previous icon Back to blog
Apr 28, 2021
5 minutes read

The differences between CRM, CDP and DMP platforms

Data management platforms (DMPs), customer relationship management (CRM) systems and customer data platforms (CDPs) can all play an important part in the customer lifecycle, but telling the difference between them can get tricky. In this blog, we look at what they do, how they differ and where they can help drive more data insights.

What is a Data Management Platform?

Ever wonder why it seems that as soon as you search for a particular product on one platform, you see advertisements for similar products everywhere else? That’s partly because of DMPs, which gather and categorise data from various sources.

This information is usually gained from third-party web analytics, such as cookies and IP addresses, that track your page visits or even the contents of your shopping cart. Data from a DMP can then be fed into a demand-side platform (DSP) so that companies can serve customers adverts based on their online behaviour. An example of a popular DMP would be the Google Display Network which many marketeers use to advertise their products and services.

Because legislation regarding user privacy has become more stringent in recent years, such as GDPR, this information should be completely anonymous and short-lived as it expires after a certain duration.

While DMPs are great for targeted ad campaigns, they don’t have the same breadth and depth of stand-alone analytical tools, and online adverts are notoriously easy to ignore. They also do not build a complete view of your customers, which is where CRM and CDP systems become necessary.

What is Customer Relationship Management

The goal of a CRM system is fairly simple: to improve business relationships by managing interactions with existing and potential customers. Most CRM software is used to create a simple interface for employees to record basic customer information, such as email, contact numbers, or call conversations, as well as other important details, such as the customer’s buying prospects, contract status, or reasons for a won or lost deal.

Ultimately, CRM systems help businesses, big or small, learn more about their customers, organise their information, and optimise the interactions with them. CRM is particularly useful for operations in marketing, sales, and service, as you frequently use past customer data to contact new or returning customers. A CRM can serve as an analytical tool to create a sales pipeline for forecasting and improving customer satisfaction by keeping track of on-going relationships. It also helps with creating personalised experiences based on past interactions.

A common drawback of a CRM system, however, is that it often creates a limited view of the customer as it focuses on first-hand interactions and isn’t able to fully integrate data from different touch points. Because it also usually relies on manual entry, it can easily become overly complicated, labour-intensive, and difficult to manage effectively. That is where CDPs step in.

What is a Customer Data Platform

The main problem with customer data is that it is often siloed across different software systems and, while businesses have access to ever-increasing amounts of user data, the core of their business remains digitally unintegrated.

A CDP brings together data from various channels and sources to create a single, unified profile of each individual customer. CDPs work with first-party data, such as a CRM database of existing customers, combining them with second-party data (which is data bought from other companies) and anonymous third-party data (such as those gained by DMPs). This greatly benefits personalisation marketing strategies as it gives a more holistic understanding of known customers while incorporating second- and third-party insights to target prospective customers more effectively.

One should, however, be careful of platforms that have recently changed into CDPs but are, in reality, just CRMs, DMPs, or data warehouses. CDPs do not simply store information or route them between different systems, but they create a central database where information is organised, integrated, and made available to use when it is needed. Bringing all your customer data together is one thing, but you’ll need a trusted CDP if you want to use it well.

A leading CDP provider like CM.com allows you to segment customer data based on certain criteria, such as purchase history, birthdays, web behaviour, and location. It gives you real-time insights into your customer's behaviour, so advertising can be personalised and automated with workflows to reach customers via various channels exactly when they’re looking for it.

How They All Come Together

DMPs, CRMs, and CDPs all come together to create a bigger picture of the customer journey. After DMPs have created new customer leads, CRMs help keep track of the on-going relationship while CDPs bring all of this data together to help brands connect and engage with new and existing customers more effectively. Businesses don’t always need to choose one over the other two, as they all serve valuable roles in understanding your customer and aligning your marketing campaigns with holistic, data-driven insights.

After all, data, on its own, is quite inconsequential – a small moving part in a bigger operation. Only when it is made valuable and accessible can companies explore its true potential in improving decision-making and measuring positive business outcomes.

As more people take to online activities, the amount of user data being generated will only increase exponentially. If businesses want more effective customer engagement and satisfaction, they need to start using that data to its full potential.

Unlock data with the Customer Data Platform.

