To engage and convert prospects into customers more easily, brands need to know their audiences. This is known as customer knowledge, and involves gathering relevant, accurate and up-to-date information about their profile, expectations and habits. This data enables brands to :

• Create products or services that meet real demand;
• Communicate on the marketing channels their customers already use with content that resonates with them;
• Offer a smoother, more enjoyable shopping experience;
• Imagining and creating contact points to extend the customer relationship and build consumer loyalty.

The crux of the matter is data collection methods. This is invaluable information about who customers are and what they want. With the announced end of third-party cookies, brands need to come up with data collection methods that are both effective and non-intrusive.
What are the most effective data collection methods? In this article, we present 5 tools for collecting data.

SUMMARY

• 1. The marketing game as one the data collection methods
• 2. The form lead
• 3. Coregistration
• 4. Email to lead to collect customer data
• 5. Comparators for recruiting highly qualified leads

Fun and interactive, marketing games are an excellent data collection method. Not only does the prospect of winning a prize help to attract prospects and engage them, but the game itself incorporates data collection mechanisms (via interactions as in Swiper or Customizer ). The brand can also integrate a more traditional collection form at the beginning (to gain access) and at the end of the experience (before receiving the prize). This second form is dedicated to qualifying participants.

Why use it: to recruit, engage and convert prospects and customers by creating memorable brand experiences.

When to use it : at every stage of the customer journey. One example might be the distribution of an instant win via the brand’s website or social networks to generate new leads.

How to use it: game marketing works as long as the form or the method of collecting zero-party data (via interactions) is in harmony with the game experience. Prospects and customers will also be more inclined to share information if the brand offers them the chance to win an attractive prize.

The form lead (or prospecting form) is used to generate leads by letting prospects submit their information in a form integrated into an advert.

Why use it : to recruit and qualify visitors using a pre-filled form integrated into its media campaigns. As well as generating leads, the advantage of this collection method lies in its speed. The user never leaves the interface (social network, search engine, etc.) because the form is natively integrated into the platform. This makes filling in the form quicker and the experience more reassuring for the prospect. 

When to use it : Lead forms can be shared with the brand’s prospects at various strategic moments, such as when they request a quote or a free demonstration. Or when signing up for a newsletter or an event.

How to use it : The form lead can be set up to pre-fill data that the user has filled in on their profile (customer account or social media profile). It is advisable to keep the form as short as possible. The fields are fully customisable, allowing the brand to focus on the data that is relevant to it.

Also known as co-subscription, coregistration allows brands to take advantage of a user’s subscription to a newsletter or another form of subscription (for example, a monthly product box) to collect data or opt-in.

This method generally takes the form of an advertiser logo, a catchphrase and then a personalised check box. When users fill in their plan form, they can tick an additional opt-in box to subscribe to the partner brand’s mailing list.

Why use it: to recruit opt-in volumes via a partner campaign in order to benefit from its audience

How to use it: as with other collaborative marketing methods (such as cobranding), the key to coregistration is to target the right partner. The more closely the brand’s value proposition and positioning are aligned with that of the partner, the more likely customers will be to tick the co-subscription box.

This data collection method consists of highlighting an offer to encourage users to sign up for the brand’s newsletter. The opt-in is generated by the click (click-lead), and the user is then redirected to the e-commerce site.

Why use it: to facilitate data collection and generate conversions, as part of a prospecting emailing campaign.

When to use it: as part of an email campaign to generate leads

How to use it: to encourage opt-ins generation. The offer highlighted in the campaign must be attractive. Adding a deadline for taking advantage of the offer can also create a sense of urgency that will encourage prospects to sign up for the newsletter or tick the opt-in box so that they don’t miss out on current promotions.

Finally, online comparators can be a lever for collecting customer data. The principle is simple: users want to find out more before buying a product or service by comparing different offers. They use a comparator and provide precise information in order to benefit from recommendations.

Why use it: to recruit ultra-qualified data and opt-ins.

When to use it: when a new prospect arrives on the comparator to understand their needs.

How to use it : the data collection form must meet the needs of the user (and not just the needs of the company, i.e. the data it wishes to obtain). The questions asked should be geared towards the user’s expectations and focus on a better understanding of their preferences. To encourage prospects to fill in the form, brands can offer targeted incentives (such as the possibility of being called back within X days by an advisor). The prospect can then be targeted with personalised offers.

Conclusion

Are you looking for data collection methods and to get to know your audience better through an engaging interactive experience? Discover our different data collection formats to increase interaction with your prospects and customers. You are also welcome to view our webinar on data collection.

Collecting data is crucial for businesses. Organisations rely on data to optimise their day-to-day operations, facilitate strategic decision-making and better address their needs.

