US CEO, Jason Downie attended RampUp 2024 and writes about his key insights and reflections from the event.

“At Rampup 2024, the term “data collaboration” was said MORE times than AI. That is a first! Scott Howe’s keynote focused on the dawn of this new era, ushered in by changes in user expectations for privacy and personalization, changes in regulations, and the deprecation of 3P party cookies.  

A month prior, I heard David Cohen speak at IAB ALM, and he called the upcoming years “The In-Between Years”. The messy middle between what was the standard for the last 30 years (3P cookies and precision marketing) and what will be for the next +30 years (1P data, AI-powered modeling, and collaboration).

A few weeks before IAB ALM, I heard Google’s Steve Yap speak at a US GMP Sales Partner summit. He spoke to the future of Google’s ad and martech being a “cooperative”.

Collaboration.  Cooperation.

Marketers need to figure out what their new “partner ecosystem” will look like and move quickly to build those relationships and the interconnectedness needed to achieve their goals.

In order to fully participate, marketers need:

• 1PD collected, prepped, de-siloed and organized
• Data Housed in a place (a cloud, or multiple clouds) where it can be made available for use across multiple partners (in a privacy-safe, secure environment)
• Clean room tech that unlocks data collaboration across brands, data partners, and retailers in a way that also protects consumer privacy and consent
• Platform partners that enable interoperable activation of the data where customers live (e.g. through PAIR into Google DV360)
• A way to pull the results back down to the data warehouse for analysis and measurement

To do all this, marketers will need multiple partners.  Consulting firms, system integrators, cloud providers, clean room tech, data partners, etc..  We are trying to figure out, as an industry, how to do business for the next 30 years.

Marketers are generally not set up to do this.  They sell soft drinks.  Or soap.  Or checking accounts.  Some in-housing (or as we like to say, “right-housing”) is needed to own the data.  Testing and learning can be expensive.  But it needs to be done.  Marketers should be trying lots of different tactics in a short period of time (fail small and fast to win big!) in these in-between years, in order to arrive at more permanent solutions that will work for the new era.

Finding trusted advisors to help make sense of all the partners feels like an important step in this process.  Lots of companies have point solutions, or ad inventory, or data assets, or do media planning, buying, or measurement.  But a lot less are client-centric experts in the data collaboration value chain of the future.  Consulting plus hands-on-keyboard thingdoers to evaluate tech, collect, move, organize and activate 1PD, and enables tech connections and run POCs.  There will be an evolution towards companies becoming “ad tech system integrators for the CMO” or Data AORs as data collection and collaboration become more important.  And marketers will be better off as this evolution continues, so they can tie all this together in bespoke winning strategies.”

Get in touch with our team of experts to help your business navigate through the digital landscape.

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As a continuation of “Chrome’s Challenge: Adapting to 3rd Party Cookie Deprecation“, we delve deeper into the intricacies of adapting to a world without third-party cookies, it’s crucial to not only focus on immediate mitigation and activation strategies, but also to consider the broader implications for managing change within your organization and the evolving digital landscape. Here’s how to approach this transition with a holistic perspective:

Managing Change and Stakeholder Engagement:

• Leveraging Making Science’s 3PC Deprecation Tool: This invaluable tool aids in strategic planning by quantifying the impact of 3PC deprecation on your operations, streamlining the process for gaining the necessary technical and legal approvals for implementing critical updates like Enhanced Conversions. It’s about making informed decisions that align with both current needs and future directions.

The Role of Google’s Privacy Sandbox:

• Adapting to New Technologies: Google’s Privacy Sandbox introduces a suite of alternatives, including the Topics API and Protected Audiences, aimed at preserving user privacy while maintaining advertising effectiveness. Although reactions have been mixed, staying abreast of these developments is essential for adjusting strategies in real-time.
  • Topics API: Designed to categorize a user’s interests based on their browsing history, facilitating personalized advertising without individual tracking
  • Protected Audiences API: Offers a framework for advertisers to target specific user groups while ensuring stringent privacy protections and compliance with data regulations

• Monitoring Developments: The influence of the Privacy Sandbox is set to expand, making it imperative to understand how its components can be integrated into your advertising efforts. Begin with the immediate strategies outlined, then pivot to harnessing the full potential of the Privacy Sandbox as it matures.

