Data management platforms (DMPs) are playing an increasingly important role in supporting effective, programmatically-driven, marketing and advertising, according to research released by Econsultancy and Oracle Marketing Cloud.

The research report, titled The Role of DMPs in the Era of Data-Driven Advertising, surveyed 170 marketing and advertising executives spanning global industries who detailed that while DMPs haven’t been operationalised as long as other key marketing and advertising technologies, they have become central for marketing and advertising success in a short-time.

The study shows that more than two-thirds of marketers (68 per cent) surveyed by Econsultancy agreed that DMPs are ‘key to the future of programmatic advertising’, while the same percentage said they had successfully used data to improve their advertising effectiveness due to the fact that they provide rich audience creation and segmentation based on a variety of data inputs that previously, without the use of a DMP, would be difficult if not impossible, to obtain and activate across channels.

Additionally, the study found that 60 per cent of those companies using DMPs are optimising other marketing channels in addition to display advertising. ‘Website’ (51 per cent), ‘search’ (49 per cent) and ‘mobile’ (46 per cent) are the channels most commonly optimised with the help of a DMP to better deliver a complete customer experience.

“The benefits of using data management platforms are becoming more widely understood by companies who are keen to make sure they are using their own first- and third-party data to gain a competitive advantage. DMPs can help with better targeted display advertising campaigns, but they are also being harnessed to deliver a better customer experience across a range of touchpoints,” said, Linus Gregoriadis , research director, EConsultancy.

Key Findings from the report include:

Some 58per cent of those companies using DMPs have only started using them within the last two years.

‘Centralised control and standardisation of existing first-party data’ is the most popular reason for using a DMP, cited as a major benefit by 53 per cent of marketers surveyed. The next most popular reason is the use of existing data ‘for better email, web, social and content personalisation’ (51 per cent).

More than half of companies (56 per cent) using a DMP say that it is managed by their IT department.

Leading DMP use cases as articulated from the survey respondents are also highlighted as:

• The ability to use the data an organisation already has to provide the ability to learn more about current customers to better shape communications
• Adding additional meaning associated with the data to provide insight to help shape the right communication at the right time
• Growing acquisition or “upper funnel” opportunities for attracting new, right customers
• Continually improving and optimising data inside through integrated analytics and measurement
• Reducing waste by ensuring that the right inventory is served to the right audience;
• Optimisation of the entire customer journey

“Oracle and the Oracle Data Management Platform have purposely enabled marketing and advertising customers to get the most out of the data they already have as well as extend through acquisition channels to better optimise their customer experience and deliver the best brand experience achievable,” said Alex Hooshmand, vice president product management, Oracle Marketing Cloud.