Brands with low data maturity are risking their entire business: Hareesh Tibrewala

May 3 is observed as World Martech Day. On this occasion, Adgully spoke to Hareesh Tibrewala, Joint CEO, Mirum India, to get his insights on data privacy, customer data platforms (CDPs), and MarTech adoption. He highlights the importance of aligning data collection and usage practices with changing regulations and evolving best practices around data privacy. Tibrewala also emphasises on the need for marketers to prioritise investments in MarTech tools that create better experiences for consumers and enable data-driven decision-making.

Regarding CDPs, he notes the latest trends and increased adoption of CDP solutions among marketers, as they seek to collect first-party data and dissolve internal data silos. Tibrewala also touches upon the challenges faced by MarTech STAGNANTS and MarTech LAGGARDS in adopting MarTech tools, such as the complex process of choosing a platform and implementing tools.

He also discusses the impact of the death of the cookie and stronger regulations around data privacy on MarTech tools and how companies can adapt to continue providing hyper-personalisation while respecting customer privacy. Lastly, Tibrewala shares his advice for marketers on how to be a better marketer with technology, emphasizing that a great creative idea riding on top of the right technology can create the right consumer conversations and relevant experiences. Excerpts:

How do marketers ensure that their company’s data collection and usage practices align with the changing regulations and evolving best practices around data privacy? 

Data management is becoming a critical aspect of any business. On the one hand, businesses need to collect data to create effective and relevant consumer experiences. On the other, there are constantly emerging legislation and best practices for managing data privacy. Thus, marketers need to invest in internal data compliance teams that ensure data management is in line with privacy requirements. Also, marketers need to work with platforms and partners who are fully data regulation-compliant.

In light of the changes to data privacy regulations and the death of the cookie, how do marketers plan to continue to effectively reach and engage with customers while also prioritizing their privacy and data protection?

There will be more and more focus on collecting first-party data. Thus, brands that don’t have a lot of first-party data (for example FMCG category), will need to invest in solutions and campaigns that help collect this. Also, while the death of the cookie is on the cards, the alternate emerging solutions will enable cohort-based marketing, if not specific device- or consumer profile-based marketing. Overall, we will be moving to a healthier marketing environment, at the same time ensuring consumer data privacy.

What are the disadvantages of low data maturity and siloed data in marketing, such as hindering an organisation's ability to make data-driven decisions and deliver a seamless, personalized experience for their customers?

Businesses are no longer just about brands and products. It is also about the ability to understand the consumer and create relevant and personalised consumer experiences. Brands with low data maturity are risking their entire business and value proposition to the consumer. Siloed data, on the other hand, is not exactly a new problem. While there are technology solutions like the CDP that help to stitch consumer data across different business verticals within the same company, the challenge is more of a people-mindset challenge. All of us need to realize that the only way to survive is to dissolve these internal silos and collaborate.

That brings to the need for Customer Data Platforms (CDPs). What are the latest trends in this regard? Will we see increased CDP adoption in near future?

Until last year, CDP was still a novelty. There were few mature products in the market. However, this year we are seeing increased conversations around CDP adoption. During our recently published Mirum India Martech Report 2023, it was clear that marketers are looking at implementing CDP solutions.

With the increasing importance of MarTech in marketing budgets, how can marketers prioritise which MarTech investments to make, and how do they measure the ROI of those investments?

To me, the answer is simple. Look at everything through the consumer’s lens. Understand what solutions can create better experiences for the consumer. One needs to invest in those solutions. The answer may vary from category to category or even brand to brand.

What is the one piece of advice for today’s marketers about how to be a better marketer (with technology)?

Marketing is no longer just about creativity. A great creative idea riding on top of the right technology can create the right consumer conversations and the relevant consumer experiences.

Your report says that with the advent of Web3, and the movement towards a cookie-less world, rethinking marketing strategy is on the cards for most organisations. Are today’s marketers prepared for this change?

Modern marketing is constantly evolving. Ten years ago, we were introduced to social channels. Five years ago, we saw the advent of technology as part of the marketing toolkit. Now we are at the cusp of Web3. I don’t think any of us are ready for Web3. But like everything else, we need to set aside some budgets for experimenting and innovation and see what use cases can emerge on Web3 to enable better consumer engagement.

With the death of the cookie and stronger regulations around data, how can companies adapt their use of MarTech tools to continue to provide hyper-personalisation while respecting customer privacy?

Most enterprise-level MarTech tools come with built-in data privacy and security features that ensure that PII data is masked and targeting happens at a cohort level instead of an individual browser or device level.

Your report talks about challenges faced by MarTech STAGNANTS and MarTech LAGGARDS in adopting MarTech tools. Could you throw more light on this?

The Mirum India MarTech Report 2023 connects the dots between the problems faced by brands and the solutions offered by various MarTech partners (or the way they are being offered). A few major challenges faced by both MarTech STAGNANTS (cohort who spend on MarTech but the spends may not be increasing) and MarTech LAGGARDS (who have not spent much on MarTech tools in the past nor do they have plans to invest much in the future) are:

• The process of choosing a MarTech platform is complex
• Implementation process of these MarTech tools is not easy either.

The need of the hour is for these cohorts to partner with MarTech service provides who can help brands with end-to-end MarTech implementation:  right from consulting as to which tools will work best as per their industry, service type, customer base, etc; to owning the whole set-up and execution; followed by run-on-operate that can show tangible ROI.

What should be the key considerations when looking for the right MarTech tools?

I think one of the key considerations is investing in an enterprise-grade platform. This ensures the robustness of the platform; almost 100% uptime; continuous innovation, and most importantly, data privacy and security compliance. Besides, in our experience, we have seen that brands that go through proper discovery and audit are able to identify the need gaps correctly and end up making the right platform-related decisions.

How can marketers balance their role as a specialist in a specific area of marketing with the need to have a broad understanding of other marketing disciplines?

I think an entry-level marketeer will generally be a specialist. Over a period of time, you gain experience in different facets of marketing. But at the senior level, you need to be a generalist or rather someone who has a very wide expertise in marketing and can lean on specialists when needed.