This approach not only ensures compliance and efficacy in your marketing endeavors post-3PC but also emphasizes the importance of agility and forward-thinking. By embracing both mitigation and activation techniques—and preparing for the shifts in technology and stakeholder expectations—you can continue to provide personalized advertising experiences, sidestepping reliance on third-party data and setting a new standard for privacy-conscious marketing.

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Chrome’s 3rd Party Cookie Deprecation (3PCD) is already affecting business and marketing performance. In this post, we’ll uncover how this seismic shift is reshaping today’s strategies and explore ways to adapt and succeed in a post-3PC world. 

What is happening?

Google Chrome has taken a decisive step towards privacy-first browsing, which started with the deprecation of third-party cookies for 1% of its users in January 2024. Google plans to extend this to all users by the latter half of the year. This gradual phase-out marks a significant shift from traditional user tracking methods and aligns with a broader industry move towards enhancing user privacy.

Why it matters

Chrome’s third-party cookie deprecation is more than a tech shift—it’s a revolution in digital advertising, given its 65% global market share. This change impacts advertisers, publishers, and users, especially on desktop where conversion rates are higher. Google and Meta’s reliance on these cookies for detailed user profiles and targeted advertising is facing a transformative challenge.

What will the impact be?

The decline in third-party data quality will make it less complete and accurate, potentially reducing marketing efficiency and ROAS unless advertisers adjust. Making Science’s 3PC Deprecation Impact Tool predicts up to a 30% drop in advertising-attributed online conversions and a possible 9% loss in digital revenue for certain sectors. This highlights the growing importance of first-party data (1PD) over third-party data (3PD), due to cookie deprecation.

What can be done to mitigate the impact?

There are lots of options available to handle this change – in fact, too many. It is important to understand the impact on your business and prioritize the available changes based on ease of implementation and impact. We can bucket the opportunities into mitigation and activation.

Mitigation

We’ve compiled a few key solutions that are aimed at reducing the loss of data volume and quality by implementing tools provided by Google and collecting better data using durable, privacy-compliant solutions.

• We can’t stress the importance of a consent management platform (CMP) rather than a DIY solution for a consent banner. CMPs integrate with Google’s technical solutions and provide template consent banners that are compliant with the latest regulatory changes in differing markets, which can become hard to manage as more and more countries and states implement their own privacy legislation.
• GA4 implementation will provide confidence in data, become the data source of truth for the business and stay up-to-date with privacy changes, as Google has shown its commitment to keeping GA4 compliant.
• Consent Mode V2 for all Google products and Enhanced Conversions will allow for better matching by Google whilst respecting privacy. Consent Mode is now a requirement for using advertising features within Google products, and Enhanced Conversions allow conversions to be tied to impressions and clicks better, improving the understanding of campaign performance.

We deem those as the initial essential requirements for dealing with 3PC deprecation, but there are also other measures, such as: 

• Implementing server-side measurement that will further improve the robustness of the GA4 implementation and marketing pixels. 
• Leveraging server-to-server APIs for key conversions to ensure 1-to-1 matching between internal databases and ad/martech. 
• Greater understanding of users can be achieved by using a Customer Data Architecture (CDA) or a Customer Data Platform (CDP) and cleanroom analysis can help cluster users together for better-aggregated targeting.

What activation strategies can help navigate 3PC deprecation effectively?

In addressing the challenge of third-party cookie (3PC) deprecation, a myriad of strategies are available to adapt and thrive. The key is to assess the impact on your business and prioritize strategies based on their implementation feasibility and potential impact.

