At A Glance
As commerce media reshapes digital advertising, the line between first- and third-party onboarding is blurring. Whether you’re activating data for your own campaigns or helping partners reach new audiences, how that data is used matters more than ever. This article explores what happens when first-party data becomes third-party, how the new environment changes activation, and how Experian helps brands navigate it all with privacy-led identity, efficient modeling, and seamless ecosystem connections.In this article…
In the past, first-party onboarding focused on activating a brand’s own customer data, while third-party onboarding allowed advertisers to tap into external audiences. But the rise of commerce media networks (CMNs) — which now influence over 14% of all digital ad spend — has blurred those once-clear lines.
CMNs, retail media ecosystems, and brand partnerships are reshaping how data is shared, accessed, and activated. Today, the question isn’t just who owns the data but why it’s being used. Whether to strengthen customer relationships or create new revenue opportunities, intent now shapes how data must be governed, shared, and measured.
For brands with strong first-party data, this shift creates opportunities to deliver more personalized, privacy-safe campaigns to their own audiences and to extend that data’s value by enabling partners to reach new segments.
In this connected ecosystem, data onboarding enables brands to activate, scale, and monetize their data responsibly, turning first-party insights into privacy-led growth opportunities. Trusted onboarding partners like Experian can help marketers activate first-party audiences with accuracy while scaling and connecting those audiences across the ecosystem for compliant, revenue-generating collaboration.
What is data onboarding?
Data onboarding moves offline consumer data — like CRM records, loyalty details, or transaction histories — into digital environments for activation and measurement. It connects real-world insight with digital engagement across display, social, search, connected TV (CTV), and commerce media. Data onboarding is now a strategic pillar for marketers managing signal loss, disconnected data, and rising privacy expectations.
The approach you take and who owns the data determine what kind of onboarding it is:
- First-party onboarding: A brand activates its own customer data across digital platforms.
- Third-party onboarding: A brand enables others to use its data, often monetizing it — common in CMNs or commerce media ecosystems.
Experian helps marketers succeed in both models. With AI-driven identity resolution, persistent identifiers, and privacy-first infrastructure, we make onboarding accurate, compliant, and scalable, regardless of who owns the data.
Why do marketers need data onboarding?
Even the most data-rich brands often have a limited view and reach when it comes to their audiences. They’re confined to the data they collect directly and to the owned channels they use to engage those people. Customer files may reveal who’s already in the ecosystem, but not always where those people spend time, how they behave across channels, or why they make certain decisions.
Onboarding bridges that gap. It transforms offline data into digital activation power, allowing marketers to connect insight with action. Experian makes this possible at scale with trusted identity resolution, data ranked #1 in accuracy by Truthset, audience modeling expertise, and seamless data integration across platforms, helping marketers activate confidently and compliantly.
With Experian’s onboarding solutions, marketers can achieve:
- Unified customer identity across devices, channels, and touchpoints.
- Cross-channel personalization with consistent, relevant messaging wherever customers engage.
- Scaled, privacy-compliant reach beyond owned channels without sacrificing control or consent.
- Better insights and audience creation by blending first-party and Experian Marketing Data for a deeper understanding.
- Cross-channel activation with deep integrations into the advertising ecosystem.
Core steps in the onboarding process
While onboarding can vary across use cases, the core process remains consistent. Experian’s AI-enhanced identity infrastructure streamlines every stage of data migration and activation, making each step safer and faster:
- Data ingestion: Transfer the data into the onboarding environment using privacy-safe encryption and consented parameters to protect sensitive information responsibly from the start.
- Transformation: Cleanse, standardize, and format records to align with digital identifiers. This eliminates inconsistencies and makes every record easier to recognize and activate later.
- Identity resolution: Link offline identifiers (names, emails, addresses) to hashed digital equivalents like mobile advertising IDs (MAIDs), CTV IDs, and universal IDs via Experian’s Offline and Digital Graphs. Identity resolution connects customers to their digital presence without exposing personal information.
- Identity matching: Match hashed emails, MAIDs, and device-graph identifiers to activation partners for each audience across demand-side platforms (DSPs), social, and CTV platforms. This expands your audience reach while maintaining accuracy and privacy.
- Activation: Deliver privacy-safe audiences to DSPs, social, search, or CMN shelves from third-party data providers (not the CMN’s own data) — or directly to an advertiser’s seat for immediate activation. You’ll turn insights into action and be able to reach the right people with relevant, compliant messaging.
Behind this flow is Experian’s identity graph, which links 250 million U.S. individuals, 900 million hashed emails, and 4.2 billion digital identifiers refreshed weekly. It’s the foundation that keeps onboarding accurate as the signal landscape shifts.
First-party vs. third-party onboarding
Every digital marketing data point has a story, but whose story it tells depends on who’s using it. That distinction defines the difference between first-party and third-party onboarding. Both are essential to modern marketing, but they carry different expectations for control, consent, and accountability.
