6 Modern CDPs for Multi-Location Retailers

CDPs have become a fundamental component of the modern retailer’s data-driven marketing strategy. Each time a shopper favorites a jacket, watches a how-to video, clicks a newsletter link, or purchases an item from a competing retailer, the information gets logged. Modern retailers use the information to create individual profiles and identify audience segments. Beyond just serving as a tool for collecting and processing data from outside sources, though, modern CDPs are being used by multi-location retailers to actually develop hyper-personalized marketing campaigns based on first-party data.

Investments in CDPs are on the rise. Total revenue for the CDP industry is now forecast at $2 billion for 2022, a 25% increase over 2021, thanks to stronger than expected performance of the industry during the first half of the year. According to a report by Twilio Segment, a CDP company, 73% of companies say a CDP will be critical to their customer experience efforts going forward.

With a clear understanding of the benefits of modern CDPs, multi-location retailers are left comparing the differences between individual solutions. Not all CDPs are created equal, especially given that some vendors are simply rebranding their tag management technology and web personalisation tools as CDPs. Truly modern CDPs offer benefits that multi-location retailers cannot replicate with other systems and platforms.

Here are six modern CDPs that multi-location retailers can consider.

CDP Solutions for Multi-Location Retailers

1. Acquia

Acquia has invested heavily in the retail space, serving major retail clients like J. Crew, MCM, and Clarks. The company’s customer data platform achieves greater marketing efficiency by stitching together data from multiple systems to create single views of each and every customer. Users have access to configurable insights for each end user, across all channels and geographies, along with machine learning and predictive models, clusters, and recommendations that require zero-coding to implement. Acquia ensures GDPR compliance, including data rectification and deletion, using multi-tenant architecture in distributed environments.

2. Treasure Data

Treasure Data is a CDP designed for multi-location retailers. The company’s platform ingests and analyzes data to help retailers predict customer preferences and tailor individual experiences. It gives retailers a way to import data from multiple sources, and then unify that information to create complete views of each customer. Treasure Data relies on artificial intelligence and machine learning models with a graphical user interface to create Next Best Actions (NBAs), which retailers can implement as a way to engage customers along the path to purchase. Treasure Data is used by major global retail brands like MUJI and Stanley Black & Decker.

3. BlueConic

BlueConic provides multi-location retail brands with unified, actionable, and privacy-compliant first-party data designed to drive business outcomes and deliver personalized messaging to individuals based on real-time behavioral data. Retailers can bring the first-party data they collect from online and offline channels to BlueConic, and then create single customer views that are automatically normalized and cleaned. Both out-of-the-box and custom machine learning models are available without the need for technical resources. BlueConic is used by a number of global brands, including Mattel, Moen, and Michelin.

4. Lytics 

Known for its impressive client roster, which includes top multi-location retailers and brands like Nestlé Purina, Lytics is what’s known as a “smart” CDP. The company’s platform collects data through feeds and leverages unified customer profiles for behavioral and intent-based personalization. The Lytics platform also features natural language processing and machine learning, to create custom predictions and help brands orchestrate cross-channel campaigns. Companies that work with Lytics can continue using their existing EDWs and CRMs. Data from those third-party services can easily be pulled into Lytics via partner integrations.

5. mParticle

mParticle’s CDP integrates a company’s data and orchestrates it across channels, partners, and systems using real-time artificial intelligence. Retailers segment customers into dynamically-updated lists and distribute those lists to their internal and external partners. An API allows retailers to leverage persistent user profiles for one-to-one personalization anywhere an HTTPS request is sent. For retailers, this results in having a better understanding of customers and optimizing experiences with experimentation and access to the right data. mParticle clients include drybar, Giant Eagle, Burger King, and Gymshark.

6. Hitachi Solutions 

Hitachi Solutions is a Microsoft solutions integrator with deep retail industry and technology expertise. Hitachi Solutions has made a name for itself as one of the leading CDPs for multi-location brands by streamlining store management and using data to build stronger supply chains. Hitachi’s retail CDP combines customer relationship management, master data management, and advanced analytics tools to help retailers with big data insights and enhance the customer experience. The platform itself is able to process structured, semi-structured, and unstructured data from numerous internal and external sources. It can be combined with a number of other solutions, including Azure Databricks, Azure Synapse, and Microsoft Cloud for Retail.