Activation

Focusing on activation strategies that leverage first-party data (1PD) is crucial. Here’s a breakdown of key action items:

Building and Enhancing Audiences:

• GA4 Audiences: Utilize GA4 to create dynamic audiences based on user behavior. These audiences can then be seamlessly integrated into Ads and Google’s adtech stack, improving the precision of your targeting.
• Customer Match: Automate the process of uploading customer lists into Ads for more accurate targeting, helping to counteract the impact of 3PC deprecation.

Leveraging Google’s Advanced Tools:

• Smart Bidding: Implement Google’s Smart Bidding to optimize campaigns using AI, which adjusts bids in real-time for conversions or conversion value, making use of contextual signals and machine learning.
• Consent Mode V2 and Enhanced Conversions: Ensure compliance and improve data accuracy with Consent Mode V2, now a requirement for Google product advertising features. Enhanced Conversions improve the linkage between conversions and ad interactions, offering a deeper understanding of campaign performance.

Enhancing Signal Quality:

Predictive Modeling with Gauss Smart Advertising: Beyond the scope of Google’s tools, Gauss Smart Advertising enhances your digital strategy through predictive modeling. This tool does more than just score users; it significantly enhances the signals sent to Google’s algorithms for unparalleled optimization. Such advanced techniques can sharpen your advertising efforts and lead to more targeted, impactful campaigns that elevate performance thoughtfully and effectively.

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The Surprising Reality of Mobile Web Accessibility

One might think that it’s a battle won. Web accessibility has been a resonating theme for over two decades now, emphasizing the importance of ensuring an inclusive online experience for all users. 

65% of web traffic in Europe comes from mobile devices, and Google has clearly indicated its support for mobile-optimized websites by favoring them in its ranking.

Mobile Optimization: Expectation vs. Reality

Nowadays, all advertisers should have a mobile-optimized website that adheres to the basics of accessibility – how could it be otherwise?

However, despite advancements, the reality is quite different. A study conducted by Making Science in 2022 shows that, among other findings, 72% of the websites of the companies from the IBEX 35 (Spain’s principal stock exchange), exhibit mobile accessibility deficiencies.

Similarly, we still encounter clients asking us to audit their website, only to find that the design was not initially intended for mobile.

This is particularly serious because not optimizing the experience for the majority of traffic exposes one to losing conversion points, leads, and sales.

Responsive Design vs. Mobile First.

Moreover, just because a website displays decently on a mobile device doesn’t mean it’s optimized for the best conversion. To explain, the term “responsive” is not equivalent to “Mobile First.”

When designing a website, there are generally 2 or 3 versions for different device types: Desktop, Mobile, and sometimes Tablet. There are fundamentally two ways to work: either start with mobile and progress to larger formats, known as “Mobile First”, or the other way around. This first approach makes the most sense since it caters to the majority of users, leveraging additional space on desktop.

The other approach, unfortunately still too common, goes in the opposite direction, known as “Graceful Degradation.” The designer starts with the largest version and then adapts it to mobile. This is not the right approach as it optimizes work for a minority, requiring adjustments for content and functionality in a confined space.

You might say, “But if we’re talking about ‘Graceful Degradation,’ it can’t be that bad.” Let me give you an example to explain why it’s not the case.

Imagine a product website presenting its main selling points to visitors. On the desktop version, a common way to present them would be using elements called “Cards,” with 3 or 4 cards in a row. This layout is suitable for a large horizontal screen but we can immediately intuit that it doesn’t fit very well into a vertical screen. 

When translated to mobile, these cards often end up either in a horizontal carousel or a simple vertical stack, neither of which is optimal. In the first case, the user will have to interrupt his horizontal scroll to scroll horizontally in order to see the info. (Spoiler: he won’t do so, and will lose an important part of the product pitch.)

Vertical stacking is a better option, but in terms of design and space optimization, it’s really not that great. 