First-party onboarding: Activate your own data safely and strategically
First-party onboarding starts with the data a brand earns directly from its own customers through trusted relationships. This data belongs to the brand, as customers have given consent, and the brand has the responsibility (and opportunity) to use it well.
That data might include:
- CRM records
- Loyalty-program data
- Purchase or transaction histories
- Website or app interactions
- Email subscribers or reward members
How first-party onboarding works in practice
The onboarding process connects this offline data to digital identity so marketers can reach their existing customers across channels.
For example, a credit card company might take its CRM file of cardholders, hash the email addresses, and upload that file to a DSP via Experian’s Audience Engine. Experian’s identity graph resolves those emails to privacy-safe digital identifiers like MAIDs, CTV IDs, or universal IDs. The result is a ready-to-activate audience that can be reached on CTV, social, and display without exposing raw personally identifiable information (PII).
Why control matters in first-party onboarding
The advantage of first-party onboarding is control; the brand decides what to share and how to use it. It’s a powerful way to:
- Personalize messages for known customers
- Re-engage lapsed buyers or loyalty members
- Suppress existing customers from prospecting campaigns
- Measure performance with closed-loop attribution
Doing first-party onboarding responsibly
That control comes with responsibility. Even consented customer data that has been consented to can pose risks if handled carelessly or shared with unverified partners. Experian’s First-Party Onboarding sits on a privacy-first identity foundation, governed by decades of compliance leadership under laws like the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (GLBA) and Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA).
We connect data and identity responsibly, so marketers can activate with confidence while protecting consumers.
Why first-party onboarding matters
First-party onboarding is the cornerstone of responsible marketing. It allows brands to deepen relationships they already have, using data that customers have freely shared. And with Experian’s secure First-Party Onboarding, that data stays encrypted, compliant, and under the brand’s control from start to finish.
Third-party onboarding: Share and monetize data responsibly
Third-party onboarding begins when a brand allows someone else to use its data. It’s how data providers, publishers, and especially CMNs monetize their audiences — turning first-party customer insights into addressable, privacy-safe segments that advertisers can buy and activate across digital channels.
How third-party onboarding works in practice
Think of it as data collaboration at scale. Let’s say a retailer collects first-party shopper data like product purchases, loyalty card usage, and store visits. Then, they partner with Experian to make that audience available to outside advertisers, such as a consumer packaged goods (CPG) brand.
Through Experian Third-Party Onboarding, those audiences are resolved, privacy-protected, and distributed to integrated destinations such as The Trade Desk, Magnite, or NBCUniversal for activation.
- To the retailer, it’s their first-party data.
- To the CPG, it’s third-party data they can use for targeted campaigns.
- To Experian, it’s an opportunity to ensure the entire exchange is accurate and compliant.
Why scale matters in third-party onboarding
The benefit of third-party onboarding is scale. It enables data owners to monetize their insights, while giving advertisers access to richer audiences they couldn’t build on their own. It’s the engine behind CMNs, commerce media, and the growing data-sharing economy.
With a partner like Experian, that scale becomes even more powerful. Our advanced modeling and identity solutions help brands expand their audiences responsibly using lookalike and predictive modeling to identify high-value segments, increase reach, and maximize performance across every activation channel.
The responsibilities of data sharing in third-party onboarding
As data ecosystems grow, so does the opportunity to collaborate responsibly. Once data leaves its original owner’s ecosystem:
- Consent obligations become more complex.
- Control over downstream usage can blur.
- Regulatory oversight increases, especially around transparency and consumer rights.
With the right governance in place, these responsibilities can help strengthen partnerships, protect consumers, and create a foundation for sustainable growth.
Experian’s ethical enablement role in third-party onboarding
Experian’s enablement role is both technical and ethical. Our deep expertise enables us to partner with brands and support their monetization efforts, helping them derive new value from their data while maintaining the highest standards of privacy and compliance. Meanwhile, our infrastructure ensures third-party data onboarding happens securely and transparently:
- Identity resolution expands reach without overexposing identifiers.
- Data verification and governance ensure partners meet strict privacy standards.
- Revenue-share structures maintain fairness without hidden costs.
- Cross-channel integrations enable you to onboard your data once and activate it everywhere (programmatic, CTV, or social) through Experian’s 30+ direct and 200+ indirect destination partnerships.
Why third-party onboarding matters
Third-party onboarding is the foundation of modern data collaboration. When done through Experian, it becomes a trusted extension of your brand’s identity governed by the same privacy, consent, and accuracy standards that strengthen your first-party ecosystem. We help brands uncover new opportunities for growth, partnership, and responsible innovation.
When first-party onboarding turns into third-party onboarding
When data ownership shifts, privacy expectations change, and the rules of onboarding start to look a little different. This stage can feel complex, but with the right approach, the crossover becomes clear. It’s a natural evolution that helps brands connect data more effectively and collaborate confidently.
Here’s what that can look like in practice. A retailer uses its own first-party data to engage loyal shoppers through its website, app, or email program. The data is secure, consented, and fully under the retailer’s control. Then comes collaboration. The retailer decides to partner with a brand, like a CPG company, to reach those same shoppers across connected TV or the open web.