What’s more, to refine your knowledge of your business and your audience, it’s important to put in place a data collection strategy. In this article, we look at methods for collecting and qualifying customer data.

SUMMARY

• What do we mean by data collection?
• Why collect customer data?
• The main data collection methods
• Gamified tools for collecting customer data

Data collection is the process of extracting data from a source to gather information. Then, from the user’s point of view, it can be deployed with surveys, interviews and focus groups as part of market research.

Today, every point of contact is an opportunity for companies to gather valuable information. Browsing a website or application, visiting a shop and interacting on social networks are all opportunities to understand the behavior and expectations of audiences.

The qualification and analysis of this data can then be used to:

• evaluate the company’s performance (in terms of customer satisfaction, conversion and retention);
• make better decisions (sales, marketing, operational, etc);
• predict future market trends and anticipate audience expectations.

The different types of data

Before looking at the different methods of data collection, we need to differentiate between the 3 main types of data.

• Zero-party data, i.e. information that customers share with companies.

• First-party data, i.e. behavioural information collected when customers interact with their sites, applications, products or social networks.

• Third-party data, collected by third parties, but the reliability, quality and ethical nature of this data is less than that of the previous types.

First of all, when collecting data, you need to identify the reasons why the company wants to have the information. There are many reasons for collecting data (not all of which are mutually exclusive):

• Enhancing your CRM database. These days, brands need to collect new qualified contacts in order to gather information about their customers. Feeding the CRM is an objective that enables key messages to be communicated. This is made possible by communication levers such as newsletters and SMS. It’s also an excellent way of refining customer knowledge and better addressing needs.

• Anticipating the end of third-party cookies. Companies may be affected by a significant reduction in the possibilities for tracking visitors to their website. They must therefore implement alternative data collection methods to fill this future information gap.

• To compensate for the deletion of data (which occurs every 3 years). The RGPD stipulates that European authors (including companies) may retain their customer data for 3 years. It is therefore crucial for organisations to plan for data collection opportunities in order to renew their database on an ongoing basis.

Depending on the quality and nature of the data, the company can use different data collection methods:

• Quantitative data collection, using systematic methods. This type of data is distinguished by its ability to provide a basis for statistical analysis of the company. It can be collected via surveys (with closed questions), behavioral observation (data observed on the website, etc.).

• Qualitative data collection focuses on non-numerical data. This approach favors precision and depth over breadth by offering an insight into the preferences and motivations of its audience. In addition, it can be collected via open surveys and in-depth interviews (one-to-one or via focus groups, etc.).

• Primary data collection refers to the capture of data that has not been processed beforehand. This is data collected at source (directly from prospects and customers) via forms, questionnaires or interviews.

• Secondary data collection involves searching for and using data that has been collected for a purpose other than that of the company. This secondary data is often historical and provides a backdrop for new research. It is collected through archival research or database mining.

The golden rule of data collection is that the closer you are to the source of the data, the more qualitative, accurate and reliable it is.

Companies therefore need to mobilise tools to collect information from their prospects and customers. They can rely on gamified and interactive formats. These encourage their audience to share information freely and accurately. What’s more, this information can relate to their purchasing habits.

These gamified data collection tools include :

• The marketing game, ideal for recruiting, engaging and converting. To take part in a competition, users first have to fill in a form. Then, the game mechanics can multiply the number of interactions with the user and the collection of first-party data.

• The lead generation form. This tool enables you to recruit and qualify subscribers using a form integrated into the platforms. This is an excellent format for inviting Internet users to share their contact details.

• Co-registration to recruit opt-ins. This format enables you to pool your recruitment efforts by associating your company with a complementary collection method (via a partner brand).

• The click to lead email. The brand highlights an offer to encourage the user to subscribe to its newsletter and thus expand its customer database. The opt-in is generated by the click and the user is then redirected to the e-commerce site.

Conclusion

Implementing a data collection strategy is crucial if you are to make the right decisions and target your audience as effectively as possible. To meet today’s data collection challenges, your company needs to multiply its methods and tools so that it has a precise understanding of its market and its audience. Discover our gamified formats to help you recruit leads and share quality data!

Consent has become a central element in the interaction between consumers and brands. In fact, more and more users are concerned about the privacy of their personal data. respect for their privacy. But they also get annoyed when they receive messages (emails, text messages) from companies to whom they have not given permission to contact them.

To protect individuals, but also to ensure that brands communicate with potential customers who are interested in what they have to offer, there is a simple tool: opt-in. Definition: this technique involves obtaining the prior consent of a person before using their data (such as their email address) to send them commercial messages.

