At A Glance
Identity resolution unifies fragmented IDs into complete customer profiles, helping companies understand their audiences and deliver personalized, privacy-compliant experiences in a cookie-light world. With Experian’s AI-powered identity resolution solution, marketers gain the scale, accuracy, and compliance to compete while making marketing more human.In this article…
Every marketer has seen it: a customer browses reviews on a laptop, adds items to a cart on mobile, then “disappears.” In reality, they just likely switched devices or logged in with a different email. Identity resolution connects these scattered signals into a single profile so you never lose sight of the customer journey.
Identity resolution is what helps you keep track of customers who bounce around.
Connecting scattered signals into a single customer profile can help you deliver seamless experiences, meet strengthening privacy standards, turn first-party data into measurable results, and fuel better customer analytics.
See our identity resolution solution in action
What is identity resolution?
Identity resolution is the process of pulling together the different identifiers a customer uses and connecting them to a single profile. Without it, you’re left with an incomplete picture of the customer — like a cart tied to one email, an app login tied to another device, or a loyalty swipe that never links back to the same person.
Common identifiers include:
- Cookies: Short-lived browser data
- Emails: Plain-text and hashed
- Device IDs: Mobile advertising IDs (MAIDs) or app-based identifiers
- Loyalty IDs: Program numbers that tie online and offline activity
- Hashed PII: Personally identifiable information (PII) encrypted for privacy
Ultimately, identity resolution can help you recognize the same customer wherever they engage.
Why does identity resolution matter now?
Marketers face incomplete views, data silos, privacy regulations, and shrinking visibility:
- Rising consumer expectations: People want seamless, personalized journeys across touchpoints.
- Privacy-first environment: Consumer privacy legislation (like the GDPR, CCPA, GLBA, FCRA, and new state laws) makes compliance non-negotiable.
- Signal loss: The decline of cookies, MAIDs, and walled gardens are pushing brands toward first-party data.
Experian utilizes AI and machine learning to fill these gaps, predict behaviors, and connect signals across devices — providing marketers with a clear, privacy-safe view of their customers, even when traditional identifiers are missing.
In this environment, identity resolution matters because it gives marketers a way to deliver seamless, personalized customer experiences and engage audiences effectively while respecting their privacy. It’s the basis for turning consented first-party data into measurable marketing outcomes without sacrificing trust.
Why is identity resolution critical in a privacy-first world?
Even as cookies linger, marketers have already shifted their strategies to rely on first-party data, where choice and transparency are the baseline expectation. At Experian, our long history as a regulated data steward makes us a uniquely capable and trusted partner for managing modern compliance expectations. Our identity resolution solutions maximize the value of permission-based data while meeting consumer demand for privacy, personalization, and control.
Struggling with scattered customer data? Experian makes identity resolution seamless
How does identity resolution help brands?
Identity resolution turns fragmented signals into unified profiles that drive personalization, efficiency, and compliance. Here’s how it creates measurable business impact.
Creates a unified customer view
One of the biggest advantages of identity resolution is the ability to integrate data from loyalty programs, point-of-sale (POS) systems, customer relationship management (CRM) platforms, web analytics, and offline sources into a single, comprehensive profile. Experian strengthens identity resolution with AI-driven clustering models that resolve household and individual identities across billions of signals with greater accuracy.
With a clearer picture of each customer, brands see higher match rates and larger addressable audiences, which translates to more substantial reach and better return on ad spend (ROAS).
Enables better personalization
Customers constantly switch devices, update their information, and change preferences. Experian makes it easier to keep pace with these changes through frequent data enrichment and near-real-time identity resolution via Activity Feed.
Combined with our long-standing use of AI and machine learning, this approach ensures shifting behaviors are captured quickly, enabling timely personalization, and more responsive engagement.
With less delay from data to action, the result is faster response times and higher conversion rates.
Improves the customer experience
Customers notice when brands deliver relevant ads and contextual content across every channel. Consistency matters! But consistency doesn’t just happen on its own; it comes from identity resolution, which keeps the customer journey connected.
