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What is first-party data?

First-party data is behavioral information you observe about someone on your owned channels, like your website, mobile app, or email campaigns. It includes actions like which products someone browses, what emails they click, how often they purchase, and what pages they visit.

Unlike third-party data, which comes from external sources, or zero-party data, which people explicitly share with you, first-party data is collected passively as people interact with your brand.

First-party data is valuable because it reflects real behavior, not just stated preferences. When someone clicks through 3 emails about running shoes and spends time on your trail running collection page, for example, that may reveal more about their interests than a survey response. This behavioral data helps you personalize marketing, anticipate future actions, and build experiences that feel relevant to each customer.

First-party data vs. zero-party data vs. third-party data

First-party data is one of 3 main types of customer data. Here's how they compare:

  1. First-party data: behavioral information you observe on your owned channels, like browsing behavior, text message clicks, and purchase history)
  2. Zero-party data: information someone explicitly shares with you, like their email address, birthday, ando product preferences in a quiz
  3. Third-party data: information collected by external companies and sold or shared with brands, often based on browsing behavior across multiple websites

First-part and zero-party data work together to give you a more complete view of your customers: first-party data shows you what people do, while z Zero-party data tells you what they want.

Third-party data, on the other hand, is becoming less reliable and harder to access as privacy regulations evolve.

Types of first-party data you can collect

First-party data comes from multiple touchpoints across your owned channels, including:

  • Website behavior: pages visited, products viewed, time spent on site, search queries, items added to cart
  • Email engagement: opens, link clicks, unsubscribes
  • Text messaging engagement: opens, link clicks, unsubscribes, responses
  • Purchase history: products bought, order frequency, average order value, items returned or exchanged
  • Mobile app activity: features used, in-app purchases, push notification interactions, session frequency
  • Customer service interactions: support tickets submitted, issues resolved, topics discussed with your team

Each of these data points helps you understand customer preferences and anticipate future behavior. When you unify this data in one place along with other types of data, you can see the full picture of how someone engages with your brand across channels.

How to use first-party data effectively

Collecting first-party data is just the first step. The real value comes from using it. Here are a few ways to make first-party data work for you:

  • Segment your audience. Use first-party data to group customers into behavioral segments like frequent buyers, cart abandoners, or people who browse but never purchase. This lets you send targeted messages that match where someone is in their journey with your brand.
  • Trigger marketing flows. With first-party data on behaviors like sign-up form submission, cart or browse abandonment, or order placement, you can set up marketing automations that go out automatically anytime someone takes those actions.
  • Personalize your marketing. Use browsing and purchase history to recommend products, tailor content across channels, and adjust messaging based on what each customer cares about.
  • Predict future behavior. Use predictive analytics to analyze patterns in your first-party data and forecast when someone's likely to make a repeat purchase, which products they might want next, or when they'reis at risk of churning.
  • Optimize your channels. Use marketing attribution in combination with first-party data to track which emails, text messages, website experiences, and mobile conversations drive the most engagement, then refine your approach based on what resonates.

Benefits of first-party data

First-party data has become essential as privacy regulations tighten and third-party cookies disappear. When you rely on data you collect directly from your customers, you control the quality, accuracy, and compliance of that data. You're not dependent on external parties or platforms that may restrict access or change their policies.

Here are just a few additional benefits of first-party data:

  • Better personalization at scale: When you know what products someone browses, which marketing messages they engage with, and how often they purchase, you can tailor every message to their actual interests. Relevant communications tend to feel more helpful and engaging, resulting in stronger customer relationships.
  • Reduced dependence on third parties: As third-party cookies disappear and privacy regulations tighten, brands that rely on their own data maintain more control over their marketing strategy. You're not at the mercy of external platform changes or restrictions.
  • More efficient marketing spend: When your marketing is based on real behavior rather than broad demographics, it's more likely to resonate with subscribers. This can reduce guesswork and minimize wasted impressions.

Challenges with first-party data

While first-party data is powerful, it presents a few challenges for B2C brands, including:

  • Data silos: Customer data often lives in separate systems, like your ecommerce platform, email platform, helpdesk, and analytics dashboard. Without integrating all of these functions in a single source of truth like a CRM, first-party data won't show you the full picture of how someone interacts with your brand.
  • Incomplete profiles: If someone browses your website anonymously, you won't know who they are until they sign up for marketing or make a purchase. This means you miss opportunities to personalize their experience early in their journey.
  • Privacy and consent: Privacy regulations require transparency about what data you collect and how you use it. That means you need to collect first-party data responsibly, with explicit consent and easy opt-out options. .

First-party data gives you a strong foundation for marketing that feels relevant, timely, and personal to every customer.

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