The Case for Progressive Enhancement

Working in the direction of “Progressive Enhancement,” starting with mobile, forces us to optimize information presentation for mobile constraints, resulting in a better-adapted version.

Here, all information is visible on a single screen, giving the user access to all arguments in a nutshell.

The errors caused by the Desktop First approach can be even more dramatic and lead to significant drops in conversion. For example, forgetting to provide a mobile user with a link to return to the filtered list from a product page because the Desktop version lacks it (desktop users are generally relying on the browser’s back button).

Breaking Free from Old Design Habits

Unfortunately, many agencies and designers still follow a Desktop First approach, either out of habit or comfort.  It’s more rewarding to design a beautiful layout on a large screen than starting with mobile.  Another downside is that since mobile design comes at the end of the creation process, it often gets rushed to meet deadlines.

It’s time for agencies and designers to break free from old habits and prioritize the quality of the user experience across all platforms.

Advertisers must also ensure that teams responsible for designing digital assets opt for a “Progressive Enhancement” approach, starting with mobile. This represents a strategic approach to overcome constraints while ensuring a consistent and optimal user experience.

The journey towards universal web accessibility and an exceptional user experience requires constant evolution of methodologies and a reassessment of established practices. Only those who anticipate these changes and adopt innovative approaches can hope to stay in sync with the growing expectations of users.

Certified to deliver all 11 Google Marketing Platform (GMP) services, Making Science is now a GMP Sales Partner licensed to resell contracts for the full suite of GMP products

Chicago, January 30, 2024 – Making Science, a global digital marketing company, today announced its official status as a Google Marketing Platform (GMP) Sales Partner in the United States. This strategic partnership empowers Making Science to resell contracts for the full suite of GMP products, providing brands and agencies with platform access to help navigate the evolving digital marketing landscape.

“We couldn’t be more excited about our newly minted status as a Google Marketing Platform Sales Partner,” commented Jason Downie, the US CEO of Making Science. “By delivering GMP services over the years, we observed the transformative power of GMP to connect brands with audiences. Our elevated partnership formalizes our commitment to democratizing access to these cutting-edge tools, allowing Making Science to resell GMP products and help US brands and agencies unlock the full potential of Google and accelerate their digital transformation.”

As a new GMP Sales Partner, Making Science continues to offer unparalleled expertise and comprehensive services, which include:

• Data + Activation: Making Science helps brands develop strategies to collect, analyze, and transform first-party data from site analytics, CRM, and Cloud platforms into assets for media activation.
• Performance Enhancing Technology: Making Science has built award-winning automation and AI technologies that supercharge Google Ads and GMP media performance. With 400+ engineers, they are the rare marketing consultancy backed by proven IT and developer horsepower.
• Privacy-Forward Solutions: Making Science helps brands prepare for third-party cookie deprecation and navigate a rapidly evolving digital marketing landscape with proprietary reporting technology, audits, privacy-preserving consultation, and mitigation plans.
• Strategic Partnership Development: The US leadership team has 30+ years of combined experience at Google and across the broader AdTech industry. They have an unmatched understanding of multi-partner collaboration with Google, agencies, and industry-leading data and technology providers. 
• Delivery at Scale: Making Science offers agile, on-demand service teams dedicated to US customers with the ability to scale globally.

“As one of only a few certified GMP resellers in the US, our unmatched expertise offers clients a competitive edge as they navigate cookie deprecation and bolster their first-party data assets,” commented Founder and Chairman of Making Science, José Antonio Martínez Aguilar. “This is an exciting step in our growth and enables us to truly collaborate with and support our clients in every aspect of their digital marketing initiatives.”  

This alliance marks a significant milestone for Making Science and the company’s global expansion while further solidifying its position as a trusted global guide for brands seeking to unlock the full potential of their digital marketing efforts. Organizations can gain a competitive edge, achieve measurable results, and drive sustainable growth by leveraging the power of GMP and Making Science’s expert guidance.

