3 first-party data strategies for online stores to grow sales

First-party data, referred to as zero-party data by some, is information consumers provide willingly and give consent to be used for marketing and other purposes.

Why would people do that, you ask?

Well, think about the last time you visited an online store of a top brand, and a pop-up appeared offering a discount if you subscribed to the store’s newsletter?

Consumers are happy to share their email addresses, knowing that it will be used to make them aware of promotions and new products, in exchange for a discount.

Similarly, when the Accept All Cookies button is clicked in cookie consent disclaimers, consumers are agreeing to allow cookies to be placed and pixels, tags, and other vital scripts to load, which makes harnessing the power of retargeting a possibility without violating current privacy regulations.

Here are three ways online retailers can leverage first-party data to grow sales:

1. Offer attractive discounts for app purchases

Encouraging customers to install and make purchases using the store’s app allows the business to perennially reach customers on their mobile devices via push notifications.

2. Provide coupons to increase newsletter subscriptions

Incentivizing newsletter signups allows store owners to alert their customers of new promotions and products using customers' email addresses.

3. Use pixels/tags for retargeting campaigns

The Meta/Facebook pixel, for example, can be configured to identify what actions customers have performed during their time spent on a website or app where the pixel is installed, and then serve those individuals specific offers using ads on Facebook. The ability to reach customers outside of properties owned and operated by the business, or even the ability to entice those who have abandoned their shopping carts to return and complete their purchase, is needless to say a powerful tool to boost sales. Retargeting campaigns are highly effective for cross-selling and up-selling too.

"Top brands have figured out how to realize the greatest value from first-party data, thus improving the customer experience and boosting business results."

Utilizing first-party data to reach new and existing customers across multiple channels has helped businesses boost revenue significantly.

Research conducted by Boston Consulting Group (BCG) found “that data-driven marketing can double revenue and increase cost savings by 1.6 times,” but many businesses are yet to adopt a first-party data strategy.

“Top brands have figured out how to realize the greatest value from first-party data, thus improving the customer experience and boosting business results. As the importance of such data continues to increase, others will need to do the same in order to gain a competitive edge,” the BCG report concluded.

The best first-party data strategies are long-term, and when given the time to deliver results they have contributed to considerable growth, resulting in marketing budgets being used more efficiently and sales surging.