In that moment, the retailer’s first-party data becomes the CPG’s third-party data. Ownership doesn’t really change, but accountability does, along with new privacy and compliance considerations.
This “crossover moment,” when first-party onboarding turns into third-party activation, is a small shift with big potential that can lead to new reach, deepen collaboration, and strengthen customer connections across the marketing ecosystem when managed responsibly.
Why clarity matters in the crossover between first- and third-party onboarding
When data starts flowing beyond owned channels, questions naturally come up. Marketers want to know things like:
- Who “owns” the audience once it’s shared with a partner or DSP?
- Whose privacy notice applies — the retailer’s, the brand’s, or both?
- How do we keep match accuracy without overexposing PII?
- Who’s responsible for opt-outs and suppression compliance downstream?
These are the right questions to be asking, and they’re signs of a mature, data-driven strategy. Asking them is what helps brands strengthen governance, build trust, and get more value from collaboration. With the right framework in place, what could feel complicated becomes clear, opening the door to more confident growth across CMNs and other shared-data environments.
How Experian brings clarity and control to the first- and third-party onboarding crossover
As a neutral, privacy-first partner, we provide the infrastructure that keeps data secure, compliant, and meaningful wherever it flows. Our onboarding solutions help both sides of the partnership — retailers and advertisers — maintain trust through:
- Clear ownership and consent management: Experian enforces data-handling rules that preserve each party’s control. Every record is matched and activated in accordance with strict consent parameters and Global Data Principles that exceed industry standards.
- Accurate, privacy-safe identity resolution: Our Offline and Digital Graphs connect people to their devices, households, and behaviors using hashed identifiers, ensuring match precision while protecting individuals.
- AI-powered contextual intelligence: Experian’s AI models analyze real-world behavior and contextual signals to enhance match quality and extend reach without reliance on cookies. For CMNs, that means better off-site activation, targeting the right shoppers in the right environments while maintaining compliance.
- Trusted integrations and transparent reporting: With direct integrations into 30+ programmatic and TV destinations, Experian delivers consistent match rates and unified measurement through solutions like Activity Feed and Experian Outcomes.
This is how Experian transforms complex data challenges into seamless, scalable collaborations that give marketers the confidence to expand responsibly into commerce media and commerce ecosystems.
The new standard of responsible AI and commerce media
Commerce media represents the future of audience activation, but only if the transition is managed responsibly. As the lines blur between data ownership and activation rights, Experian’s AI-driven, privacy-first identity framework acts as the connective tissue between retailers, brands, and platforms.
We help CMNs:
- Enrich shopper data with Experian Marketing Attributes for deeper insights.
- Extend addressability off-site using privacy-safe identity resolution.
- Optimize activation through real-time, contextually aware audience expansion.
- Measure results transparently through privacy-compliant feedback loops.
In short, we ensure that when your first-party onboarding becomes third-party activation, trust and performance stay intact.
Why choose Experian’s onboarding solutions?
Many view onboarding as a data transfer, but we treat it as a trust process where accuracy, privacy, and performance align. Here’s why marketers choose us:
1. Unmatched data and identity foundation
When brands struggle with incomplete or siloed customer data, Experian’s unified foundation connects fragmented records into a single, accurate identity.
Our Offline and Digital Graphs link households, individuals, and devices with persistent accuracy. Updated weekly and built on decades of historical data, our graphs maintain 97% household coverage across the U.S., even through signal loss.
2. Privacy-first and compliance-led
Given tightening regulations and growing consumer expectations, privacy compliance is essential. With decades as a regulated data steward, we apply the same rigorous controls from our financial operations to marketing data.
Every data partner is verified for transparency and compliance with consent requirements, and all consumer data is governed by Experian’s Global Data Principles, which exceed industry standards. We help brands meet their privacy and consent obligations confidently while maintaining the data integrity that drives results.
3. Real-time, contextual activation
Experian’s industry-leading Offline and Digital Graphs are widely adopted across the advertising ecosystem, powering identity resolution and audience activation for the world’s top marketers. Our integrations span 30+ direct and 200+ indirect activation platforms, including leading DSPs, CTV networks, and commerce environments.
With real-time, AI-driven contextual intelligence, Experian enables privacy-safe targeting even in signal-limited environments through solutions like Contextually-Indexed Audiences that deliver reach without reliance on cookies or personal identifiers.
4. Platform flexibility
Modern marketing requires interoperability. Experian’s onboarding framework is technically integrated across multiple platforms, offering brands and data providers the freedom to activate where they choose.
Whether through self-service onboarding in Audience Engine for first-party data or managed onboarding for third-party monetization, Experian scales with your organization, providing transparent pricing, seamless delivery, and dedicated support teams to ensure every connection performs.
5. Human-centered innovation
Marketing should strengthen relationships and build trust. Our AI-driven identity systems are designed to protect privacy, respect individuals, and create real human value — helping brands connect with people meaningfully. They aren’t built to collect more data but to make better use of the data you already have by connecting insights responsibly and ethically.