Although it is more restrictive for companies, the opt-in principle makes it possible to guarantee the quality of your emailing base. Here are some tips on how to collect opt-ins effectively. We also explain how to renew your expired opt-ins, in particular through gamification and marketing competitions.

SUMMARY

• What is opt-in: definition
• What does the RGPD say about opt-in?
• 3 marketing ideas to encourage opt-in collection

A company wishing to collect data from prospects or customers for use in its marketing campaigns or sales processes must first ask for their consent.

They can choose between several forms of authorisation (or opt-in):

• Passive opt-in. Visitors agrees to share his information but does not actively do so. They are automatically added to the company’s database, after making a purchase for example. Be careful, because this opt-in does not comply with the RGPD.
• Active opt-in (officially recommended by the CNIL). In this case, the person explicitly ticks a box indicating that they wish to subscribe to a mailing list (such as a newsletter). As with passive opt-in, this box is not ticked automatically. The request therefore comes expressly from the prospect.

Opt-in is the opposite of opt-out. It is a process by which the company acquires the contact information of potential customers by purchasing an email database. The recipients have therefore not given their consent.

The opt-in process can go even further: this is known as double opt-in. In this specific case, a confirmation request is sent by email to the prospect before they are definitively added to a mailing list. For the company, this is a way of asserting its respect for the user’s consent. It also ensures that the email address provided is the correct one.

Double opt-in also allows you to get to know your incoming lead better. The brand can take advantage of this to offer them the opportunity to select their areas of interest from a list or via an interactive animation (such as a swiper for example). It can then send them more targeted content.

Therefore, to comply with the RGPD, brands must ensure that each form or collection tool is :

• Clear. An explicit sentence should inform the person that their personal data will be collected by the company. The brand must also specify how the contact information will be used;
• Transparent. The method for processing and using the data must also be specified;
• Unambiguous. The opinion-gathering form must not be confusing (with a sentence containing a double negative, for example).

The company must then retain the permissions it has been given to protect themselves in the event of a complaint or inspection. Consumers also have the right to inspect and modify their data. It is therefore compulsory to include a description link in each email. This will allow users to tell the brand that they no longer wish to receive communications from them. As a reminder, it is valid for 13 months.

Collecting opt-ins is therefore not only an obligation, but also an opportunity for brands to create a relationship of trust with their audience. They can take advantage of this to engage users and get to know them better. They can then share more relevant content with them.

Here are 3 marketing strategies to simplify the collection of email addresses.

1. Reward opt-in

A very simple way of encouraging your targets to share their email address and consent to the sending of commercial communications is to offer them a reward in return.

In e-commerce, for example, it is common for brands to offer a 10% discount on the next order of each user who subscribes to their mailing list. This lever can also be used to boost in-store traffic by making the discount valid only at physical points of sale.

2. Asylum parcels and QR codes to collect post-purchase opt-ins

Another effective way of increasing the opt-in rate is to target people who are already familiar with the brand and appreciate its offer. Asylum-packaging is a strategy that consists of slipping a communication medium, with an opt-in collection tool, into the parcel sent to a customer.

As they have already made a purchase from the brand, they are more likely to agree to receive communications/content from the brand. To facilitate the collection of information and opt-ins, the brand can simply slide in a QR code linking directly to the online registration form.

Depending on the content of the order, the brand will be able to segment its customers more easily. And send them relevant content and offers (by email or SMS).

3. Re-engage your opt-in base before it expires thanks to gamification

As an opt-in is valid for 13 months, it is important to re-engage your customer database before their consent expires. Participants in a previous year’s campaign can therefore be reactivated via a new operation to renew their opt-in.

Gamification is a particularly interesting lever in this case. It makes it possible to collect opt-ins using a fun, interactive format. This marketing strategy naturally encourages the user to interact with the collection form by incorporating game mechanics (such as a pinata or puzzle).

Gamified marketing also boosts the opt-in rate by offering users a reward in return. These may include :

• exclusive offers reserved for newsletter subscribers,
• personalised content ;
• loyalty points to be reused online or in shop.

Playable marketing solutions, such as Adictiz, make it possible not only to collect opt-ins, but also to segment the database according to the dates on which they were collected. The company can then offer new campaigns to participants whose opt-in needs to be renewed.

Conclusion

Opting in is not just a constraint that companies must comply with if they want to respect the RGPD. It’s also an opportunity to build a bond of trust with your audience, to get to know your prospects, and to segment and better engage consumers. Discover our catalogue of interactive animations to make your fundraising more engaging and effective!

Cookies have been created to improve the user experience of websites. Their main use is to enable companies to collect data on their users as they browse. Indeed, they can gain a better understanding of the audience they are targeting and the way in which it interacts with their content.

