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Solving the 1:1Marketing Puzzle

Understanding who and where your customers are across all screens and channels is no easy task. Identity resolution creates an incredibly

valuable asset for your organization.

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Personalization is ready for its close-up moment

"Personalization is ready for its close-up moment,” says McKinsey

in a recent report1. “Technology and customer expectations are

converging to propel personalization – the process of using data

to customize the timing, content and design of every customer

experience in real time – from promise to reality.”1. No Customer Left Behind: How to Drive Growth by Putting Personalization at the Center of Your Marketing, McKinsey & Company, July 2018

S O LV I N G T H E 1 : 1 M A R K E T I N G P U Z Z L E

Accurately establishing customer identity in order to pursue individual-based marketing remains one of the

most vexing challenges facing brands today.


S O LV I N G T H E 1 : 1 M A R K E T I N G P U Z Z L E3

This isn’t yesteryear’s simplistic personalization of merging a name

at the top of an email communication. Today’s top marketers are

achieving exquisite forms of highly individualized marketing that

achieve the highest levels of relevance, audience targeting, offer

selection, creative, and messaging. Personalization has become a code

word for 1:1 marketing at scale.

For brands that get 1:1 right (Hint: this requires robust customer identity capabilities), the results

have been stunning. According to McKinsey, 1:1 marketing at scale can drive 5-15% revenue growth

for companies in retail, travel, entertainment, telecom and financial services. For instance, a global

retailer saw sales from its brand-owned stores triple in one year following implementation of

personalization into its marketing strategy.

The ability to recognize customers across screens and channels dramatically improves marketing

measurement accuracy as well. Most brands have good analytics on “how many” but do a poor job

of understanding the “who” that goes with those numbers.

Nearly all marketers say that individualization is a top priority, but a scant 15% believe they’re actually

doing it well. One challenge is that many CMOs still consider it a nice-to-have add-on to their

broader data and measurement efforts. In order to realize the benefits of individualized marketing, a

shift in each organizations mindset is required, focusing on what is relevant for each individual.



Changing Your Organizational Culture

Newly released research studies by both Forrester and McKinsey show that

companies with mature data, measurement and analytics cultures ingrained in

their organizations achieve significantly better outcomes than their counterparts

without such cultures. And both studies discovered that the performance gap

between organizations with mature data and analytics cultures and those just

starting down that path is wide and expanding.

Forrester found that companies with mature analytics cultures achieved an average:

9.1%increase in marketing ROI over the last 1 to 2 years.

10.5%improvement in marketing

efficiency.

10.4%greater agility and faster

consumer response times.

R O I E F F I C I E N C Y R E S P O N S E

An individualized marketing culture is part of having a mature measurement and analytics

profile. It requires an installed internal process for:

Creating accurate customer profiles from a variety of cross-platform data

sources.

Using those customer insights to inform decisions around targeting

individuals — who, when and with what messages and creative.

In a separate report, Forrester points out that accurately establishing customer identity in order to

pursue individual-based marketing remains one of the most vexing challenges facing brands today.



Think of an identity graph (or ID graph) as an elaborate jigsaw puzzle

where each interconnecting puzzle piece contains an element of

information that helps marketers accurately identify the customer

behind any screen or device. The explosion of devices and touch

points, combined with siloed or inaccessible data, has left most

organizations with only a fragmented view of their customers, an

unfinished puzzle.

Pertinent data on these puzzle pieces include everything from

names, email addresses, physical addresses, phone numbers and

cookies, to social handles, mobile device IDs, demographics and

lifestyle traits, regardless of whether or not the user has logged in to

reveal their identity, even in an otherwise anonymous setting. Faulty

identity resolution (low quality, inaccurate or missing data) is just as

bad, if not worse, than none at all.

Customer Identity Essentials for CMOs

Establishing customer identity (a.k.a. identity resolution) is the single most

essential ingredient in a complex recipe for effective contextual or individual-

based marketing. Get it wrong – or leave the ingredient out – and your marketing

efforts will not be as effective as they can be.

What’s “Identity Resolution?”

Forrester defines identity resolution as:

“The process of integrating

identifiers across available

touch points and devices with

behavior, transaction, and

contextual information into

a cohesive and addressable

consumer profile for marketing

analysis, orchestration, and

delivery.”



Different Ways to Approach the PuzzleIdentity graphs come in many shapes and sizes. It’s essential for marketers to

distinguish the real, holistic ID graphs from those that provide only partial linkages.