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About Making Science 

Making Science is a global digital acceleration company with a dynamic team of over 1,200 experts across 15 markets, including Spain, Portugal, Mexico, Colombia, France, Italy, the UK, Ireland, Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Finland, Germany, Georgia, and the USA. As a proud consulting partner of Local Planet — the world’s premier network of independent media agencies — we deliver a suite of digital, technology, and performance marketing services to a global clientele. Our expertise spans digital marketing and MarTech, software and cloud solutions, artificial intelligence, and SaaS, all underscored by a relentless pursuit of innovation.

As part of its commitment to innovation, Making Science offers its clients end-to-end capabilities required for consulting, developing, integrating, and maintaining advanced IT solutions. Our global network of delivery hubs not only fosters job growth but also serves as an incubator for cultivating top-tier tech talent, fueling projects that accelerate transformation and modernization.

Committed to making a positive impact, Making Science actively engages in various ESG initiatives. We’ve joined forces with the Climate Pledge, the United Nations Global Compact, and Pledge1%, dedicating resources and efforts to support non-profit organizations. Through these endeavors, we are committed to driving meaningful change for a brighter, more sustainable future.

Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) have made their mark in the digital landscape, promising to revolutionize our interactions with the world. Yet, despite their potential, these technologies are still striving to attain mainstream acceptance. Does AR/VR signal an uphill battle or do they hold a future of opportunity?

Unique UX/UI Design Principles in AR/VR

AR and VR have found success within niche applications. Google, for instance, has made impressive advancements in AR by enabling users to visualize certain products before purchase, and platforms like YouTube now use AR for innovative features like makeup trials. However, these successes are more exceptions than the norm.

Even with tech giants like Meta and Apple delving into this realm, their offerings haven’t ignited the market as expected. Meta’s AR/VR headset and Apple’s VisionPro are yet to showcase their full potential.

A key factor in the adoption of these technologies is the user experience they provide. The UX/UI design principles for AR/VR go beyond the conventional ones like user-centered design, consistency, and hierarchy. AR/VR environments, due to their three-dimensional nature, necessitate a detailed understanding of depth, proximity, and motion, thus broadening the horizon of UX/UI design principles.

Comfort: A Critical Factor in AR/VR Adoption

Comfort in AR/VR settings is a significant aspect that influences user acceptance. The immersive nature of VR can cause discomfort or even trigger motion sickness in users. To encourage user adoption, designers must explore and implement strategies to mitigate these discomforts, thereby ensuring an engaging and enjoyable experience.

Emerging Technologies: A Ray of Hope?

Despite these challenges, emerging technologies offer a glimmer of hope for AR and VR. Products like XREAL’s connected glasses and Mojo Vision’s connected lenses could potentially revolutionize the game. These devices aim to seamlessly merge the virtual and real worlds, making AR/VR more accessible and practical for everyday use.

 Envisioning the Future with AR/VR

The journey of AR and VR technologies in the digital age has been challenging, primarily due to factors like user comfort and the need for innovative UX/UI design principles. However, with the emergence of new devices and a focus on enhancing user experience, these technologies have the potential to take off in a significant way.

Whether AR and VR will become a mainstay in our everyday lives or remain a promising yet unrealized innovation is a narrative that continues to unfold. What’s clear is that these technologies are shaping our present and have the potential to significantly influence the future of digital transformation.

Integrating AR/VR technologies into digital transformation strategies is not just about keeping pace with the latest tech trends. It’s about envisioning a future where businesses can provide unprecedented value to their customers, enhance business operations, and gain a stronger competitive position in an increasingly digital market. AR and VR are not just technologies of the future—they are shaping the present and have the potential to drive significant value in the digital transformation journey. Businesses that understand this will be well-positioned to thrive in the digital age.

