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Brewing clarity: A café guide to AdTech jargon

Published: September 23, 2025 by Brandon Alford, Group Product Manager

At A Glance

AdTech can feel overwhelming with all its jargon, but we're breaking it down café-style. From first-party data and identity resolution to clean rooms and ID-free targeting, this guide breaks down the essential terms marketers need to know.

If you’ve ever sat in a meeting and heard an AdTech term you didn’t understand, you’re not alone. The industry evolves as quickly as a café turns over tables on a busy weekend. Even seasoned regulars can get tripped up by the jargon.

So instead of scratching your head over the “menu,” let’s walk through some of the most common terms: served café-style.

The ingredients: The many flavors of first-party data

Every meal starts with ingredients, and in AdTech, those ingredients are data. First-party data is not just one thing: it’s more like everything your favorite neighborhood café knows about you.

The ingredients of AdTech: first-party data (shown as eggs), permissioned data (shown as bread), first-party cookies (shown as butter)

First-party data

The café knows your coffee preferences because you’ve told them directly; whether by ordering at the counter, calling in, or placing an order online. This is information you’ve willingly provided through your interactions, and it belongs only to that café.

First-party cookies

The barista writes down your preferences in a notebook behind the counter, so next time you walk in, they don’t have to ask. First-party cookies remember details to make your experience smoother, but only for that café.

Authenticated identity

A loyalty app that connects online orders to in-person visits. By logging in, you’re saying, “Yes, it’s really me.” Authenticated identity is proof that the customer isn’t just a face in line, but someone with a verified profile.

Persistent identity

Recognizing you whether you order through the app or in person. Persistent identity enables the ability to keep track of someone across different touchpoints, consistently, without confusing them with someone else.

Permissioned data

Agreeing to join the loyalty program and get emails. Permissioned data is a connection to the customer that the customer proactively shared with the café by signing up for their loyalty program or email newsletter.

Each piece comes from direct interactions, stored and used in different ways. That’s what makes first-party data nuanced. The saga of third-party cookie deprecation and changing privacy regulations makes it important to understand which types of data you can collect and use for marketing purposes.

And once you have those ingredients, the next step is making sure you recognize how they fit together, so you can see each customer clearly. That’s where identity resolution comes in.

The recipe: Bringing the ingredients together with identity resolution

At the café, identity resolution is what helps the staff recognize you as the same customer across every interaction. Without it, they might think you’re two different people; one who always orders breakfast and another who sometimes picks up pastries to go.

Matching

The café has a loyalty program, and the pet bakery next door has one too. When they match records across their two data sets, they realize “M. Jones” from the café is the same person as “Michelle Jones” from the bakery. That connection means they can activate a joint promotion, like free coffee with a dog treat, without either business handing over their full customer lists. In marketing, matching works the same way, linking records across data sets for activation so campaigns reach the right people.

Two receipts that represent the same customer: M. Jones and Michelle Jones

Deduplication

Collapses duplicate profiles into a single, clean record, so you don’t get two birthday coupons, even though that would be nice to get.

That’s what Experian does at scale: we connect billions of IDs in a privacy-safe way, so you can get an accurate picture of your audience.

And once you can recognize your customers across touchpoints, the next challenge is collaborating across systems and partners for deeper insights. That’s where the behind-the-counter processes come in.

Behind the counter: Crosswalks and clean rooms

At a café, these terms are like the behind-the-counter processes that keep everything running smoothly. They may sound technical, but they all serve the same purpose: helping data collaborate across different sources, while keeping sensitive information safe. The goal is a better “meal” for the customer, deeper insights, better targeting, and more personalized campaigns. Here’s how they work.

Crosswalks

The café partners with the pet bakery next door. They both serve a lot of the same people, but they track them differently. With a crosswalk, they can use a shared key to recognize the same customer across both businesses, so you get a coffee refill, and your dog gets a treat, without either one handing over their full customer list. A crosswalk is the shared system that lets both know it is really you, without swapping personal details. It’s the bridge connecting two silos of data.

A woman walking between a cafe and a pet bakery and picking up items from both

Clean rooms

The café and the pet bakery want to learn more about their shared customers, like whether dog owners are more likely to stop by for brunch on weekends. Instead of swapping their full records, they bring their data into another café’s private back room, a clean room, where they can compare trends safely and privately. Both get useful insights, while customer details stay protected. That’s a clean room: secure collaboration without exposing sensitive data.