As brands maintain continuity, they build trust, strengthen engagement, and increase customer lifetime value.
Drives better marketing ROI
Not every profile is valuable. Identity resolution helps marketers identify the highest-value audiences and reduce wasted spend.
That efficiency leads to lower CPA and a higher overall ROI across campaigns.
The power of modeling from a stronger foundation
When you have a unified customer view, your models are built on better data. That means you can find more people who look like your best customers, build more responsive audience segments, and target with greater accuracy. This foundation can lead to better spending, more relevant campaigns, and a higher ROI.
Maintains privacy compliance
With GLBA/FCRA-grade standards and consumer choice mechanisms like opt-outs and data correction, you can protect your brand while maintaining personalization — without compromising legal or ethical safeguards.
What are some identity resolution use cases and examples?
Every industry faces its own unique identity challenges, but identity resolution is the common thread that turns scattered data into connected experiences. Let’s break down how companies in different verticals are putting it to work (and the kinds of results they’re seeing).
Retail and e-commerce
Shoppers bounce between websites, carts, and checkout lines, leaving behind scattered signals in the process. In retail, identity resolution bridges the gap between online and in-store experiences by matching online carts with loyalty swipes or connecting connected TV (CTV) exposure to in-store sales. This means fewer silos, better targeting, and more personalized offers wherever people shop.
Our 2025 Digital trends and predictions report calls out that omnichannel experiences aren’t optional anymore. With CTV and social dominating spend, brands need identity resolution to cut through silos and build a complete view of customer behavior.
Financial services
In financial services, identity resolution makes it possible to deliver personalized, compliant offers like refinancing options for likely mortgage switchers or the right rewards card for frequent spenders.
Our partnership with FMCG Direct to create Consumer Financial Insights® and Financial Personalities® segments helps banks, insurers, and lenders understand behaviors — such as credit card use, deposit balances, and investment habits — without exposing sensitive details.
Read more below about how our financial audiences enable privacy-safe personalization.
Travel and hospitality
Travel decisions aren’t always planned out in advance. Many bookings happen spur-of-the-moment, which is why real-time identity resolution is so powerful; it keeps the journey seamless when travelers jump from phone to laptop to tablet and presents relevant offers right as decisions are being made.
Windstar Cruises put this information into action with Experian’s identity graph to connect digital interactions with actual bookings, which drove 6,500+ reservations and $20 million in revenue.
Media and TV
Viewers tend to hop around between linear TV, streaming apps, and social feeds. And without identity resolution, every screen looks like a different person. Marketers can accurately plan, activate, and measure campaigns by unifying viewing behaviors into one ID with Experian’s AI-powered identity graph.
Optimum Media tackled its multiscreen challenge by partnering with Experian for identity solutions. Layering our audience insights and our AI-driven Digital Graph onto their subscriber data, they were able to connect the dots across channels, reach the right households, and measure results instead of just impressions. In the end, they finally got a clear view of what works across every screen.
Curious how identity resolution can power your customer analytics? We can walk you through it.
Healthcare and pharma
Healthcare marketers can’t afford slip-ups with HIPAA regulations. Identity resolution makes it possible to engage the right patients and providers with de-identified audiences rather than third-party cookies.
At Experian, AI and machine learning have always been part of how we power identity resolution. In healthcare, that means using AI-enhanced modeling to connect de-identified clinical and claims data with lifestyle insights. The result is a more comprehensive picture of the patient journey that helps close care gaps, reduce wasted spending, and improve outcomes.
By working with partners like Komodo, PurpleLab, and Health Union, we make it possible to activate campaigns at scale that boost engagement and adherence while keeping patient privacy front and center:
- Komodo Health enriches our identity graph with insights from millions of de-identified patient journeys plus lifestyle data, giving brands a fuller view of where care gaps exist and how to close them.
- PurpleLab connects real-world clinical and claims data to Experian’s platform, letting advertisers activate HIPAA-compliant audiences across CTV, mobile, and social with the ability to measure real outcomes like prescription lift and provider engagement.