Leading the way in this digital era, Making Science is committed to leveraging new technologies to drive digital transformation. Our team of experts, armed with solid UX/UI design principles, is dedicated to helping businesses harness the full potential of AR/VR technologies, enhance customer experiences, and secure a competitive edge in the digital age. Ready to embark on your digital transformation journey with AR/VR? Partner with Making Science today!

The digital ecosystem’s ongoing evolution gives organizations more touchpoints with users and access to richer data. Due to the rapid evolution of digital touchpoints, companies face significant challenges. Their primary task is to efficiently collect and organize the growing volume and variety of data. Overcoming information silos is essential. Leveraging this data from the cloud—where it remains securely under the company’s governance—is crucial. By doing so using Customer Data Platforms, companies can enhance the user experience and maximize the data’s business value.

How can we achieve this? 

Various technologies exist in the market, but at Making Science, we’ve learned that each company requires a solution specifically designed for its unique business and organizational needs. To address this, we’re working closely with our clients to create Composable Customer Data Platforms (CCDPs) and Customer Data Architecture (CDAs) using Google Cloud.

• CDAs aggregate information from different domains of a company, making it accessible, and facilitating subsequent activation. It is also a long-term solution that allows it to build future business use cases, enabling organizations to own their data.
• On the other hand, CCDPs are market tools designed to activate use cases in a ‘simple’ way, without dependencies on technology teams.

So, which one should you choose? A Composable CDP or a CDA? 

Composable CDPs have revolutionized the way we handle customer data. Previously, tools such as Customer Relationship Management Data Management Platforms (CRM DMPs) dominated the landscape. However, a CDP operates as an ‘open platform’, letting us merge diverse data sources and dismantle longstanding information silos. To truly unlock the potential of a CDP, it’s essential to establish a data architecture (CDA) that facilitates real-time data activation.

This solution offers numerous benefits pivotal to the success of a comprehensive 360-degree marketing strategy: profile alignment, enhanced segmentation, implementation of predictive models and Generative AI solutions, enhanced customer insights, unified multichannel marketing resource optimization, and the eradication of data silos.

How do we measure the success of a Composable Customer Data Platform/CDA? 

Every investment should have a measurable ROI, a return for the business, and in the case of CDP/CDAs, there are three aspects to consider and measure: sales, speed, and cost savings.

Undoubtedly, incredible challenges are arising in data, cloud, and AI for companies, which will change how they make decisions, conduct marketing, integrate advanced marketing analytics, and manage their organizations. Is your company ready to extract the maximum value from its data?

Do you want to learn more about Customer Data Platforms for your business? At Making Science, we have a specialized team of experts who can help you define your CDP/CDA strategy for your specific case. Contact us!

Marketing has transformed from traditional methods like newspaper ads and billboards to advanced digital techniques. As customer behavior evolves, companies heavily invest in technology and digital marketing to maintain a strong presence. This shift brings challenges in planning, measuring, and analyzing marketing strategies, requiring data-driven decisions for effective customer attraction and retention.

Investing in marketing technology (Martech) is crucial for companies aiming to outperform competitors. Martech tools streamline marketing processes and boost performance, providing a competitive edge. Embracing modern technology allows companies to harness data for strategic marketing and informed decisions, meeting customers’ changing needs and ensuring long-term success in today’s market.

Our Solution

Gauss, developed by Making Science, is a marketing technology platform leveraging AI and First-Party Data (FPD) to boost customer campaign performance. Making Science created Gauss to address market gaps in existing Martech solutions, and provide comprehensive solutions for clients.

Gauss was launched in 2018. Since then, it has transformed marketing approaches, attracting 75% of companies seeking Making Science’s services. Designed for businesses of all sizes, the platform enhances marketing strategies and results. Its use of AI and FPD sets it apart, analyzing data to offer valuable customer insights and informing marketing decisions.

Meanwhile, FPD allows businesses to track and analyze every step of the customer journey, from initial contact to conversion. This helps companies to understand which marketing channels are most effective at each customer journey stage, allowing them to optimize their campaigns for maximum impact.