Every innovation at Experian is guided by the principle of balancing personalization with compliance.
Top use cases for Experian’s onboarding solutions
Our onboarding solutions are transforming how brands operate across industries every day. Whether you’re deepening loyalty, expanding reach, or proving performance, Experian helps connect data responsibly to drive measurable results.
Here’s where we make the biggest impact:
- Automotive: Connect purchase intent data with digital identifiers for more efficient targeting.
- Commerce media: Use both first- and third-party onboarding — first-party for on-site activation and owned marketing, third-party for off-site activation and monetization —all while maintaining compliance and accurate attribution.
- CPG: Activate shopper data through retailer partnerships to drive off-site reach and stronger brand collaboration.
- Data providers: Monetize audience segments across Experian’s programmatic and TV integrations.
- Financial services: Deliver compliant, personalized cross-channel offers with unified identity.
- Healthcare: Use National Provider Identifier (NPI) onboarding to reach healthcare professionals compliantly.
- Retail: Power loyalty personalization, partner monetization, and CMN audience activation.
Across each use case, Experian’s privacy-first identity foundation turns data onboarding into a trusted driver of growth and stronger customer relationships.
Navigate the new data economy with Experian
Data onboarding has come a long way, mirroring the changes in marketing itself. We’ve moved from relying on third-party cookies to empowering first-party data, and now to building collaborative ecosystems like CMNs.
At Experian, we’re right in the middle of that evolution. With decades of data expertise, privacy leadership, and AI-driven activation, we help marketers connect more responsibly, measure what matters, and grow with confidence.
Want to see what that looks like for your brand? Let’s build safer connections together.
Start connecting responsibly
Data onboarding FAQs
Experian First-Party Onboarding helps brands take the customer data they already own, like CRM lists or loyalty files, and use it safely across digital channels for targeting, personalization, and measurement. Experian Third-Party Onboarding helps retailers, publishers, and data providers share or monetize their audiences responsibly with partners through secure, privacy-first activation.
Both are powered by Experian’s trusted identity foundation that keeps every connection accurate, compliant, and privacy-safe.
The difference between first- and third-party onboarding is who’s using the data. First-party means a brand is activating its own customer information, while third-party means that data is being shared or used by another advertiser or partner.
First-party onboarding becomes third-party onboarding most often in CMNs or commerce media. When a retailer monetizes its first-party shopper data for use by CPGs or advertisers, the use case shifts to third-party onboarding.
First-party onboarding helps brands reach and understand their existing customers, while third-party onboarding helps expand reach, enable partnerships, and monetize data responsibly.
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Suppose you're watching your favorite TV show, and an ad suddenly catches your attention. It urges you to take immediate action, whether to call a number, visit a website, or text a keyword like ‘DETAILS’ to a specific number for more information. This is direct response television (DRTV), a powerful form of advertising available on all TV types — including live, cable, and streaming — that directly connects brands with consumers to drive immediate engagement and measurable results. The goal of DRTV marketing is simple: convert viewers into customers quickly and measurably by asking them to do something in real time. Every DRTV ad is carefully designed to drive quick conversions with a clear, direct path from interest to action. This makes it an essential tool for marketers who need to measure their return on investment (ROI) for TV and see instantaneous results. Key benefits of DRTV marketing Unlike traditional TV ads that build long-term brand awareness, DRTV campaigns are focused on driving instant results and are surprisingly effective at doing it. Here are a few benefits of DRTV and why it’s a powerful tool for marketers in a digitized world. Immediate customer engagement One of the biggest advantages of DRTV is its ability to engage customers right off the bat. DRTV grabs attention and motivates people to act now, whether with a phone number on the screen, a QR code to scan, or a limited-time offer, often with compelling incentives. Measurable ROI DRTV is designed to deliver precise, trackable results. Because the ads encourage specific actions — like visiting a website or calling a phone number — it’s easy to see what’s working and what’s not. Marketers can measure everything from sales to lead generation, which guides them in refining their strategies for even better results. Pairing DRTV with digital tools, like web analytics or CRM systems, can provide even deeper campaign performance insights. Broad reach Even in the streaming age, live TV and cable still attract millions of viewers, which makes DRTV excellent for brands needing to expand their reach. Marketers can even tailor DRTV ads to specific audiences by choosing the best time slots on the proper channels. Whether you’re targeting parents watching morning news or sports fans tuning into big games, you’ll know you’re connecting with the right people at optimal times. Types of DRTV ads DRTV advertising offers several formats, each suited to different audiences, budgets, and goals, whether you’re introducing a new product or driving traffic to your website. Infomercials Infomercials are the classic, long-form DRTV ads that most people associate with the term. These ads typically run for 15-30 minutes and go into detail on product benefits and features. They often include demonstrations and special offers to educate and engage viewers with urgent, limited-time deals. Think of the iconic “But wait, there’s more!” ads used to sell everyday items ranging from household