It’s Time for a Fundamental Shift to New Data Strategies and Resonant Customer Connections

The demise of third-party cookies is imminent and will shift how companies approach performance marketing. This is great news because many companies have over invested in performance marketing to drive transactions, forgetting that building brands- and customer relationships create lasting value.

It's time to reconsider current approaches and find better ways to create short- and long-term value, balancing demand and brand. Demand puts money in the bank today while brand is a compounding investment. This requires embracing new data strategies and determining how to meaningfully connect with customers.

Here are thoughts on how to emerge triumphant in a cookie-free world.

Full-funnel planning and budgeting. The age-old question: Does our marketing work? It depends on goals and how marketing activities work together. Start by looking at the purchase funnel to understand where customers are gained and lost on the path from awareness to acquisition and retention, ideally versus competition. Where are we disproportionally gaining customers? Where do we need to plug leaks? Which customer segments are most valuable? Which marketing vehicles will bolster strengths or mitigate losses? Where does investment need to be re-allocated?

First-party data strategy. Many companies collect a lot of customer data yet do not know the data quality, use data effectively, or have a well-defined first-party data strategy. The changes to third party data collection make a data strategy even more critical. The first step is to determine what we need to know to make better decisions. Then we can assess available data sources to where data can be supplemented through new data collection methods or strategic partnerships. We also need to consider how to ensure consistent data quality and integration. And last is developing ways to measure, learn, and improve.

Resonant content and channels. Ideally, marketing is a two-way conversation with consumers which requires a deep understanding of behaviors, emotions, habits, and motivations by consumer segment. Where are they looking for trusted information? Which messages are compelling? Where in the purchase process are customers open to learn and connect? This will help us identify new messaging and platforms that resonate with customers at all stages of the funnel to transcend the purely transactional.

Third-party cookies are not yet gone, so it’s time to seize the opportunity to transform short- and long-term value creation through a new data strategy and marketing mix. And don’t worry - we can be certain that these changes will spur innovation that will continue to revolutionize how we go to market.

About The CMO Syndicate

The CMO Syndicate is a diverse group of world-class Chief Marketing Officers who rapidly solve growth and profit problems for CEOs, VCs, CMOs, and PE firms. As global CMOs from the world’s top companies, The CMO Syndicate is not a traditional marketing consulting agency, and we are not typical marketing or growth consultants. We are growth experts and operators who actually do the work on a part-time or project basis as outsourced fractional and interim CMOs.