- Health Union contributes a data set built from 50 million+ patient IDs and 44 billion+ patient-reported data points. Combined with our identity and modeling capabilities, this expands match rates and unlocks up to 76% net-new reach, so campaigns reach patients and caregivers in critical health moments.
As a result, healthcare brands can launch campaigns that are privacy-first, highly targeted, and proven to drive meaningful impact.
Audio
People use audio while commuting, working out, and even folding laundry. It can be one of the hardest channels to track because of how frequently listeners switch between apps, stations, and devices.
Experian’s identity resolution partnerships with Audacy and DAX change the game:
- Audacy helps tie scattered listening into a single view, so advertisers can follow audiences across devices and keep ads relevant in the moment.
- DAX pairs Experian’s 2,400+ syndicated audiences with its audio network, enabling brands to target precisely and launch impactful campaigns at scale.
These partnerships turn audio into an accurate channel where ads feel personal, privacy-safe, and measurable.
Gaming
Gamers don’t stick to one platform. Player data gets scattered across mobile, console, and PC, so it’s tough to keep track of individuals. Experian helps stitch those signals together so publishers can finally see the whole picture, personalize gameplay, and keep players coming back.
With enriched profiles, publishers can deliver offers that resonate and unlock fresh revenue by packaging high-value gaming audiences for advertisers outside the industry.
Unity, a leading gaming platform, is tapping into Experian’s syndicated audiences to gain player insights and help advertisers reach gamers across mobile, web, and CTV. For global publishers, unifying player data with Experian has driven higher engagement and stronger ad ROI.
How should I evaluate identity resolution providers?
When choosing an identity resolution partner, look for:
- Data scale and quality: The value of identity resolution depends on how complete and accurate the underlying data is. The right provider should bring together a wide range of identifiers from online and offline sources, maintaining high accuracy so your customer profiles are broad and reliable.
- Match accuracy and recency: The best partners also refresh their data regularly and can blend deterministic (exact, one-to-one matches) with probabilistic (pattern-based matches) methods. That way, you get the accuracy of “this email is definitely that customer” with the reach of “this device likely belongs to the same person.”
- Privacy and compliance readiness: Compliance can’t be an afterthought. Your identity partner should be ready for GLBA, FCRA, GDPR, CCPA, and the latest state-level rules with built-in tools for opt-outs, corrections, and deletions.
- Integration flexibility: A good provider fits into your world, not the other way around. Look for pre-built integrations with your customer data platform (CDP), demand-side platform (DSP), or marketing tech (MarTech) stack so you can get up and running without the heavy IT lift.
- Data analytics capabilities: You need proof that identity resolution drives ROI. Look for closed-loop measurement that ties unified IDs directly to campaign performance, so you can see what’s working and optimize with confidence.
How Experian enables enterprise-grade identity resolution
Experian delivers identity resolution at the scale, accuracy, and compliance required by the world’s largest enterprises. Our solutions are:
- Built on trust: Backed by 40+ years as a regulated data steward and rated #1 in data accuracy by Truthset, so you can act with confidence.
- Powered by our proprietary AI-enhanced identity graph: Combining breadth, accuracy, and recency across four billion identifiers, continuously refined by machine learning for maximum accuracy.
- Seamlessly connected: Pre-built data integration with leading CDPs, DSPs, and MarTech platforms for faster time to value.
- Always up to date: Frequent enrichment and near-real-time identity resolution through Activity Feed for timely personalization and more responsive customer engagement.
- Privacy-first by design: Compliance with GLBA, FCRA, and emerging state regulations baked in at every step, supported by rigorous partner vetting.
The bottom line
Identity resolution turns fragmented signals into connected, measurable, and compliant experiences. From retail to gaming, brands using it see stronger personalization, engagement, and ROI.
With Experian, you get the data, trust, and responsible AI innovation to make identity resolution work across every channel. Our approach uses AI to connect identities, predict behaviors, and deliver personalization that balances privacy with performance. If you’re ready to turn fragmented data into growth, now’s the time to start.