cleaners to exercise equipment. Short-form ads Short-form DRTV ads are 30-second to 2-minute ads that get straight to the point with a single message or offer and a clear call-to-action (CTA) to encourage immediate engagement. Short-form ads are ideal for quick bursts of information, like promoting a flash sale or highlighting a new product. A 60-second ad showcasing a new mobile app might feature a quick walkthrough of its features, followed by a QR code or website URL to download it instantly. Product demos Some DRTV ads focus exclusively on demonstrating how a product works in real-life scenarios. These ads are great for showing off unique features or solving familiar pain points that make the product feel essential. A cookware brand might show how its nonstick pans make cooking and cleanup a breeze while including a CTA to “order now and get a free bonus spatula!” Testimonials Testimonials from real customers or experts are a great way to build trust and credibility. Hearing someone’s success story or endorsement of a product or service can help viewers feel confident about their purchase decision. A skincare brand, for example, might air a two-minute ad of a dermatologist explaining the science behind the product, along with five-star reviews from satisfied users. Call-in contests or limited-time offers This type of DRTV ad creates urgency by promoting a special offer or giveaway. Viewers might have to call a number or visit a website within a specific timeframe to claim the deal. For example, travel agencies sometimes air ads offering free vacations or planning kits to the first 100 callers, which helps them generate immediate leads. 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Whatever it is, your CTA should be easy to understand and time-sensitive to create urgency, such as, “Claim this limited-time offer in the next 30 minutes!” Multi-channel integration Direct response TV works best when part of a broad multi-channel strategy, so you should make sure your campaign integrates well with digital channels. This can reinforce your message, help consumers engage across platforms, and drive better results. Audience targeting Precise audience targeting is critical to DRTV campaign success. Experian’s advanced TV audiences, developed with the Advertising Research Foundation (ARF), help you connect with the right viewers to drive immediate action. These syndicated audiences are now available on FreeWheel, the TV advertising industry’s global tech platform. With over 2,400 ready-to-use audience segments, Experian enables you to target specific groups, such as: TV viewership audiences: Target households based on viewing habits and preferred devices. In-market car buyers: Reach consumers actively searching for their next vehicle, which is ideal for driving sales. Holiday shoppers: Engage gift-givers, deal-seekers, and travelers during peak shopping seasons. New TV audiences released in August 2024 In addition to these, our August 2024 release introduced several updates that further refine Experian’s targeting capabilities. Some of the audience updates in this release included: New retail transaction audiences: These segments offer insights into categories like children’s products, parenting, hobbies and crafts, science and nature, and sports and fitness. With high spending and frequent purchase behaviors, these audiences provide a deeper understanding of consumer preferences. Notable segments include: Sports and fitness high spenders Children’s product high spenders Science and nature high spenders Updated TV audiences: New and refreshed TV segments now reflect the viewing habits of today’s consumers for accurate insights and targeting. Examples of newly added segments include: Free and paid ad-supported streaming TV subscribers Satellite service subscribers Cable and streaming TV service subscribers With these advanced targeting capabilities, your DRTV campaigns can be more effective and resonant with viewers most likely to respond for maximum ROI and engagement. Effective planning A strong DRTV campaign starts with defining your objectives, budgeting effectively, and identifying the right media mix. Understanding where your audience spends their time — prime-time TV or niche cable channels — will get you the most value from your DRTV investment. Real-time tracking Tracking your DRTV campaign’s performance in real time is critical for success. Tools that provide immediate insights into viewer responses, website visits, or call volumes allow you to identify what’s working and pivot quickly if needed. Measuring success Measuring success against key performance indicators (KPIs) like conversion rates, ROI, or cost-per-acquisition (CPA) is an excellent way to know if your DRTV campaign is delivering results. Experian’s advanced data solutions make tracking and analyzing campaign performance easier, so you can make data-informed decisions and deliver precise results to stakeholders. Continuous optimization DRTV marketing is an ongoing effort. Use the insights from real-time tracking and performance measurement to refine your strategy. Optimization keeps your campaign relevant and effective, whether you need to tweak your CTA, adjust your audience targeting, or test new creative formats. 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These apps reduce purchase journey friction and allow quicker conversions, as viewers can complete transactions with fewer steps. QR codes replacing URLs: QR codes are becoming a popular alternative to traditional URLs in DRTV ads. These codes provide a quick, convenient way for viewers to visit a website, access a product page, or act on a CTA simply by scanning the code with their phone. Better targeting algorithms: Advancements in targeting algorithms allow advertisers to serve more personalized and relevant ads. These algorithms help ads reach the right audience at the right time, which can increase engagement and conversion rates. These innovations offer advertisers more tools to connect with audiences in a personalized, interactive, and measurable way. Connect with Experian’s TV experts Experian can help you achieve the full potential of your direct response TV advertising efforts with our advanced tools, precise audience targeting, and strong industry partnerships. We help brands create impactful DRTV campaigns that drive real-time engagement, audience connection, and measurable results, whether for traditional, advanced, or CTV. Reach out today to work with us on your DRTV efforts and achieve better ROI, or explore how our expertise can transform your TV advertising campaigns. Connect with our TV experts Contact us Latest posts
