[Infographic] What’s the Difference? Data Management Platform (DMP) vs. Customer Data Platform (CDP)

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Is your goal to improve ad campaigns or the entire customer experience?

DMP Definition: A DMP (for advertising) enables marketers to serve targeted ads programmatically using anonymous customer data. A CDP creates detailed, identifiable customer profiles for improving ad targeting, personalization, segmentation, loyalty programs, and the entire customer journey. DMPs and CDPs both handle customer data, but for very different purposes—let us explain more (also see our ebook on the topic co-authored with the CDP Institute – CDP vs. DMP ebook)

Key DMP and CDP Functionality

Data Management Platforms (DMP, advertising)

• Anonymized identity data
• Third-party data management only
• 90-day data retention
• Limited data ingestion
• ID resolution limited to a few anonymous identifiers
• Minimal security
• Segments to execute targeted ad campaigns

See a list of DMP vendors here.

Customer Data Platforms (CDP, marketing)

• Personally identifiable customer data
• First, second, and third-party data management
• Long-term data retention
• Ability to resolve & integrate data from many data sets & data streams
• Advanced ID resolution
• Enterprise-level security for advanced data protection
• Actionable 360-degree customer profiles for use across the entire martech stack

Rich Data Gives Marketers an Edge

93% of executives believe using more customer data in their campaigns will “create a noticeable shift in their ability to meet disruptive and competitive challenges.” [Forbes]1

View of Customer: DMP vs. CDP

DMPs provide marketers with a limited, often fuzzy, customer view for executing specific short-term tasks, such as:

• Location: Houston, TX
• iPhone User: 9sfj4mvkHt6
• Interests: Travel, Water Sports, Cycling

CDP platforms bring customers into detailed focus by providing a holistic, 360-degree customer view.

• Emily Bermudez, Age 41
• Married to Robert Bermudez (Age 44) with 3 kids under 18
• Social referral: Instagram
• Occupation: Graphic designer
• Mobile: (281) 861-6199
• Contact preference: eber@gmail.com
• Interests: Travel, Water Sports, Cycling
• Location: Houston, TX
• Household income: $150k
• Home address: 15711 Park Way, Houston, TX
• Most active online: 10–11 p.m. from her iPhone 7, 1:30–2:15 p.m. from her work-issued MacBook Air
• Recent online activities: Browsed airline tickets to Orlando, Florida, purchased water bottle, sunglasses and backpack, browsed competitors’ products on iPhone, opened last email 5 days ago

Turning CDP Insights into Actions

Emily’s search and purchase behavior indicate that she is planning a trip to Orlando. With a husband and three children, she is likely to respond favorably to an all-inclusive, kid-friendly resort, as well as offers for family water activities, bike rentals, and supervised kid-only activities. Use CDP data to:

• Unify data from all of Emily’s devices, in-store activity, and social media behavior.
• Dynamically move Emily to the most relevant audience segment.
• Deliver highly targeted offers based on AI/ML insights from her 360-degree profile.
• Engage with her on the channels and at the time of day she is most likely to respond.
• Anticipate her needs & provide personalized recommendations her whole family will enjoy
• Improve the customer journey for others based on Emily’s interaction with your offers & brand.

Choose a CDP to Deliver Exceptional Customer Experiences

Your customers aren’t anonymous, and they aren’t all the same. A CDP helps you make every touchpoint more relevant and engaging by understanding who your customers are—so you can give them the best brand experience based on their interests.

To learn more about how CDPs compare to DMPs, see our ebook with the CDP Institute about more granular differences – CDP vs. DMP ebook.

Treasure Data empowers brands with rich customer insights that drive outstanding customer experiences. With advanced data management capabilities at the core, we enable brands to identify, engage and acquire customers efficiently, all within an open, highly configurable and secure environment (learn “what is CDP“, “What is SCV” (single customer view) or “CRM vs CDP“).

¹ Forbes: The Rise of the Customer Data Platform and What It Means to Business, June 2018

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