Unfortunately, a single label (ID Graph) is used in the marketplace to represent many

variations – with few standing up to the real definition. Marketers need to work with

providers that link full profile identities across all touch-points to reap the benefits of

individualized marketing that elevates brands and deliver high marketing ROI.

How do companies link full profile identities to such things as mobile device IDs and cook-

ies? This occurs when high traffic informational sites such as media outlets, recipe sites,

sports hubs and others share (with the customer’s permission) the matches of login emails

with cookies.

There are different ways to go about establishing true identity, and any number of terms will

inevitably come up in the discussion, including “deterministic” and “probabilistic” methods of

matching data to individuals. Keep in mind that establishing true identity is all about discern-

ing accuracy in the data and deciding on your own quality standards.

“Deterministic” matching (the gold standard) uses a wide array of data to consistently vali-

date individual identities for the highest achievable accuracy.

Customer profiles can be authenticated (verified by the customer via a login, credit card

purchase, etc.) or non-authenticated. The authenticated variety creates a deterministic and

“persistent” identity, which allows marketers to say with certainty they know who a customer

is, where they are and which device they’re using.



Note that what some companies call “deterministic” matching, really isn’t. Some think that

if they find a single 1:1 match between two data points that it’s a confirmed deterministic

pairing. Others, including Throtle, hold themselves to a much higher standard of quality and

accuracy that requires multi-source corroboration of all data before declaring that a match is

deterministic.

Probabilistic matching uses probability algorithms and other techniques to put the pieces of

the identity puzzle together. It’s more like glorified guesswork (albeit science-based), and is

far less accurate, although tends to yield more volume.

No matter how it’s done, identity resolution depends heavily on effective data management.

If you resolve and manage identity right, it will allow you to understand a tremendous

amount about your customers, persistently and at specific moments in time.

DETERMINISTIC PROBABILISTIC

A relationship with the right ID graph provider can bring to life one of the most valuable and

proprietary assets a brand has – its customer data.

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The Importance of AccuracyTo properly execute 1:1 marketing, the data and methodology you use

to individually identify customers MUST be accurate. If it isn’t, you’ll risk

sending the wrong messages to customers at the wrong time. Not only is

this annoying to customers, but also quite costly to brand marketers.

The best methodology for establishing customer identity is to be data-centric and deterministic.

This requires using data from a wide range of sources, such as email addresses, postal addresses,

mobile numbers, mobile ad identifiers (MAIDs), cookies, and many others.

For brands to utilize an ID graph, it's essential to work with a provider who will cleanse customer

data, not just rush things through and match to the graph. A brand’s data is compared to the

ID graph as an external truth set, to validate, de-dupe, and repair data, resulting in a true single

customer view. Then, the ID graph serves as a Rosetta Stone to match to digital IDs, enabling reach

and visibility across all channels, even when individuals are browsing anonymously online.

When direct, 1:1 data matches are made against a quality source, brands can be sure of peak

accuracy, meaning their marketing messages will be delivered more accurately too.

The rate at which customer data is matched – the “match rate” – depends heavily on a steady flow

of multi-source data. An ID graph provides a constant stream of such data in order to dynamically

validate a brand's prospect or customers as they interact in offline as well as online channels. The

match rate is vital to the success of personalization efforts.

Data accuracy doesn’t happen by itself. The best identity solution providers deploy a variety of “data

hygiene” steps such as email validation, de-duplication, National Change of Address (NCOA), etc.



The Importance of Accuracy

CUSTOMER USE CASES

Audience Insights and Segmentation

Highly Individualized Emails

Location-Based Marketing

Measurement & Attribution

Offline-To-Online Marketing

Audience-Based Paid Media Targeting to

Relevant Individuals

Retargeting Website Personalization

Product Development



A N N O Y A N C E A V O I D A N C E

C R U I S I N G C O M P E T I T O R S

C R U S H I N G I T W I T H C O N T E N T

C R O S S - C H A N N E L T A R G E T I N G

I N - A P P A D S

T VT A R G E T I N G

Identity Resolution in Action

Organizations that have successfully adopted identity resolution are able to more easily collect

customer profile information across a wide range of sources and manage it in a single location.

Having this information provides insights that can be used to more effectively engage customers

at the right time, in the right place and with a relevant message. It also provides more accurate

and holistic tracking capabilities that contribute to better measurement and analytics.

Accurate identity resolution is vital for successful individual-based marketing in numerous areas:

Annoyance Avoidance: Brands should know what their customers have already purchased from them in order to avoid annoying their customers with ads for products they already own. Using identity resolution, these customers can be identified and served ads for products or services that are complementary to those they already own.

