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First-Party Data

First-party data is the information that a company collects itself and directly from its customers—with their consent, of course.

What Does “First-Party Data” Mean?

First-party data is information obtained through direct contact with a company’s own customers and other users. This can include newsletter sign-ups, inquiries submitted via a form, purchase histories, user behavior on the website, or details from customer conversations.

The term is distinct from third-party data. Second-party data is first-party data from another company, made available, for example, through a partnership. Third-party data is collected and resold by specialized providers.

First-party data comes directly from the source. The company knows where it comes from, has collected it itself, and does not rely on any external data sources.

Where does first-party data come from?

Data from customer interactions is nothing new; customer records and profiles have always existed. Starting in the late 2010s, first-party data gained importance with the emergence of stricter data protection laws and the increasing restriction of third-party cookies by browsers.

Both of these factors made it increasingly difficult to use third-party data, shifting the focus more strongly toward self-collected data sets.

Why is first-party data important?

First-party data can serve as a particularly valuable and reliable foundation for data-driven marketing. Unlike aggregated third-party data, it comes directly from the relationship with a company’s own customers and users. It can reflect actual behavior and information provided directly by the user.

First-party data reduces reliance on third-party cookies, third-party data providers, and platform rules.

Advantages

  • First-party data provides a direct and often high-quality data foundation.
  • It makes companies less dependent on cookie blocking and third-party data providers.
  • It forms the basis for personalized communication.

Challenges

Building your own data sets takes time and requires incentives to ensure people are willing to share their data. The collection, storage, and use of data must comply with data protection regulations—diligence and clear processes are essential.

Furthermore, the data must be properly maintained and meaningfully consolidated so that a useful overall picture emerges from the many individual pieces of information.

Example

An online retailer relied on third-party data for its advertising for many years. As the use of such data became increasingly restricted, the company instead built its own customer base using newsletter sign-ups, customer accounts, and feedback from surveys.

The resulting database enables the retailer to target existing customers specifically while relying significantly less on third-party cookies.

Related terms

Cookies Cookies are small data files that websites use to recognize visitors, save settings, and, under certain conditions, display relevant advertisements. Consent Management Consent management is the legally compliant process of obtaining and managing consent for the processing of user data. CRM (Customer Relationship Management) The CRM system centralizes all information about customers and prospects in one place. Lookalike Audience A Lookalike Audience is a new target audience that shares similar characteristics with the existing one.