Of course, sharing and protecting data is only part of the picture. The real test comes when you need to serve customers in new ways, especially as the industry moves beyond cookies.

Serving customers in new ways: Cookie-free to ID-free

Targeting has evolved beyond cookies, just like cafés no longer rely only on notebooks to remember regulars.

ID-free targeting

The café looks at ordering patterns, like cappuccinos selling on Mondays and croissants on Fridays, without tracking who’s ordering what. Instead of focusing on who the customer is, the café tailors choices based on the context of the situation, like time of day or day of the week. This is like contextual targeting, serving ads based on the environment or behavior in the moment, rather than on personal identity.

On the left, a waiter takes an order from a customer, with a notepad that is crossed out. On the right, a waiter shows the customer the weekly specials, cappuccinos on Monday and croissants on Friday.

ID-agnostic targeting

The café realizes customers show up in all sorts of ways: walk in, online ordering, delivery. Each channel has its own “ID,” a name on the app, a credit card, or a loyalty profile. ID-agnostic targeting means no matter how you order, the café can still serve you without being locked into one system.

Just like cafés no longer rely only on notebooks to keep track of regulars, marketers no longer have to depend solely on cookies. Today, there are multiple paths, cookie-free, ID-free, and ID-agnostic, that can all help deliver better, more relevant experiences.

But even with new ways to reach people, one big question remains: how do you know if it’s actually working? That’s where measurement and outcomes come into play.

Counting tables vs. counting sales

At the café, measurement and outcomes aren’t the same.

Measurement

Tables filled, cups poured, specials ordered.

Outcomes

What it all means: higher revenue, more loyalty sign-ups, or increased sales from a new promotion.

Both matter. Measurement shows whether the café is running smoothly, but outcomes prove whether the promotions and strategies are truly paying off. Together, they help connect day-to-day activity to long-term success.

All of this brings us back to the bigger picture: understanding the menu well enough to enjoy the meal.

From menu to meal

In AdTech, there will always be new terms coming onto the menu. What matters most is understanding them well enough to know how they help you reach your business goals. Just like at the café, asking a question about the specials isn’t foolish. It’s how you make sure you get exactly what you want. The more we, as an industry, understand the “ingredients” of data and identity, the better we can cook up new solutions that serve both brands and consumers. After all, the goal isn’t just to talk about the menu, it’s to enjoy the meal.

At Experian, we help brands turn that menu into action. From identity resolution to privacy-safe data collaboration, our solutions make it easier to connect with audiences, activate campaigns, and measure real outcomes.

If you’re ready to move from decoding the jargon to delivering better customer experiences, we’re here to help

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About the author

Brandon Alford, Group Product Manager, Experian

Brandon Alford

Group Product Manager, Experian

Brandon Alford is a seasoned professional in the AdTech ecosystem with a focus on identity, audience, measurement, and privacy-forward solutions. He has spent his career helping advertisers and publishers navigate the complexities of digital advertising and privacy, bringing a practical and forward-looking perspective to industry challenges and innovation.


AdTech jargon FAQs

What is first-party data, and why is it important?

First-party data is information a customer shares directly with a brand, like purchase history, preferences, or sign-ups. It’s the most valuable and privacy-safe data marketers can use to build personalized campaigns.

How do identity resolution and matching work in marketing?

Identity resolution ensures a brand can recognize the same customer across different touchpoints. Matching links records across data sets (e.g., between partners) so campaigns reach the right people without exposing full customer lists.

What’s the difference between a crosswalk and a clean room?

A crosswalk bridges two data systems with a shared key to recognize the same customer, while a clean room allows partners to analyze data together securely without exposing sensitive details.

What does “cookie-free” or “ID-free” targeting mean?

Cookie-free and ID-free targeting shift focus away from tracking individuals, instead tailoring ads based on context (like time of day or content being viewed) or allowing flexibility across multiple IDs.

How is measurement different from outcomes?

Measurement tracks activity (like clicks or visits), while outcomes prove business impact (like sales, loyalty, or revenue). Both are essential, but outcomes show whether strategies are truly effective.

How does Experian help marketers with these AdTech challenges?

