Sixty-percent of marketing leaders believe collecting first-party customer data with an appropriate balance of customer value exchange and privacy will become more challenging in 2023, according to a survey by Gartner, Inc.

A Gartner survey of nearly 400 marketing leaders conducted in November and December 2022 revealed that 85% of respondents have implemented a formal policy to manage customer data, yet privacy remains an ongoing challenge. Despite this, marketers are leaning into personalization more than ever, with 42% of respondents citing that they are executing one-to-one personalized messages to customers.

"Third-party cookie depreciation is causing sources of data to disappear, and many marketers are still scrambling to shore up their first-party data strategy," said Ant Duffin, Senior Director Analyst in the Gartner Marketing practice. "As this data becomes more challenging to collect, marketers must adapt by leveraging new sources of data to fuel personalization and build deep customer relationships."

Majority of Marketers Empower Customers to Manage Their Data

In response to growing consumer awareness of data privacy, 78% of marketing leaders empower their customers to manage their own data. Eighty-two percent indicate that their organization is prioritizing first-party data to create immediate value for customers.

"Almost a third of survey respondents said they have abandoned an agency or channel partner over the last year due to customer trust or privacy concerns, highlighting the gravity of this issue," said Duffin.

Proactive Marketers Reap the Benefits of Prioritizing First-Party Data

Marketing leaders who act decisively to shore up first-party data achieve the strongest results. Over half of respondents who strongly prioritize the use of first-party data reported exceeding their customer retention expectations.

Marketing organizations that pursue multichannel strategies are more likely to take advantage of these benefits. Conventional wisdom suggests that brands that manage fewer marketing channels are able to more easily pivot towards first-party data. However, the survey found the opposite to be true.

Almost half of organizations that manage 11 or more marketing channels have increased their first-party customer data collection, compared with just over a quarter of those with 10 or fewer channels. Organizations with more channels are also more likely to be driving growth through new experiences and service channels (36%), and are leveraging AI to deliver customer engagements (24%).

"Data privacy is an issue that isn't going away, and it's imperative that digital marketing leaders build strategies that will secure the data they need while keeping the needs of customers front and center," said Duffin.

Additional information is available in the Gartner Marketing podcast, "Unsilo Your Multichannel Strategy - With Alex de Fursac Gash and Suzanne Schwartz" and the Gartner blog post "2023 Gartner Multichannel Marketing Survey: The Rising Stakes of Customer Data, Privacy, and Personalization."

About the Gartner Marketing Symposium/Xpo

Gartner analysts will discuss the key issues facing CMOs during the Gartner Marketing Symposium/Xpo, taking place in Denver, CO May 22-24, 2023. This conference provides marketing leaders actionable advice about the trends, tools and emerging technologies they need to deliver business results. Follow news and updates for the conference on the Gartner Newsroom and on Twitter and LinkedIn using #GartnerMKTG.

About Gartner for Marketers

Gartner for Marketers provides the objective, expert advice, and proven tools that CMOs and other marketing leaders need to seize the right opportunities with clarity and confidence, and to stay ahead of the trends that matter. With in-depth research and analysis, Gartner for Marketers helps you focus on the opportunities with the greatest potential to deliver results. More information on Gartner for Marketers is available online at www.gartner.com/marketing. Follow news and updates from the Gartner Marketing practice on Twitter and LinkedIn using #GartnerMKTG. Members of the media can find additional information and insights in the Gartner Marketing Newsroom.

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