The world’s leading brands trust us to power identity resolution at scale. See how we can do the same for you.
Identity resolution FAQs
Deterministic uses exact identifiers (like an email) for accuracy, while probabilistic uses signals and algorithms to expand reach. Best-in-class providers usually combine both.
Identity resolution helps with personalization by unifying scattered signals into one profile. It reduces wasted spend and increases match rates, which means bigger addressable audiences and higher ROAS.
Yes. With first-party data and hashed PII, brands can still maintain addressability and personalization.
Retail, finance, travel, media, gaming, and audio all use identity resolution to personalize, attribute sales, and improve efficiency.
A customer data platform unifies the data you already own. Meanwhile, we add depth, scale, and higher match rates by layering in our identity graph and data enrichment.
Yes. Experian is GLBA/FCRA compliant, GDPR/CCPA ready, and supports consumer opt-outs and corrections to ensure responsible personalization.
Latest posts
Experian kicks off the AdTech year at CES What better way to jump-start start 2023 than a trip to Las Vegas for the Consumer Electronics Show (CES). Our team was thrilled to participate in this annual kick-off with the AdTech community. The uniqueness of what CES has become for our industry can be defined as the intersection between technology brands, digital, television, and AdTech. CES creates the space necessary for marketing and advertising leaders to collaborate to drive rewarding outcomes for the year ahead. Our goal in attending CES was to connect with our partners, clients, and industry leaders to build relationships, form strategic plans, and listen. The opportunity to learn about our industry’s challenges and goals enables us to develop initiatives, drive success, and support our clients and partners. Keep reading for our 2023 CES AdTech recap. “I have been to CES too many times to mention the number; this year was as energetic, collaborative, engaged, and effective as I can ever recall. Our presence was first-class and meticulously organized, which made our interactions as robust as possible. It's a team effort, and we appreciate all the work that goes into this event. “ – Greg Koerner, Vice President of Digital Advertising Sales Our CES AdTech recap Supporting publishers and advertisers is top of mind for us. Many of our conversations focused on the technologies we deliver or collaborate with our partners to provide. Clean rooms and activation were two common themes throughout our discussions. Clean rooms Consumer privacy, regulatory requirements, and data deprecation are driving the AdTech industry to talk about and explore clean rooms. There’s a need to address data collection, storage, analysis, and sharing. Clean rooms are a potential solution that can standardize data and address interoperability issues. Activation In 2023, we predict that digital activation will increase. We continue to see increased demand for environments where alternative identifiers are being transacted (like demand side platforms and video). Social platforms will continue to experience volatility and advertisers will shift their focus to demand-side, video, and supply-side platforms. Download our 2023 Digital audience trends and predictions report to learn where you should activate your audiences in 2023. We can help plan your 2023 digital activation strategy. How we support clean rooms and activation Our Consumer Sync and Consumer View products support these areas and can help you understand people better–so you and your customers can connect with confidence. What is Consumer Sync? Consumer Sync, our consumer identity product, enables signal agnostic collaboration across marketers and technologies, bringing together digital devices, IDs, households, and attributes. Consumer Sync’s Resolution and Collaboration solutions can help you gain a better understanding of your consumers and make identities actionable in any environment. What is Consumer View? Consumer View, our data discovery product, offers marketers a robust, privacy-first understanding of their customers and prospects. Grounded in consumer identity, Consumer View provides the data foundation to engage consumers where, when, and how they want. Consumer View’s Audience and Attribution solutions provide expansive coverage so that you can fill in the gaps to better understand your prospects. Additionally, our collaborative efforts with strong partnerships across the clean room ecosystem and with our activation partners help our clients serve the best ads, at the best times, to the right audience. “CES is back and was a great way to kick off the new year! We were able to meet with a high volume of clients to eagerly talk about building new solutions for the TV space. We are excited to see where these conversations lead in the next few months.” – Ali Mack, Senior Director of TV Advertising Sales Let’s navigate what’s new in our industry, together We can help you connect with your consumers in innovative, impactful ways. Contact us to continue the conversation and learn more about our Consumer Sync and Consumer View products. We can help you take advantage of the opportunities on the horizon. Get in touch