The stakes are high when it comes to advertising during football’s biggest games as the cost of advertising continues to rise, with the average 30-second TV ad during the 2023-24 Sunday Night Football season priced at $882K. With record viewership at the College Football Playoff and the Super Bowl drawing in 123.7 million average viewers, the largest TV audience on record, it's no surprise that brands are willing to pay those prices since football games are prime time for reaching engaged audiences. In fact, an estimated 51% of viewers search for an ad they saw during the game, underscoring the potential of second-screen engagement to amplify campaign impact. Whether you advertise on TV during these games or not, brands are exploring how they can use football season to drive a deeper connection to their audience. To do this, brands need data driven strategies. In this blog post, we’ll reveal audience segments designed for you to craft tailored marketing strategies that resonate with football fans in the stands and on the couch. You can find the complete audience segment name in the appendix. Make a game-winning play with Experian Audiences With playoff season fast approaching, it’s the perfect time to go on the offensive and target football fans. Utilize Experian’s syndicated audiences to ensure your marketing messages resonate with fans when they're the most engaged. Experian’s 2,400+ syndicated audiences are available directly on over 30 leading television, social, programmatic advertising platforms, and directly within Audigent for activation within private marketplaces (PMPs). Reach consumers based on who they are, where they live, and their household makeup. Experian ranked #1 in accuracy by Truthset for key demographic attributes. Access to unique audiences through Experian’s Partner Audiences available on Experian’s data marketplace, within Audigent for activation in PMPs and directly on platforms like DirectTV, Dish, Magnite, OpenAP, and The Trade Desk. Four football audience categories to add to your advertising lineup Football fans come in all shapes, sizes, and viewing habits. From dedicated supporters to casual viewers, targeting the right audience can make or break your campaign. Here are four football audience categories you can target: Sports enthusiasts College football fans 21+ audiences TV viewers Let’s huddle up and break down the audience segments within each category. Whether it’s tailgating, tuning in, or cheering from the stands, these insights will get your campaign into the end zone. Sports enthusiasts Whether they’re following their favorite teams, attending games in person, or watching professional sports events on TV, football fans are deeply engaged, making them an ideal target for advertisers looking to score big. Here are five audiences to target: NFL Enthusiasts Football (FLA/Fair Lending Friendly)1 Sports Enthusiasts NFL Stadium Visitors Professionals Sports Event College football fans College football fans bring unmatched passion and loyalty, with bowl games during the 2023 season drawing on average of 4.6 million viewers across 40 total games—a 5% increase year-over-year. From students to alumni, these fans represent an invaluable opportunity for advertisers to connect with a deeply invested audience. Here are four audiences to target to connect with passionate college football fans: College Football Stadium Visitors College Football Bowls College Students College Sports Venues 21+ audiences With 84% of U.S adults reporting that they drink alcohol while watching football on TV, targeting 21+ audiences during game season is a winning play. Whether they’re cracking open a cold one at a tailgate, hosting a game-day party, or relaxing on the couch, these audiences represent a key audience for brands looking to tap into football culture. Here are four audiences that you can target this post season: Imported Light Beer Enthusiasts Domestic/Imported Beer High-end Spirit Drinkers Discretionary spend: Alcohol and wine $331 – $726 These audiences can help you serve up campaigns that pour directly into the heart of football fandom. TV viewers Football games attract some of the most engaged and diverse TV audiences, with 85% of sports fans preferring to watch live sports on TV rather than in-person. Notably, for the first time, viewers aged 18 to 49 spent the majority of their sports viewing time (54%) via streaming. This shift highlights the immense opportunity for advertisers to connect with highly attentive viewers tuned into every play. Here are seven audiences that you can use to create a game-winning strategy to reach engaged TV watching football fans: Cable Satellite or Streaming Network Subscribers Streaming Video: High Spenders Cord Cutters Cable and Streaming TV Service Subscribers Paid TV High Spenders Screen Size – Large Co-Watchers Whether they're catching the action on a large TV screen or streaming from their phone, these audiences will help you craft campaigns that deliver results with highly engaged viewers. Score big with Experian this postseason As some of football’s biggest games approach, it’s time to huddle up and connect with consumers who live for the thrill of the game. Whether they’re tuning in to cheer for their favorite teams, tailgating with friends, or enjoying the game-day experience from home, Experian Marketing Data provides the playbook to score big with targeting, enrichment, and activation. With Experian’s data-driven insights, you can turn every opportunity into a game-winning play! Need a custom audience? Reach out to our audience team and we can help you build and activate an Experian audience on the platform of your choice. Additionally, work with Experian’s network of data providers to build audiences and send to an Audigent PMP for activation. Connect