With the enforcement of the revised Personal Information Protection Act and the tightening of data regulations, obtaining consent from individuals has become mandatory when acquiring, using, or providing personal information and personal-related information to third parties. Consequently, marketing initiatives utilizing third-party data provided by external organizations have become more challenging.
Amidst this, Zero Party Data—data that consumers consciously choose to share with companies—is gaining significant attention. What are the characteristics of this data, and what value does it hold? We conducted a two-part interview with Mr. Ryo Shirahige of Dentsu Digital Inc., who proposes the utilization of Zero Party Data. In this first part, we discuss the background behind the growing focus on Zero Party Data.
The evolution of marketing tools has changed the data utilization process
Q. "Zero-party data" has become a hot topic in marketing recently. Mr. Shirahige, you currently propose zero-party data utilization at Dentsu Digital Inc. What kind of work have you done previously?
However, to fully leverage big data, the data handled by CDPs alone is insufficient. What CDPs use is a "Data Mart" – data extracted and processed from the customer data a company possesses, tailored to specific objectives. Beyond that, you also need to utilize a "Data Lake" for storing raw, unprocessed data, and a " Data Warehouse (DWH) " where data is organized to a degree for practical use. Consequently, my career shifted from CDP, which primarily handles data marts, to encompassing the data lake and data warehouse domains. My main mission now involves proposing and supporting tools that cover both data lakes and data warehouses, as well as proposing the utilization of zero-party data contained within them.
Dentsu Digital Inc. Ryo Shirahige
Q. Why did you start handling not just data marts, but also data lake and data warehouse data?
Shirahige: When performing data analysis and implementing actions based on that analysis, the main process used to be extracting only the necessary data from the client company's core systems and creating data marts. However, this method is time-consuming. We now store all data in a data lake, identify potentially useful data within it, prepare it for use, and store it in a data warehouse. During this process, we also perform big data analysis, ensuring data can be readily moved to data marts whenever needed. By taking on this foundational infrastructure work, we've expanded into areas traditionally handled by SIers. Previously, work was divided among SIers, advertising agencies, and consulting firms, but now these roles are gradually converging.
With stricter data protection regulations, zero-party data is rapidly gaining attention
Q. What exactly does zero-party data refer to?
Shirahige: Data can be categorized into first-party data (1st Party Data) collected and owned by the company itself, second-party data (2nd Party Data) provided by specific partner companies, and third-party data (3rd Party Data) provided by third-party organizations. Zero-party data is a type of first-party data that meets the following three definitions:
1. Data users intentionally share with a company. For example, data provided by users themselves, such as "I like this kind of home appliance," to receive appliance recommendations from a home appliance manufacturer.
2. Data that is more preference-oriented than first-party data, delving slightly deeper into personal tastes and preferences.
3. Data that users deliberately provide to companies to "help them understand me," even while wanting to protect their personal information.
Q. Zero-party data is often discussed as if it were a completely new concept, but it can be thought of as "highly preference-driven first-party data that users intentionally and actively share with companies." I believe such data has been collected for some time. Could you explain the background behind the current focus on zero-party data?
Shirahige: The main background is the tightening of data protection regulations. From a privacy protection perspective, the revised Personal Information Protection Act has been implemented. This has led to the discontinuation of cookies used for collecting third-party data, the opt-in requirement for IDFA acquisition (where users on iOS devices choose whether to provide personal data), and strengthened regulations by platform operators. These measures have intensified restrictions on data collection. Since collecting data as before is no longer feasible, analyzing and leveraging first-party data has regained importance. Within this trend, zero-party data is gaining attention as a means to engage in CRM (Customer Relationship Management).
Q. We've always provided companies with highly preference-based data when installing apps or purchasing products. Does this mean technology advancements have increased its utilization? Or was it simply that, despite various potential applications for zero-party data, we hadn't fully leveraged it until now?
Shirahige: Companies focused on CRM have long utilized zero-party data. For example, a certain apparel e-commerce company collected customers' body size data to recommend optimally sized clothing. That initiative collected what we now call zero-party data. In other words, while zero-party data itself existed before, few companies could effectively use it to develop customer services.
Recently, we've started seeing the term "loyalty marketing" (a marketing approach focused on cultivating and retaining customers who feel affection for a company or brand and contribute to its profits). I believe this data is precisely what enables that kind of approach.
Zero-party data is indispensable for marketing that captures user psychology
Q. Mr. Shirahige, you propose utilizing zero-party data. What kinds of inquiries do you typically receive from companies?
Shirahige: We don't often get inquiries specifically focused on zero-party data. More commonly, we receive requests like "We want to strengthen our CRM," "We want to start collecting first-party data again," or "We want to try the currently popular loyalty marketing." In those cases, we propose that zero-party data is necessary. Inquiries about loyalty marketing are visibly increasing.
This is partly because collecting data through third-party agencies has become more difficult. But I also think it's because the effectiveness of traditional CRM efforts has diminished. Many companies have used point programs and tiered membership incentives to maintain customer relationships. However, since most companies implement similar strategies, the impact is becoming harder to measure. Consequently, loyalty marketing—which fosters customer affection and repeat business—is growing in importance.
Q. What is key to fostering customer attachment to a company?
Shirahige: I believe it's crucial to make customers feel a sense of superiority and exclusivity based on their touchpoints with the company and their status, not just the perceived value from points or discounts. Simply put, it's about never missing the moment when a customer thinks, "They really get me."
You can't pinpoint that "they really get me" moment without capturing customer behavior data, social media activity, emotions, and even psychology. That's precisely why we need zero-party data—which reveals customer preferences—and the systems to collect it. In other words, I believe zero-party data is essential for companies to truly "entertain" their customers.
Q. Omotenashi is a very important perspective. When collecting data, I feel users perceive it very differently depending on whether it's framed as "for marketing purposes" versus "for providing omotenashi." Clarifying the purpose of data collection seems likely to change the company's stance and the data design itself. What are your thoughts?
Shirahige: That's right. I believe it's necessary to clearly communicate to users, "We are collecting this data to provide you with this kind of customer experience," and help them understand that intent. First and foremost, isn't it crucial to properly show users, "If you send us this data, you'll get these great benefits"?
Recently, simply introducing traditional point programs has become insufficient to retain customers' loyalty. To foster affection and trust toward a company and turn customers into repeat buyers, it's necessary to provide each individual with an optimal experience. To achieve this, we've come to understand that acquiring zero-party data—data that reflects customers' preferences and is actively provided to the company—is the first step.
In Part 2, we'll delve deeper into methods for acquiring zero-party data—essential for CRM and loyalty marketing—and the critical mindset for effectively utilizing this data.
2017年電通デジタルに入社。国内の大手企業を対象にマーケティングオートメーションやDMP、CDP、Cloud Data Ware houseの製品選定、導入支援、運用支援業務を担当。さまざまな顧客ニーズに対応した提案・コンサルティング業務を担当。現在は、Data Polaris（Snowflakeの外部エバンジェリスト）としてSnowflakeビジネスを推進。