2022 was a year of adjustment. Consumers adjusted to a post-pandemic world and returned to pre-pandemic shopping behaviors. Consumers adjusted their budgets as the price of goods skyrocketed, as a result of high inflation. To combat inflation, the U.S. Federal Reserve adjusted interest rates. This further restricted consumer buying power. The AdTech ecosystem also experienced adjustments. Google adjusted the date of cookie deprecation. Federal legislation forced technology companies to adjust their consumer privacy practices. Marketers and advertisers adjusted how they address interoperability issues by investing in clean room solutions. This year of adjustment makes it harder to predict where consumers will spend and how marketers should plan their digital audience strategies. What will 2023 bring to AdTech? Download our 2023 AdTech trends and predictions report to access our forecast to help you plan for 2023. Our report will answer: How has digital activation changed over the last four years? What are the top advertising platforms? Which digital audiences are advertisers buying? Do digital audience strategies vary by vertical? Our AdTech trends forecast In 2023, digital activation will increase. Digital audience activation continues to grow at a significant rate despite market shocks like the pandemic, inflation, and higher interest rates. Given the current economic uncertainty, we predict that marketers will look toward tried and true channels where they are confident they will have quality audiences, inventory, and be able to drive ROI. What will digital activation look like in 2023? Between 2018-2021, digital audience activation increased annually by 46%. Using projected 2022 results, between 2018-2022, it will increase annually by 34%. We anticipate continued growth in 2023. Top advertising platforms in 2023 2023 will see increased digital activation, but which platforms will advertisers use to serve their ads? Advertisers will shift their focus to demand-side, video, and supply-side platforms. Social media platforms will continue to experience volatility. Advertisers will place bigger bets on the combination of addressable and CTV. Our report will also reveal which platforms are creating a path toward a post-cookie future and where data-sharing relationships will become the strongest. The most popular advertiser audiences trending now in AdTech Which digital audiences are advertisers buying? Demographics Modeled Lifestyles Behavioral Custom Audiences Traditional targeting methods like Demographics and Modeled Lifestyles are the baseline of many marketing strategies. We predict that we will continue to see marketers activate against these data sets. Digital audience strategies by vertical Digital audience strategies vary by vertical. Download our report to uncover the digital audiences purchased by advertisers in the following industries: Financial Services Health Retail & CPG Technology & Communication Download our new 2025 Digital trends and predictions report Marketers, agencies, and platforms are facing new challenges as privacy regulations evolve, AI technology advances, and consumer behaviors shift. Our latest report highlights actionable strategies for navigating these changes and improving how you connect with audiences, measure impact, and deliver results. What you’ll learn Navigating signal loss: Explore the rise of alternative IDs and contextual targeting as privacy regulations and signal loss reshape data-driven advertising. Connected TV (CTV): Understand the growth of connected TV (CTV), the importance of frequency capping, and strategies for effective audience activation. Omnichannel campaigns: Learn how marketers are moving from channel-specific strategies to audience-led omnichannel campaigns that tell a more cohesive story. Retail media networks: Learn how retail media networks (RMNs) are capitalizing on enriched first-party data to learn more about their customers and reach them across on-site and off-site inventory. Curation: Examine how curation is transforming programmatic campaigns by combining audience, contextual, and supply chain signals to deliver premium inventory packages that maximize addressability, efficiency, and performance. Download now Get in touch