with our audience team Connect us You can activate our syndicated audiences on-the-shelf of most major platforms. For a full list of Experian’s syndicated audiences and activation destinations, download our syndicated audiences guide. Explore our other seasonal audiences that you can activate today. View now 1 “Fair Lending Friendly” indicates data fields that Experian has made available without use of certain demographic attributes that may increase the likelihood of discriminatory practices prohibited by the Fair Housing Act (“FHA”) and Equal Credit Opportunity Act (“ECOA”). These excluded attributes include, but may not be limited to, race, color, religion, national origin, sex, marital status, age, disability, handicap, family status, ancestry, sexual orientation, unfavorable military discharge, and gender. Experian’s provision of Fair Lending Friendly indicators does not constitute legal advice or otherwise assures your compliance with the FHA, ECOA, or any other applicable laws. Clients should seek legal advice with respect to your use of data in connection with lending decisions or application and compliance with applicable laws. Appendix Sports enthusiasts Lifestyle and Interests (Affinity) > Activities and Entertainment > NFL Enthusiasts Lifestyle and Interests (Affinity) > Sports and Recreation > Sports Enthusiast Mobile Location Models > Visits > NFL Stadium Visitors Lifestyle and Interests (Affinity) > Sports > Football (FLA / Fair Lending Friendly)2 Travel Intent > Activities > Professional Sports Event College sports fans Mobile Location Models > Visits > University Stadium College Football Visitor Lifestyle and Interests (Affinity) > Sports > College Football Bowls Mobile Location Models > Visits > College Students Mobile Location Models > Visits > College Sport Venues 21+ audiences Lifestyle and Interests (Affinity) > Activities and Entertainment > Imported Light Beer Enthusiasts Lifestyle and Interests (Affinity) > In-Market > Domestic/Imported Beer Lifestyle and Interests (Affinity) > Retail > High-end Spirit Drinkers Financial – Analytics IQ > Discretionary Spend > Alcohol and Wine: $331-$726 TV viewers Television (TV) > Household/Family Viewing > Cable Satellite or Streaming Network Subscribers Retail Shoppers: Purchase Based > Entertainment > Streaming/Video/Audio/CTV/Cable TV: Streaming Video: High Spenders Television (TV) > Household/Family Viewing > Cord Cutters Television (TV) > Household/Family Viewing > Cable and Streaming Service Subscribers Television (TV) > TV Enthusiasts > Paid TV High Spenders Television (TV) > Viewing Device Type > Screen Size – Large Television (TV) > Household/Family Viewing > Co-Watchers Latest posts
As marketers face growing fragmentation and signal loss, Experian has launched a powerful new solution: a data marketplace that brings addressability, interoperability, and identity resolution into one activation-ready platform. Download the overview to see how our data marketplace connects high-quality identity to scalable activation across all screens. Download the overview The data you need to reach real people across every channel Today’s marketers are trying to connect with real people, not just cookies, devices, or IDs, across more channels than ever. But with so many signals disappearing, that’s getting harder to do. That’s where Experian’s data marketplace comes in. Our data marketplace is built on our best-in-class identity graph, which includes 126 million U.S. households, 250 million individuals, and 4 billion+ active digital IDs. Experian connects the entire ecosystem — TV operators, programmers, supply-side platforms (SSPs), demand-side platforms (DSPs), and brands — with activation-ready audiences that drive measurable performance. Buyers can access data from retail, CPG, healthcare, B2B, location intelligence, and more. Because we start with verified offline data, our audiences are grounded in real-world accuracy, not just digital assumptions. That means when you activate through our marketplace, you can: Reach more of the right people Stay accurate at scale Keep addressability high even as the ecosystem shifts Whether you're running a campaign on CTV, mobile, or display, we help you show up in the right place, to the right person, at the right time. Related reading Four CTV advertising misconceptions marketers need to drop Tap into premium data from top partners like: Alliant, Attain, Circana, Dun & Bradstreet, and more. "Experian has been a longstanding partner of DISH Media, and we’re excited to be an early adopter of their marketplace which leverages the foundation of their identity solutions to ensure maximum cross-channel reach as we look to expand the breadth and depth of data we use for addressable TV."Kemal Bokhari, Head of Data, Measurement & Analytics Want a quick overview of Experian's data marketplace? Watch our video for a quick overview of how Experian's data marketplace works. Read the article here How it works: Benefits for buyers, sellers, and platforms Our data marketplace is built to support high-performance media strategies, helping partners activate and scale faster. Here’s how it delivers: Enhances addressability and match rates All audiences delivered from our marketplace benefit from our best-in-class offline and digital identity graphs, which ensure addressability across all channels like display, mobile, and CTV. Unlike other data marketplaces, Experian ensures all identifiers associated with an audience have been active and are targetable, improving the accuracy of audience planning. Simplifies audience planning and distribution for TV Operators TV operators can build custom audiences matched directly to their subscriber footprint and distribute them across all advanced TV channels (data-driven linear, addressable, digital, and CTV) for maximum impact. Reintroduces choice within the data marketplace ecosystem With the departure of Oracle’s advertising business, the optionality for buyers and sellers to connect with third-party data has become increasingly limited. With Experian's data marketplace, we’re excited to offer a new solution to the market that ensures data-driven targeting can continue to take place at scale. Reduces activation costs Experian’s