However, the problem is that the use of cookies has araised concerns, particularly with regard to the privacy of Internet users. In recent years, web browsers and regulators have taken steps to limit their use. This is known as the cookieless world (a future era without cookies).

The end of third-party cookies has been announced for the second half of 2024. Therefore, Google is preparing to separate from this fundamental element for the brands that use it to optimise advertising and customer experience.

What does this cookieless world look like? What are the alternatives for continuing to understand your customers’ expectations? Here are a few avenuesto optimise your data collection strategy in this new world.

SUMMARY

• Google speeds up the advent of a cookieless world
• The challenges of a cookieless world
• Adopting intelligent marketing to collect proprietary data

Everyone is talking about it, but the much-heralded cookieless world has been slow to arrive. Google has repeatedly postponed the deletion of third-party cookies, with the aim of relaunching the process in 2024. On 4th January 2024, the American giant began testing a new tool, “tracking protection”, which aims to limit the tracking of users from site to site.

In fact, a small percentage of Chrome users have switched to a third-party cookie-free environment. In the coming months, this test phase will be extended to a wider audience. But until then, companies have little visibility of the effects of this protection against tracking.

According to Google’s teams, the deletion of third-party cookies should take place in the second half of 2024… Provided, however, that all remaining concerns are resolved. Moreover, it has to be said that companies in all sectors are little or unprepared for the end of cookies. Not to mention governments, which are worried about the impact of this cookieless world on competition.

Therefore, businesses are expecting access problems. Sites that do not function without third-party cookies may no longer be accessible. Google is trying to reassure them with this first phase of the “more private web”. Indeed, it announced that it would provide “the tools needed to make their operations and experiences successful, so that high-quality content remains accessible”.

Cookies have always been a valuable tool for tracking user behavior and to attribute conversions to marketing campaigns. However, with increasing privacy concerns and the growing use of ad blockers, cookies are less effective.

As the world moves towards a cookie-free future, marketers face new challenges in understanding and reaching their target audiences, optimising their data collection and advertising targeting.

Cookieless world: the problem of attribution

Attribution refers to the process of identification of the marketing channels or contact points that have led to a conversion or the completion of an action desired by the company.

Without cookies, it can be more difficult to track users across all devices and browsers. Above all, it is more difficult to attribute conversions to specific campaigns. Companies will therefore lack the data they need to optimise their strategy when it comes to targeting the channels likely to convert prospects.

The end of behavioural data

Another challenge for attribution is the toss of granular data (or behavioral). Cookies enabled companies to track user behavior at a precise level. They could identify which pages they had visited, the time spent on them and the actions taken.

Without cookies, it becomes difficult to identify contact points and CTAs that generate on-site conversions. But it also makes it harder to target the frictions that may be causing the brand to lose out on opportunities.

A world without third-party data

Finally, the end of third-party cookies marks the end of third-party data. Third-party data is collected and shared by other companies.

Yet, this data is generally used to optimise advertising campaigns aimed at a specific audience. For example, a retailer might use this type of data to send ads to users who have searched for a product or have shown an interest in a product.

With the disappearance of cookies, marketers will have to rely on other methods to identify users and understand their behavior. What may appear to be a colossal challenge to overcome will prove to be so in the long term, an opportunity to optimise your data collection strategy.

Companies will therefore have to implement new tools to collect reliable and complete proprietary data.

Gamification to collect first party and zero party data

Companies can focus on collecting data voluntarily shared by their customers and prospects (also known as zero party data and first party data). By collecting data directly from their audience, marketers can better understand their preferences and behaviours. They can then target their marketing campaigns more effectively.

Companies can also work to develop data collection practices that are more transparent and ethical. The use of interactive levers such as marketing games makes data collection funnier. However, it also introduces a stronger bond of trust between the brand and its customers.

Explore alternative identifiers

As third-party cookies disappear, advertisers are exploring alternative identifiers to track user behavior. These may include email addresses, device identifiers or even hashed data.

Be careful, however, to respect user confidentiality and existing regulations. Generally speaking, advertisers will have to learn to strike the balance between personalising their marketing campaigns and respecting their customers’ privacy.

Unify data from several sources

Tools and techniques also exist to extract and unify data from several sources. The whole point of these solutions is to make it easier to collect and analyse behavioural data across all the channels used by customers. Then, they can be activated more effectively to create and distribute advertising campaigns in the right place and to the right people.

Conclusion

While the transition to a cookieless world can be a complicated time for marketers, it also provides an opportunity to reassess their data collection strategy. By adopting less intrusive and more participative solutions and strategies, you can get to know your customers better and retain their trust.

Discover our interactive marketing experiences for collecting first party and zero party data in complete transparency!