Cruising Competitors: Some brands are combining identity resolution with third party data that helps them understand which competitors consumers purchase from, in order to send them conquesting offers or coupons to encourage brand switching, and track conversions.

Crushing it with Content: Identity resolution helps brands better understand customer likes and dislikes so brands can make better decisions about what content is most likely to appeal and be valuable to their customers.

TV & Cross-Channel Targeting: The value of identity resolution extends beyond its digital advertising origins and enhances marketing with other addressable channels. Marketers can effectively manage their omni-channel campaigns and contact frequency across programmatic digital ads, email, direct mail and addressable TV when identity resolution is properly adopted.

In-App Ads: Brands are using identity resolution to target their in-app ads with highly personalized offers and recommendations that drive the desired conversion or engagement goals, ultimately improving customer retention and increasing sales.



Better Customer ExperienceCustomers increasingly expect brands to engage them in highly relevant, individualized

ways, with accurately targeted content. Companies that are successful at customer

identity resolution can confidently create content and deploy 1:1 customer engagement

strategies and tactics that take customer experiences to another level.

Equally as important, brands can avoid misidentifying or engaging customers in ways

they perceive to be intrusive or even creepy. Having accurate identity information also

helps Marketing support the company’s commitments to good data stewardship, which

reinforces brand trust and reputation.

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10 Benefits of Building Accurate Customer Identity Graphs

New Revenue OpportunitiesInsights gained through identity resolution can greatly increase cross-sell and up-sell

opportunities and reveal new ways to re-engage former customers.

Superior Results with Less BudgetTimely and accurate identity resolution allows brands to market more efficiently and

spend less to achieve the same, or even better, results. Accurate ID graphs reduce waste,

overlap and duplication.


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A Single Unified Internal View of Your CustomersCompanies that aren't using quality ID graphs to regularly synchronize and validate their

data often end up with disparate views of customers across various business units. They

can never be sure who is on the other end of a browser or mobile app.

Many brands have compiled their internal data by relying only on de-duping across

their own data points such as same-name spellings, emails, addresses etc. But that’s

insufficient. For instance, the brand may not recognize the same person interacting with

two different emails or shipping to work and home addresses. True accuracy requires

external validation against a known, proven ID graph recognize bad data, fix it, and fit

together fragments and missing pieces of the identity puzzle.

Accurate identity resolution allows companies to create a true, single view of their

customers that can be consistently leveraged across a portfolio of brands, business units

and product lines. Accurate identity resolution enables brands to continuously enrich,

update and share identity data across the entire organization to facilitate greater control

and personalization.

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More Accurate Measurement & Better ROIRobust data sets and high customer match rates across screens and platforms

helps to create a more complete picture of customers. This, in turn, makes marketing

measurement and analytics easier and more accurate. Marketers will be able to

holistically measure results and fuel their analytics engine.

Without identity resolution, multi-touch attribution results can be misleading because the

same person has been counted several times. Marketers need to resolve identity across

devices in order to count unique touch points and attribute ad spend to results correctly.

As the number of consumer touch points grows, so does the quantity of data collected,

causing analytic teams to struggle at providing an accurate view of marketing ROI. With

a well-constructed approach to identity, marketers can create a single, holistic view that

more accurately measures customer interactions across all channels including digital,

mobile, website, phone, and store visits.


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Greater Speed & FlexibilityMarketers must be highly flexible and adaptive to hit constantly moving and changing

targets. Having the ability to quickly and accurately identify customers across screens

and channels gives marketers greater flexibility and allows them to react more quickly to

changing conditions. For example, brands can quickly adjust messaging when they have

confidence knowing who a customer is, where they are and what they are doing.

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Fill Customer Intelligence GapsThe more data sources there are, the greater the chance gaps will appear if those data

sources aren’t properly linked. Marketers can solve that by continuously corroborating,

verifying, and appending missing information across customer records, to produce a

360-degree customer view.

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Identify Customers Online in Real-TimeThe ability to identify a quality lead or an existing customer in real-time on your website is

crucial. With an identity framework in action, brands can identify a prospect the moment

a website visit occurs, thus improving the customer experience. Brands will be able to

accurately identify an existing loyalist even if that customer hasn’t been authenticated

through a login and act accordingly.

Improved Marketing CredibilityMarketing organizations that are able to accurately identify customers and engage

them in personalized ways earn greater stature and credibility internally (not to mention

budget clout). Painting an accurate picture of customers allows brands to create and

communicate compelling success stories, earning more brand equity.

