A customer data platform (CDP) is packaged software that creates a persistent, unified customer database accessible to other systems. It aggregates customer data from various sources to provide a comprehensive view of each customer and their behaviors over time. CDPs exist to break down data silos across departments and systems to improve organizational alignment and create better customer experiences. They are most beneficial for mid-size and enterprise companies looking to gain insights from customer data and deliver personalized experiences across channels.

1. WHAT IS
A CUSTOMER DATA
PLATFORM?
WHAT IT IS, WHO IT'S FOR, & HOW IT'S USED
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2. So...
You’ve recently heard a lot of talk about
Customer Data Platforms (CDPs) and how they
can help companies better understand and act
on data. Or maybe you haven't heard much
about them yet.
What really is a CDP? Why does it exist, who is it
for and how might you use it?
Here’s what you need to know.

3. WHAT IS A CDP?
According to the CDP Institute, “a Customer Data Platform is packaged
software that creates a persistent, unified customer database that is
accessible to other systems.”
This definition has three critical elements:
PACKAGED
SOFTWARE
CREATES A
PERSISTENT,
UNIFIED CUSTOMER
DATABASE
ACCESSIBLE TO
OTHER SYSTEMS

4. Packaged software
A CDP is a prebuilt system that is configured to meet the
needs of each organization. While setting up and
maintaining a CDP does require some technical
resources, it does not require the level of technical skill
associated with a typical data warehouse project. This
difference reduces the time, cost and risk associated
with introducing a CDP and gives business users more
control over the system, even though they may still need
some technical assistance.

5. Persistent, unified
database
A CDP creates a comprehensive view of each customer
by capturing data from multiple systems, linking
information from those systems related to the same
customer and storing the information to track behavior
over time. In doing so, a CDP houses personal identifiers
used to target marketing messages and track individual-
level marketing results.

6. Accessible to other
systems
Other systems can use data stored in a CDP for analysis
and to manage customer interactions.

7. Now that we’ve defined what a CDP is, it’s
equally as important to understand what a
CDP is not.
It is not a workflow tool. CDPs do not simply port data from one place
to another. Rather, a key function of a CDP is to store and house data
so that users have a record from which to recall and act on
information.
A CDP is also not a data warehouse, which is primarily owned by IT
and serves as a repository for all different kinds of business-related
information, but does not allow for data transformation, normalization,
or activation by marketing and sales stakeholders.

8. WHY DO CUSTOMER DATA PLATFORMS EXIST?
Organizations now have more technology than ever,
and while these solutions deliver many benefits, they
also create data silos. Furthermore, because teams own
tools and tools own data, this setup can hurt
organizational alignment. Removing these silos
improves alignment and makes it easier for teams that
interact with customer data (including marketing, sales,
support, customer success, product and operations) to
navigate the growing landscape of technology.
To break down data silos
The data silos that often exist can also lead to
disjointed customer experiences because different
teams work with different data. CDPs remedy this
situation by serving as a central point to manage data
and interactions across the entire lifecycle of an
account, from acquisition through retention and
growth.
To create better customer
experiences
The proliferation of data in everything we do has created a need for CDPs.
Going deeper, CDPs exist for two key reasons.

9. What kinds of data do CDPs aggregate?
CDPs aggregate customer data from channels that span the entire
prospect and customer lifecycle, including:
Website data Email replies Purchase
orders
Mobile app
interactions
Social media
and chat
interactions

10. Who can benefit from a CDP?
At an organizational level, a CDP is most beneficial for mid-size and enterprise
companies that want more insight into their prospects and customers by
creating a true “360 degree view.” It also helps companies deliver a real-time,
unified customer experience across channels.
Additionally, both B2C and B2B companies can benefit from implementing a
CDP. A CDP can help B2C companies use real-time data to have more relevant
interactions with customers, for example by sending personalized offers and
content. On the B2B side, which is typically characterized by longer,
relationship-driven sales cycles, a CDP can help track the entire customer
journey from anonymous visitor to closed won opportunity. This tracking helps
marketing and sales have more informed conversations with prospects and
improves reporting throughout the customer journey.
ORGANIZATIONAL LEVEL

11. Who can benefit from a CDP?
At the user level, a CDP is most beneficial for:
Marketing managers and other team members who are responsible for growth,
demand generation and/or operations. A CDP is especially beneficial when these
users are not technical, since it allows non-technical users to manage customer
data and activate it through various channels. As a result, marketers can be self
sufficient instead of having to rely on engineering resources.
Sales teams that want to have better conversations with prospects and
customers using insight that may live in other systems, such as marketing
automation, chatbot and customer ticketing systems.
Data engineers that have been tasked with unifying different data sources but
don’t have the resources or bandwidth to do so because they have higher
priority projects in the pipeline.
USER LEVEL

12. The possibilities are limitless for how
marketing and sales teams can use a
CDP to better understand prospects and
customers and improve the customer
experience as a result.
Here are some of the top use cases.
What can
marketing
and sales
teams do
with a CDP?
Reconciling the many “identities” of a prospect or customer that
live in different applications by merging them into one identity
Building real-time, dynamic segmentations using data (or
attributes) from multiple software applications and delivering
personalized content to those segments
Visualizing the complete customer journey and introducing more
accurate attribution and reporting due to this visibility
Enhancing lead qualification with various data points (e.g.
demographic, technographic and behavioral data)
Cleaning and transforming data prior to pushing to/syncing with
other systems
Enriching marketing and sales conversations with more
contextual information

13. "Is a CDP right for me?"
For all the benefits that a CDP can deliver, how do you know if
introducing one is the right move for your company?
To start, you need to define a use case (or several) that clearly
identifies how you will put a CDP to work and the returns you
expect it to deliver. From there, you must decide which
department will own and manage the CDP and gain buy-in from
leadership to secure proper budget and support for the
program.
Following each of these steps is essential to realizing the full
benefits that a CDP can deliver.

14. ABOUT HULL
It’s never been easier to use data and technology to find, acquire and care for
customers. But that data so often sits siloed within tools and teams. Hull
solves this problem by collecting, enriching and synchronizing data without
any code so that you can orchestrate personal, relevant experiences at every
touch using your existing tools. The result is a seamless experience for your
customers as well as your sales, marketing, and support teams.
For more information, visit www.hull.io.