In one sentence
First-party data is the information you collect from your own customers' behavior on your store, emails and orders, and it's the data you own and can count on as ad tracking gets harder.
First-party data examples for online stores
- Orders: what each customer bought, when and for how much
- Browsing: pages viewed, products added to cart, searches on your site
- Email and SMS: opens, clicks and sign-ups
- Support: questions customers ask and the problems they report
First-party vs. zero-party vs. third-party data
First-party data
Zero-party and third-party data
How you get it
You observe what customers do
Zero-party: customers tell you. Third-party: you buy or borrow it.
Example
A customer reorders every 6 weeks
Zero-party: a quiz answer. Third-party: an ad network audience.
Who owns it
You
Zero-party: you. Third-party: someone else.
See zero-party data for the data customers hand you directly.
How to use first-party data in your store
- Time reorder emails to how often each customer actually buys
- Build ad audiences from your best customers
- Run cohort analysis to see which customers come back
- Turn real support questions into product page copy and FAQs
Collect it with consent and say how you use it. Trust is part of the asset.
Related terms