.