Three truths every advertiser should know about first-party data activation

The fading out of third-party cookies is deeply impacting targeting and measurement strategies in the advertising world. In response to this new reality, the use of first-party data – in a secure, interoperable environment – has surfaced as an undeniable lever.

To fully leverage first-party data in this changing landscape, advertisers need more than just access to information — they need a strategic, structured approach that considers partnerships, technology, and activation. In this article, we break down three key elements that are essential to turning first-party data into a powerful performance driver.

1. Agencies: Catalysts for a lasting solution

While agencies play an essential role guiding advertisers’ strategy, it is nevertheless crucial that data governance and choice of technology stays in the hands of the advertiser. A clean room is not just a new line on a media plan: it’s part of a structuring process that requires careful preparation and thought.

The advertiser needs to seek the involvement of various internal experts, be it in marketing, data handling, analytics, cybersecurity, IT or in legal, to name a few. It’s about creating an ecosystem of interconnected parts, and it must be handled as such.

Where do agencies come in?

• Providing strategic guidance and education: agencies can help explain how clean rooms work, while raising awareness about governance and privacy issues.
• Mapping out use cases: this involves identifying priority goals to make the most of data collected (clustering, personalization, allocation, etc.).
• Coordinating with tech teams: this includes ensuring that the client’s technological environment aligns with marketing needs.
• Handling activation and measurement: agencies can help translate data into practical insights, utilize audience enrichment and maximize campaign performance.

A properly integrated clean room should not apply to a single purpose; rather, it should be part of a global strategy in tune with the advertiser’s CRM, media and analytic efforts.

A well-structured approach aligned with business objectives ensures that first-party data is not only a marketing opportunity but acts as a lever for long-term competitiveness.

2. Staying relevant to your audience despite less effective third-party cookies

One of the major issues surrounding the third-party cookie slowdown is how it affects advertisers’ ability to target audiences in an effective, relevant way. In such circumstances, the use of first-party data in local media has become a powerful strategic solution, especially where ad performance and personalization are concerned.

One of the more interesting aspects of this is how the message and creative can be personalized in accordance with actual consumer behaviour. By assigning specific attributes to our audience (spending habits, product preferences, purchasing frequency, for example), we can send them highly relevant, targeted offers. 

Case in point: by crossing its transactional data with that of a local publication such as La Presse, a grocery chain wishing to showcase a product such as Bio-K could target consumers who have previously bought the product. The result? More targeted, relevant and effective messaging.

This type of targeting, based on first-party data signals enriched by local media, generates performance that is considerably higher to that of campaigns based on generic segmentation.

Another key advantage is the possibility of bringing back features that various advertising platforms no longer allow, like lookalike audiences, for example. This lever, once a highly effective way of expanding audiences while maintaining a high level of qualified users, is becoming harder to activate since the loss of third-party-cookie signals. Thanks to local media, however, it’s possible to get such audience expansion within a secure, controlled environment.

• Creating lookalike audiences: To give an example, a publication such as La Presse could use its own models to identify readers who share the same characteristics as purchasers of a given product, broadening their reach significantly.
• Leading more effective conquesting strategies: By using data from such publications, we can target consumers with behaviours similar to those of our existing clients, but who are not yet clients, thus increasing conversion opportunities.
  

3. Multiplying activation levers in an effort to maximize performance

There’s no one way to activate first-party data. There are several ways to use it, each with its own advantages and technical considerations. For maximum impact, it’s important to diversify by adapting each activation strategy to its specific situation.

Here are three complementary approaches:

1. Directly crossing data from a publication and direct purchase activation 

Advertisers and publications can cross their respective authenticated databases in a clean room in order to identify common audiences for activation purposes in a premium environment.

Advantages:

• Qualified audiences
• Verified data
• Brand-safe environment
• Guaranteed impressions
  

2. Adding first-party data to existing programmatic agreements

It’s possible to apply audiences gained from first-party data to already-activated inventories (private deals, RON, ROS, etc.) without changing the structure of the agreements. 

Advantages:

• Quick implementation
• Optimization of ongoing campaigns
• No changes to infrastructure required
  

3. Creating specific agreements with data integration 

This approach requires separate negotiations with the publication, to take data crossing into consideration when drafting the agreement.

Advantages:

• Higher match rate
• Precise alignment between media inventory and targeted audiences
• Heightened performance and better monitoring
  

Used alone, none of these approaches guarantees the best performance. For long-term, scalable value, these methods should be used in combination – and adjusted to the objectives of each campaign.

Conclusion

In a world where third-party cookies are increasingly ineffective, the activation of first-party data should not be seen as a mere tactical adjustment. Rather, it consists of a paradigm shift that puts data handling back in the hands of advertisers, strengthens their collaboration with trusted media partners and creates a more direct and more relevant connection with consumers.

But for it to be a success, it must be carefully structured, with internal experts and solid technological partners lined up and clean rooms set up at the heart of the global strategy.

And it’s in this context that the role of the agency is most valuable: it’s not just a media specialist, but a catalyst that can spark the creation of a lasting, well-performing, data-centric ecosystem.

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