Viewers shift between streaming services, live TV, and on-demand content across multiple devices, making it harder to know exactly who sees your message. Instead of wondering if your ads are reaching the right viewers, it's important to have a clearer understanding of viewing behaviors so you can focus your efforts on the audiences that matter most to your campaign. Experian has collaborated with The Advertising Research Foundation (ARF) to create new opportunities for marketers. By combining data from the ARF’s DASH (Device and Account Sharing) study with Experian Marketing Data, we’ve developed a new way for you to understand and reach modern TV viewers. Instead of estimating who might see your message, you gain a clearer view of viewing behavior and can align activation with the audiences that matter to your campaign. What is the DASH study? The DASH study, developed by the ARF together with the National Opinion Research Center (NORC) and seven industry sponsors, including Experian, provides a detailed picture of how American households consume TV and digital media. This research offers an unbiased and accurate view of media habits, measuring everything from device usage to streaming account sharing. When this viewership data is combined with Experian Marketing Data, it allows for the creation of unique audience segments. These segments are built on real-world media and device usage, providing a more accurate representation of how people watch, share, and engage with TV content. This combination of identity and connectivity helps marketers understand exactly how people engage with media, technology, and their favorite brands. “Television viewing behavior has undergone a massive transformation, making it challenging for advertisers to reach their target audience and optimize frequency. These audiences give advertisers invaluable tools for managing their campaigns in an increasingly fragmented environment.”Doug McLennan, Director of Product Management How do DASH audiences help? By using the DASH study, Experian developed TV audience segments that reflect how people truly interact with content. These audiences provide the insights you need to align your campaigns with actual media consumption habits, helping you reach viewers with more relevant messages. This approach moves beyond basic demographics. It allows you to connect with people based on specific behaviors, such as co-viewing, screen preferences, or household streaming habits. The result is a more focused and efficient advertising strategy that delivers better outcomes. “DASH has established itself as a reliable and unbiased calibration set, a “true North”, for media measurement. Our collaboration with Experian puts the power and precision of DASH in the hands of marketers and advertisers as well.” Paul Donato, Chief Research Officer Which audience segments help you target viewers more effectively? These audience segments make it possible to find specific types of viewers and align your marketing campaigns with their media usage. Whether you’re connecting with people who are receptive to ads, households that enjoy shows together, or individuals who are frequent streamers, you can approach campaigns with greater accuracy and confidence. We’re pleased to introduce these segments and continue our partnership with the ARF, creating new opportunities to help you build effective connections with your target audiences. Explore some of our key audience segments: Ad Acceptors: Viewers who are more open to watching advertisements. Ad Avoiders: People who actively try to skip or block ads. Co-Watchers: Households where multiple people view content together. Solo Watchers: Individuals who typically watch TV by themselves. Paid TV High Spenders: Households that subscribe to multiple paid TV or streaming services. Large Screen Viewers: People who primarily watch content on large television screens. Small Screen Viewers: Individuals who prefer watching on smaller devices like tablets or phones. How can I use these audiences? Experian’s DASH audiences are available in your demand-side platform (DSP) of choice, ready for activation across all offline and online channels. This easy access means you can build more effective campaigns without changing your existing workflow. Using these segments, you can manage your advertising with greater confidence. You gain the tools needed to navigate the fragmented media environment and ensure your campaigns are seen by the right people. This targeted approach helps you maximize the impact of your marketing efforts and achieve your goals. Strengthen your TV planning and activation with DASH audiences. Are you ready to connect with your audience in a more meaningful way? FAQs What is the DASH study? The DASH study, developed by ARF, provides an unbiased view of how American households consume TV and digital media. It measures device usage, streaming habits, and account sharing to create a detailed picture of media consumption. How does Experian help advertisers understand media habits? Experian combines its Marketing Data with insights from studies like DASH to create audience segments based on real-world behaviors. This allows advertisers to align their campaigns with how people actually consume content. What types of audiences can I target with these segments? Audience segments include Ad Acceptors, Co-Watchers, Solo Watchers, Paid TV High Spenders, and Large or Small Screen Viewers, enabling precise targeting based on viewing habits. Why is understanding viewing behavior important for advertisers? By focusing on actual media consumption habits, advertisers can deliver more relevant messages, reduce wasted impressions, and improve the overall effectiveness of their campaigns. Latest posts