This is the part of the CDP where all your unified customer data becomes usable for marketing. Think of it as the CDP’s audience brain, the layer that understands who your customers are, what they’re doing, and how to group them for smarter, more precise targeting.
The Profile & Segmentation Layer is where the CDP,
- builds the full customer profile
- understands who your audience really is
- organizes people into smart, dynamic segments
- keeps those segments updated in real time
- gives every campaign the right audience at the right moment
It answers the marketer’s big question: “Now that we know who the customer is, how should we group and target them?”
This layer performs four core functions:
- Builds a unified customer profile for every individual : Once the Identity Resolution Layer has stitched everything together, this layer organizes all customer attributes into a clean, marketer-friendly profile, including Demographics, Interests, Behaviors, Purchase history, Engagement, Preferences
- Creates dynamic, real-time segments: Marketers can build segments instantly using a simple, no-code interface based on browsing behavior, recent purchases, channel engagement, lifecycle stage, campaign interactions. Eg: High intent visitors in the last 48 hours, Inactive users for 30 days
- Keeps segments updated automatically: Segments in the CDP are living audiences. As customer behavior changes, they automatically move into or out of segments. Eg: When a customer makes a purchase, they exit “Cart Abandoners” and instantly join “New Customers.”
- Supports predictive and behavioral segmentation (if available): Some CDPs add intelligence using ML or predictive models, enabling, Churn probability segments, High value customer groups, Next bestoffer segments, Propensity to buy segments.
In short, the Profile & Segmentation Layer transforms raw customer data into intelligent, real-time audiences that fuel every smart marketing move you make.