6Livelier Marketing Creative & CampaignsKnowing more about customers also allows marketers to create campaigns that are

more interesting, relevant, engaging and generally pack more punch. One can avoid

campaigns that are dull, generic, and miss the mark.



Where Identity Fits in Marketing Strategy and the MarTech Stack

A recent study by the Association of National Advertisers’ Data, Marketing & Analytics division (DMA) sees audience (customer) identity as the linchpin of marketing measurement and attribution. Most importantly, it is seen as

the key driver behind better customer experiences.

Identity and data onboarding have become an essential foundation upon which the rest of the marketing technology stack is built and depends on. Cross-device

identity is the sturdy plank that enables the marketing strategy to come fully to life.

IDENTITY

] CRM

MEDIA

EMAIL

SOCIAL

ETC



Conclusion

CMOs are investing more and more in customer identity solutions given the many

benefits and competitive advantage opportunities they offer. They’re recognizing that

customer data can be a company’s greatest asset and a strategic weapon for top-line

growth.

Yet most brands feel ill-equipped to recognize their own customers across different

screens, channels and platforms, let alone communicate with them seamlessly across

those disparate settings. Fewer than 2 in 10 marketers say their organizations are able to

accurately and consistently identify their customers.

The main problem is the sheer complexity of resolving customer identities across so

many connected devices and digital touch points. Of course, data privacy concerns loom

large as marketers strive to comply with GDPR, a patchwork of state, local and federal

rules, along with the personal privacy wishes of their customers.

Working with a provider of a holistic, deterministic ID graph can help brands overcome

these challenges, and can do so in a privacy-safe manner. The key is for accurate data

to be a top priority. Without accurate identity, brands run the risk of alienating loyal

customers and wasting marketing budget.

The overall impact of individualized marketing driven by timely and accurate customer

identity resolution is overwhelmingly positive in both qualitative and quantitative terms.

The sooner you get to it, the sooner you’ll begin realizing those benefits.

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Key Terms

Identity Graph (ID graph): A dynamically updated relational data set (not a static database) that houses all customer profile information and known identifiers associated with individual consumers. This information helps marketers to accurately identify the customer behind any screen or device. (Note: Not all ID graphs are created equal. The term is sometimes used incorrectly to portray fractional views. In that case, it’s not a true ID graph if it’s only a subset of a whole picture.)

Customer Identity / Identity Resolution: The ability to accurately recognize and verify the identity of individuals across all points of engagement – including marketing, and sales contact channels, across devices. Identity resolution often involves using one fragment of identity matched to an ID graph for a more complete picture of a consumer.

Customer Data Onboarding: The process of making existing customer data available to use for online digital marketing purposes. This includes matching known offline customer identities with various anonymous online identifiers such as cookies and mobile device IDs.

Customer Profile: A collection of identity and other descriptive data related to a specific customer that can be used to target and personalize marketing messages. Includes demographics, psychographics, lifestyle, and other attributes.

Deterministic Matching: A method of using a wide array of data to validate individual customer identities consistently with the highest possible degree of accuracy.

Data Onboarding: A method used to connect offline customer records (i.e., CRM data, email subscription lists, direct mail lists and more) with each person’s online or digital identifiers (cookies and mobile device IDs). Customer data onboarding providers enable brands to select targeted audiences based on rich profile data. They then anonymize the audiences for brands to activate with media campaigns via their data management platforms (DMPs) and demand side platforms (DSPs) as destinations for media buys. Typically, identity resolution and data onboarding providers are not involved in the media buys directly – that’s handled by the agency via the platforms.

Cookies: A cookie is a small amount of data generated by a website and saved by a web browser. Its purpose is to remember information about you, similar to a preference file created by a software application.

Mobile Ad Identifier (MAID): In mobile apps, there are no cookies. Instead, there are identifiers provided by the mobile device’s operating system. These Mobile Ad IDs provide a way to identify who is using the mobile app. A MAID is similar to a cookie in that it helps advertisers identify the person behind a device. A MAID serves the same purpose for marketers in mobile apps as a cookie does in a web browser.

Individual-Based Marketing: A marketing approach centered around using data to persistently identify and connect with the right individuals, at the right time, in the right place with the right message, rather than selecting publishers or site placements for media.

Match Rate: The percent of individuals from an input file that a provider of identity resolution and/or data onboarding is able to find in their ID graph – reported as matches against the graph in total and with active digital IDs.

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