Experian provides tools for identity resolution, privacy-safe data collaboration, and campaign measurement, helping marketers move from understanding the “menu” of AdTech terms to achieving real results.


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We validate inputs, monitor model drift, and ensure no context-based variable introduces bias or privacy risk. This is what responsible automation looks like in practice: intelligent, explainable, and ethical. From who to when: Context is the future of AI-driven marketing Identity tells us who someone is. Context tells us when it matters. The next wave of AI-driven marketing will unite privacy-first identity with contextual intelligence to deliver real-time relevance, responsibly. At Experian, we’re building that future now. Our AI-driven capabilities bring identity, insight, and generative intelligence together so brands, agencies, and platforms can reach the right people, at the right moment, with relevance and respect. Get started now About the author Matthew Griffiths SVP of Technology, Audigent, a part of Experian Matthew Griffiths is a seasoned technology entrepreneur and a driving force in advertising technology, data technology, and AI. As the Co-Founder and former CTO (now SVP of Technology) at Audigent, a part of Experian, he plays a pivotal role in shaping the company’s cutting-edge solutions for data activation, curation, and identity management. With years of executive experience across the U.S., Africa, and the U.K., Matthew has a proven track record of leadership in steering the adoption and use of cutting-edge technologies to drive business outcomes. His expertise spans from collaborating with top global corporations and governments to spearheading award-winning technology projects that deliver life-changing impacts in some of the world's most underserved communities. Matthew’s dynamic approach to solving complex business and technology challenges makes him a visionary leader in the AdTech space, consistently driving innovation and performance through technology. FAQs How does context make AI-driven marketing more effective? Context makes AI-driven marketing more effective because it helps marketers understand people in context, recognizing their environment, mindset, and the moment, to create relevance that feels timely, not intrusive. Context helps marketers understand not just who a person is, but when and why they’re ready to act. Experian’s AI-powered technology layers contextual signals over verified identity data to deliver relevance that feels intuitive, not invasive. This approach connects recognition with understanding, making every campaign more effective and more human. What is the context gap in AI-driven marketing? Identity and behavioral data can reveal the kind of consumer someone is and the kind of products they may want to buy. But they don’t explain what’s happening right now. That’s the context gap—the missing link between knowing something about a consumer and understanding their intent.  Context closes this gap by analyzing environmental, temporal, and situational signals that reveal intent—without using invasive identifiers. Does Experian interpret contextual signals in real-time? Yes, at Experian, our technology interprets contextual signals, including temporal, environmental, and situational, in real-time. By layering these signals over Experian’s verified identity and behavioral data graph, marketers can predict when consumers are most receptive, turning data into real-time opportunity. What does responsible intelligence look like in practice? At Experian, every contextual model we deploy adheres to our standards for transparent and responsible innovation. We validate inputs, monitor model drift, and ensure no context-based variable introduces bias or privacy risk. What does Experian’s foundation in responsible automation look like? – Privacy-first clarity: We unify household, individual, device, demographic, behavioral, publisher first-party signals, and contextual data points to build a reliable view of consumers, even when certain signals are missing. This clarity helps marketers personalize, target, activate, and measure with confidence.- Predictive insight: Our models go beyond describing the past. They forecast behaviors, fill gaps with inferred attributes, create lookalikes, and recommend next-best audiences so clients can anticipate opportunity.- AI-powered simplicity: We’re investing in generative AI and exploring emerging agentic workflows to reimagine how marketers work. Our vision is to move beyond basic audience recommendations toward intelligent audience discovery and automated setup, helping teams uncover opportunities they may not have considered, while spending less time on manual work and more time on strategy and outcomes.- Real-time intelligence: Consumer journeys never stand still. Our AI-powered technology interprets live bidstream data, device activity, content, and timing to optimize in the moment, ensuring campaigns deliver meaningful relevance, not just broader reach.- Transparent and responsible innovation: We drive safe, modular experimentation, from generative applications to agentic workflows, always balancing bold ideas with ethical guardrails. We stay at the forefront of evolving legislation and regulation, ensuring our innovations protect consumers, brands, and the broader ecosystem while moving the industry forward responsibly. Latest posts

Nov 24,2025 by Matthew Griffiths, SVP of Technology, Audigent, a part of Experian

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