data marketplace offers transparent, pass-through pricing with no additional access fees, enabling partners to maximize their earnings while reducing costs. Expands audience diversity and scale Platforms can access a broad range of audiences across top verticals from our partner audiences, which can be combined with 2,400+ Experian Audiences. This offers the flexibility, reach, and scale necessary to effectively execute advertising campaigns. “Circana and Experian have enjoyed a deep partnership for over a decade. We are exceedingly excited to extend our partnership and be an early adopter and launch partner of the Experian data marketplace. This additional capability will enable the ecosystem to more easily access Circana’s purchase-based CPG and General Merchandise (for example Consumer Electronics, Toys, Beauty, Apparel etc.) audience segments to drive performance outcomes across all media channels.”Patty Altman, President, Global Solutions Want to learn more about our data partners? Q&A with Attain Q&A with Circana Q&A with Webbula “Capturing the attention of target audiences across channels is critical for marketers navigating an increasingly connected digital world. We are excited to be an exclusive provider of B2B solutions within Experian’s marketplace, helping brands and media agencies to accelerate their reach, addressability and targeting capabilities across TV, mobile and connected TV channels.” Georgina Bankier, VP of Platform Partnerships How Yieldmo drove in-store traffic for an athletic retailer with Experian's data marketplace Yieldmo, a leading SSP known for its AI-powered creative formats and privacy-forward inventory, partnered with Experian to support an athletic retailer’s campaign focused on driving in-store traffic — particularly during key sales windows. By using Experian’s data marketplace, Yieldmo built a self-serve targeting strategy combining Experian Audiences and high-performing partner segments (e.g., Alliant, Circana, Webbula, and Sports Innovation Lab). They were able to: Quickly identify in-store and conquest segments Easily combine first- and third-party audiences Improve match rates and cross-channel addressability Deliver measurable foot traffic lift “Experian’s data marketplace fills a critical gap, letting us quickly search by brand, build smarter conquest segments, and activate audiences fast. The platform is flexible and the support is hands-on and reliable.”Abby Littlejohn, Director of Sales Planning The result? Faster setup, more tailored audiences, and stronger in-store outcomes all while reducing manual work. Download the full case study Learn more about our solutions for SSPs Ready to activate? Better connections start with Experian's data marketplace Experian’s data marketplace, easily accessible from our Audience Engine platform, brings unparalleled addressability, enabling our clients to reach more relevant consumers and increase revenue. Talk to our team if you’re interested in learning more about our new data marketplace or becoming an active buyer or seller, or download our overview to learn more. FAQs What is Experian’s data marketplace? Experian’s data marketplace is a centralized, activation-ready platform that allows TV operators, programmers, supply partners, and demand platforms to access and activate high-quality, privacy-compliant audiences across CTV, mobile, and display. It supports both first-party onboarding and third-party audience activation. Who is the Experian data marketplace designed for? The Experian data marketplace is built for TV operators, programmers, supply partners, and demand platforms looking to improve audience targeting, match rates, and addressability across fragmented digital environments. What types of audiences are available in the Experian data marketplace? The Experian data marketplace offers a mix of Experian proprietary audiences and third-party data partner segments across verticals like retail, CPG, B2B, healthcare, financial services, and location intelligence. Users can activate over 2,400+ Experian Audiences and premium partner segments from providers like Alliant, Attain, Circana, Dun & Bradstreet, Webbula, and more. How does Experian ensure addressability and match rate performance? Experian’s data marketplace is powered by our identity graphs which are rooted in verified offline data, spanning 126 million U.S. households, 250 million individuals, and over 4 billion active digital identifiers. This foundation ensures that audiences are accurate, actively targetable, and optimized for high match rates across CTV, mobile, and display platforms. Is Experian’s data marketplace privacy-compliant? Yes. All data in the Experian data marketplace is subject to Experian’s rigorous partner review process to ensure compliance with federal, state, and local consumer privacy regulations. Privacy and data stewardship are foundational to our data marketplace’s design. What makes Experian’s data marketplace different from other data marketplaces? Experian’s data marketplace stands out for its focus on audience accuracy, partner integration, privacy compliance, and deep identity expertise. Here’s how we’re different: – Accurate audience planning: Unlike many other marketplaces, Experian ensures that all identifiers tied to an audience are verified as active and targetable — improving match rates and reducing waste. – Seamless partner audience integration: In one platform, you can activate Experian Audiences alongside premium segments from our growing partner network — including Alliant, Attain, Circana, and more. – Privacy and compliance built in: Every partner and audience goes through Experian’s rigorous review process to meet federal, state, and local consumer privacy laws — so you can activate with confidence. – Trusted identity foundation: Experian’s identity graph is grounded in decades of offline data expertise, powering more reliable targeting and activation than marketplaces built solely on digital signals. Where can I learn more or get started? You can download the overview to explore the capabilities, or contact our team to become an active buyer or seller. The Experian data marketplace is available through Experian’s Audience Engine platform. Latest posts