Third-party data are data sets that marketers can buy or rent from third parties – usually specialized data providers, but also social networks such as Facebook, for example. This contrasts with first-party data, which is collected by the company itself, but it can also be a useful supplement to it.
Therefore, third party data is mostly used if the company wants to expand and enrich its existing first and second-party data and thus improve the targeting of its own marketing measures and campaigns.
The advantage of third-party data is its fast availability – the data does not have to be laboriously collected and analyzed by the company.
The disadvantage can be a low availability because not every information about each user is known.
Nevertheless, it can be worthwhile for companies to use third-party data, for example when acquiring new customers. However, it is essential to observe applicable data protection regulations.
Third-party data can only ever be a (sometimes expensive) supplement to first-party data. For this reason, it is worth investing in your own data management in the interests of sustainability.