Contents
In 2025, people are harder to impress than ever. Attention spans are short, thumbs are fast, and the ‘Skip Ad’ button is probably the most-loved feature on the internet. It’s not that your creative isn’t good. It’s that your ads are landing in front of the wrong people or worse, people who’ve seen a hundred versions of the same offer and are banner blind.
"The average user attention span is down to just 8 seconds"
A lot of brands are still leaning on broad interest-based audiences. Segments built on vague assumptions like “probably likes coffee” or “once browsed sportswear.” Sure, these can get you reach, but they’re not particularly clever. They don’t reflect your real customers, and they don’t teach ad platforms anything useful about who actually wants to hear from you.
If you’re not using first-party data, you’re missing out on the opportunity to train the platforms. Every time you feed Meta, Google or TikTok a high-quality audience based on real behaviour, you’re helping the algorithm get smarter with your targeting.
So if you’re still putting budget behind the digital equivalent of “spray and pray,” it might be time to upgrade. Let’s look at what we’re seeing at Flow.
Why First-Party Data Is a Smarter Bet
We work with brands across multiple industries, and one thing is becoming crystal clear: the brands that are winning right now aren’t necessarily spending more, they’re just spending smarter. And that usually starts with first-party data.
So, what exactly do we mean by first-party data? It’s the data that comes directly from your audience. People who visited your site, signed up to your newsletter, browsed a product, downloaded your app, or made a purchase. It’s clean, consented, and most importantly, it’s yours.
And if you don’t have a large pool of first-party data yet – that’s okay.
Flow is the first-party data marketplace for retail and commerce media. We help brands tap into high-quality audiences from trusted partners like retailers, e-commerce platforms, online marketplaces, review sites (places where people are actively browsing, buying, and engaging) and other online businesses.
Brands like USN, a leading South African retailer, beauty brands, a national homeware store, and so many others have all used Flow to improve their targeting.
But the real value of first-party data isn’t just in a single campaign, it’s in how you use it over time. The Flow First-Party Data Marketplace is a flexible audience engine. Whether you’re launching a product, shifting seasonal focus, or retargeting high-intent users, you can build audiences based on your current objectives.
And while you’re doing that, you’re not just reaching the right people, you’re also training the ad platforms. With every campaign, you’re helping the algorithms understand who your ideal customers are, making your targeting more intelligent over time.
In short, you’re not just renting audiences. You’re building a smarter first-party data strategy.
How to Use First-Party Data Effectively
Using first-party data is a great start. But to get real value from it, the kind that improves campaign performance, strengthens targeting, and trains ad platforms to work in your favour, you need to use it properly.
1. Make it always-on, not ad-hoc
First-party data isn’t just for big campaigns or seasonal spikes. It should be part of your always-on strategy, informing everything from prospecting to retargeting and retention.
The more consistently you use it, the more signal strength you build across platforms. Think of it less like a campaign tactic, and more like a tool.
2. Segment based on real context
Segmentation isn’t just about behaviour, it’s also about relevance. Start by thinking about your customer’s context. What are they doing? What are they buying? What are they planning for?
This is where industry-specific and adjacent industry segmentation becomes incredibly powerful. For example, if you’re selling insurance, targeting users from an automotive dealer’s audience (people actively browsing or purchasing vehicles) makes far more sense than relying on a generic “financial services” segment. It’s all about aligning with real, observable intent.
Flow gives you access to precisely these kinds of audiences. Whether you’re marketing home loans, baby gear, wellness supplements or flights, there’s a smarter way to find your potential customers.
3. Target where it counts – and let us do the heavy lifting
The real value of first-party data comes from how you use it and what you learn along the way. Each campaign helps you understand which audiences perform, what messaging works, and where to focus next.
With clear visibility into delivery, engagement, and conversions, you can refine your targeting and ads with confidence.
Whether you’re running on one platform or many, a consistent approach to testing and measurement helps your advertising get smarter over time.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a first-party audience strategy?
It’s an advertising approach that uses first-party data to target precise audience segments across digital platforms.
What does “first-party” mean?
“First-party” means the data comes straight from website visits, purchases, or email sign-ups with the user’s consent.
What’s the difference between first-party and third-party audiences?
First-party audiences are based on direct customer interactions. Third-party audiences are bought from outside data providers and often based on inferred behaviour.