In addition to AI and FPD, Gauss also offers a range of other features and services, including:

• Multi-channel marketing: Gauss supports various marketing channels, including email, social media, display advertising, and more.
• Real-time reporting: Gauss provides real-time insights into campaign performance, allowing businesses to adjust their strategies.
• Customer segmentation: Gauss allows businesses to segment their customers based on various factors, including demographics, behavior, and preferences.
• Personalization: Gauss enables businesses to personalize their marketing messages and content to each customer based on their unique preferences and behavior.

Gauss, an all-in-one marketing platform, equips businesses with tools for optimizing campaigns and driving results. Utilizing AI and FPD, Gauss offers previously unavailable insights and optimization, making it essential for competitive businesses.

Since its launch in 2018, Gauss has evolved into a parent platform for several products, each designed to cater to specific marketing needs. Let’s take a closer look at each of these products:

Attribution

Attribution is a product that helps businesses accurately attribute sales and revenue to their marketing efforts. With it, companies can track the customer journey from initial contact to conversion. They can also identify which channels and tactics are most effective in driving sales.

Connected TV 

Connected TV enables businesses to integrate the planning and reporting of their linear and connected TV campaigns. It allows advertisers to plan, measure, and optimize campaigns by allocating investment to channels where their target audience is located. Connected TV integrates measurement of online and offline TV, showing the incremental reach offered by media and channels to test and run on the most effective channels.

Data Collection

Data Collection is a tool that disaggregates and analyzes real-time data from various sources, such as consumer transactions, social media, and websites. It offers valuable insights into consumer behavior to refine marketing strategies, optimize campaigns, and improve performance metrics. With advanced consumer analytics, businesses can make data-driven decisions for better outcomes.

Data Quality

Data Quality is a product that helps businesses ensure the accuracy and reliability of their data. With this product, companies can identify and eliminate duplicate or inconsistent data, ensuring their marketing decisions are based on reliable information. 

Dynamic Creatives

Dynamic Creatives is a product that enables businesses to create personalized ads that change dynamically based on the user’s behavior and preferences. With this product, companies can deliver ads tailored to each customer, increasing the likelihood of conversion.

Marketing Mix Modeling (MMM)

MMM optimizes marketing spending across channels and tactics, helping businesses measure and quantify online and offline impacts for ROI maximization. Integrating data from digital and traditional media, predicts marketing activity influence on KPIs like sales or web traffic. MMM also considers contextual factors that may affect sales, helping CMOs better allocate their media budgets.

Offline Conversions

Offline Conversions is a product that helps businesses track the impact of their online advertising on offline sales. With this product, companies can attribute offline sales to their online marketing efforts, allowing them to measure their campaigns’ effectiveness accurately.

Shopping 

Shopping optimizes e-commerce companies’ Google Shopping campaigns by automating bidding, optimizing product feeds, and creating dynamic campaigns. It updates the feed in real-time, ensuring customers find what they’re looking for at the right price while preventing unhelpful clicks due to out-of-stock items.

Smart Advertising

Smart Advertising uses AI to optimize digital ad investments for businesses. It enables CMOs to efficiently allocate ad budgets while monitoring and improving KPIs like CPA and sales ratio, in real-time. The product captures data, predicts sales, increases sales by 20%, and decreases CPA by 15%, making it a valuable tool for companies seeking growth and cost control.

Overall, Gauss’ suite of products provides businesses with everything they need to create effective, data-driven marketing campaigns. Whether tracking the customer journey, optimizing advertising spend, or creating personalized ads, Gauss has a product that can help businesses achieve their marketing goals.

To learn more about Gauss, contact our team of experts to learn more about our technology and start your digital transformation.

Let’s activate your data, let’s Gauss!

What is a Customer Data Platform (CDP)?