Was this article interesting?
Share it!
CM.com
connects tens of thousands of companies with millions of consumers via their mobile phone each day. Behind the scenes, from our innovative platform, CM.com makes sure companies can use these millions of messages, phone calls and payments to become part of people’s lives.

Related articles

payspace customer story
Oct 16, 2023 • Marketing

Enhance your Black Friday SMS marketing with Pages

In recent years, the integration of SMS has played a pivotal role in transforming the Black Friday shopping experience. Retailers and consumers alike have embraced SMS as a powerful tool for communicating promotions, exclusive offers, and time-sensitive alerts.

dutch-grand-prix-marketing
Jun 30, 2023 • Marketing

How to boost fan engagement: Formula 1 Heineken Dutch Grand Prix use case

What makes sport so great is that it connects all kinds of people. On the other hand, knowing no two sports fans are alike makes it challenging for sports organisations to address different fan segments. The organisation behind the Formula 1 Heineken Dutch Grand Prix acknowledged this challenge and realised they needed to create individual experiences for fans at CM.com Circuit Zandvoort. With this ethos, they've built world-beating fan experiences for the first F1 event at Circuit Zandvoort in 35 years. But the team isn't finished. They're working to improve fan engagement year on year. Want to know more? Here we share five insider tips on how the Dutch Grand Prix built fan engagement before, during, and after the race.

dutch-grand-prix-service
Jun 30, 2023 • CM.com

Seamless customer support at the Formula 1 Heineken Dutch Grand Prix

In the run-up to any event, attendees will have numerous questions, such as "how do I get there," "where can I find my tickets," and "Is there somewhere to stay nearby." F1 fans often ask these types of questions before the Formula 1 Heineken Dutch Grand Prix.

instagram-marketing-messages-feature1
May 22, 2023 • Conversational Commerce

Introducing Instagram Marketing Messages

Today, more and more customer engagement happens on social media. And with good reason. Personalised messages on consumers' favourite messaging apps can truly benefit your brand awareness. Instagram's new Marketing Messages feature offers a great marketing tool to be visible where your customers are and re-engage them to boost those conversion rates.

whatsapp-business-blog_image-deals-offers
Apr 03, 2023 • WhatsApp

Increase conversion with promotional messages on WhatsApp

In an age of mass marketing, as well as constant TV, internet and email advertising, it’s safe to say that sales periods can be something of an overwhelming experience for consumers around the world. Inundated with information from companies, people could be forgiven for wanting to switch off their phones, radios and televisions and ignore all forms of marketing until the sales period is all over. As an eCommerce owner, you should always be looking to avoid this by diversifying your marketing strategy in a way that suits your customers needs.

Mobile Marketing Cloud conversational marketing blog
Mar 29, 2023 • Marketing

Engagement where it matters: CM.com's take on conversational marketing

Look at most definitions of conversational marketing, and it’s not clear what all the excitement is about. “Engaging customers through dialogue”, “interacting with people via real-time”, “two-way communication”, “putting the focus on interactions using social media messaging channels”. Isn’t that what marketers have been doing for years?

whatsapp-business-blog_image-newsletters-announcements
Mar 13, 2023 • WhatsApp

What is a WhatsApp newsletter and how does it work?

WhatsApp newsletters are messages that can be sent from a brand's WhatsApp business account to a specific audience of customers with information that's relevant to them. You can send people special offers, exclusive discounts, and new product announcements. You can also personalise these offers based on special events like holidays and birthdays, or annual promotions like Black Friday and Cyber Monday.

Airport
Feb 06, 2023 • Chatbots

How technology can help air travel build back better

The travel industry has endured a challenging few years through the COVID pandemic and, most recently, during the well-documented travel chaos of summer 2022. Post-pandemic, the industry has struggled to right itself, with the summer’s turmoil starkly illustrating the issues facing the industry after significant recent disruption.

personalization-ecommerce
Jan 30, 2023 • Conversational Commerce

Personalisation in retail and eCommerce: there's more than 'Hi John'

Every retail and eCommerce player knows personalisation is essential. It’s how you build customer trust, make your messaging meaningful, and keep shoppers coming back. But fewer realise how deep and broad true personalisation goes.

Is this region a better fit for you?
Go
close icon