Before we jump in, we first need to understand its current context, the issues we currently face in terms of capturing data, and the diverse solutions for moving forward. Let’s first discuss the current context:

• Regulatory changes: the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in Europe and the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) have impacted how data can be stored, collected, and used.
• Updates: companies are no longer able to harness traditional data collection methods (for example: the third-party cookies and device identifiers) due to the increase in control.
• Privacy control: Today, users demand more control and transparency over the data collected about them, which is then used for ad personalization.

The main and direct consequence in today’s digital ecosystem is clear:

• Cookieless: we are no longer able to track our users nor their activity, behaviors, nor interests
• Cookieless world third-party: limitations like Intelligent Tracking Prevention (or ITP, a Safari feature) – or Enhanced Tracking Protection (or ETP, a Mozilla feature) mean that our marketing strategies based on third party audiences and cookies will be the most affected.

There are diverse solutions for solving the cookieless puzzle. Users now have the option to choose how their data is collected. However, with Consent Mode and GA4, we can mitigate the loss of data from our users through data modeling. For example, we can use ServerToServer measurement (which means more first party data). Most importantly, this grants us ownership of how this data is stored.

Here, as we confront the concept of first party data, is where the concept of CDP is reasonable, because it is a technological solution for the management of our data as well as its subsequent activation. CDP should be understood as a solution – not just as a tool. 

Why use a CDP?

There are many different tools in the digital market that store and activate data. However, from a Making Science perspective, we recommend CDP. This is how it can be approached from a client’s perspective.

This is a simplified diagram of how a CDP works:

Let’s first recognize that we presently have a lot of information (much more than we can usually analyze and activate). Additionally, this information is stored and created by multiple data sources, creating silos which rarely interact with each other. This causes data duplication, because there could be different sources with the same user information. As it’s processed, the data can become blurred, generating a lack of information about attribution and purchase data. This makes it difficult to administer the marketing mix budget and nearly impossible to optimize the investment.

A CDP will allow us to have one repository for all our data, whose initial purpose is to standardize and unify customers’ information according to all the user touch points generated. This will allow us to activate the data on a per-customer basis, so we can meet their needs according to the time of purchase or the point of maturity of the customer with the brand.

The significant advantage of a CDP is that it allows us to work with the data as if it were First Party Data (as if we were the owners of the data). It is important to have a measurement strategy related to solutions such as the aforementioned Consent Mode or ServerToServer. Since a CDP requires several development iterations we’ll have to question ourselves the following in this second stage:

1. What goals do we hope to achieve working along with a CDP? What kind of problems could we face with the platform? At the end of the day, it is just a technology solution, however we must first identify what problems we want to solve.
2. Which CDP should I use? How can I get it?

Factors to consider

For companies with a high level of technological development, it may be feasible to generate a proprietary CDP from their stack of tools. Others may prefer to go to the market in search of solutions that have already been developed. In any case, we suggest the following four factors to take into account when making this decision:

• Timing: What’s the fastest route? When will my CDP be functional? For marketplace solutions, it will depend on the connection options with the tools of your digital ecosystem. For an ad hoc option, one must consider what kind of connection options exist as well as the effort needed to create them. This leads us to the second factor:
• Connections: which option will allow us to link easily with our current stack of tools? If your company already works with a market solution, this embedded connection should be easier; otherwise you should evaluate the effort to generate those connections out of the box.
• Scalability: Which connection option will grant the most flexibility to adapt to changes in your company? For market solutions, it will depend on the evolution of their adaptations. An ad hoc one should be easier for you in this respect.
• Cost: What is the most cost-effective solution? Consider not only the initial monetary cost, but also the cost of CDP evolution according to your main objectives and stack of tools.

In conclusion, these are just a few hints of what CDP implies as another solution in the current digital landscape. It is not a simple decision to make for companies. At Making Science, we recommend CDPs because we understand how this solution should be approached: always focus on generating solutions according to the current market and the company’s particular needs.