CDP is a platform for working with customer data and marketing automation across all channels.
Below are answers to common questions about CDP using Altcraft Platform as an example: what resources are needed to get started, how quickly results appear, what is required from IT and the team, and why such a platform is useful even for small businesses.
Is Implementing a CDP Difficult?
With Altcraft, you are not left alone with the platform. At the start, the vendor’s team helps with data migration, integrations, and basic setup. Consulting support is included in all pricing plans, so launching the platform does not require deep technical expertise within your team.
Question: What resources are needed at the start for the cloud version?
Answer: A customer database and specialists. Data storage, security, scaling, and updates are handled by the platform. For any setup or system-related questions, you can contact the support team.
Question: What about on-premises implementation?
Answer: On-premises requires greater involvement from the IT team, but not excessive resources. Each client is assigned an account manager and a project manager, while technical specialists assist with data migration, integration setup, and system launch. Altcraft also provides guidance on infrastructure planning and supports the implementation at every stage.
We Have Little Data and Experience — Can We Start Small?
Yes, implementing a CDP can begin even without a large customer database. A common myth is that marketing automation through a CDP is only needed by large companies with millions of customers.
In practice, a CDP becomes useful as soon as you need to collect customer data in one place, work with multiple channels, and personalize communications. Even with a relatively small database, the platform helps combine fragmented data and achieve better results through more accurate messaging.
As the business grows, the CDP scales easily. In the cloud version of Altcraft, the pricing plan depends on the number of customer profiles and can be adjusted as the database grows.
Question: Can processes be rebuilt gradually?
Answer: Yes. For example, if you are not yet ready to collect behavioral data from the website or mobile app, you can initially focus on working with the existing customer database. In Altcraft, you can start with basic steps — upload current contacts, set up segmentation, and launch several email campaigns. More advanced features (online tracking, loyalty programs, etc.) can be added later when the company is ready. If it is sufficient to work with the existing database and there is no urgent need to track online activity, some integrations (with the website or mobile app) can be postponed.
Question: How can we understand when the right moment to implement a CDP has come?
Answer: There is no need to wait for a “perfect moment.” If customer data is scattered across different systems and you only see fragments of it, even partial consolidation in a CDP will produce results. Implementation can begin with a small amount of data.
Is a CDP Expensive?
The cost of a CDP platform consists of several components: the software license or subscription, infrastructure expenses (in the case of on-premises), as well as human resources needed to maintain and use the system.
At first glance, a marketing automation platform may seem like a major investment. However, it is important to evaluate not only the costs but also the savings and value that a CDP brings to the business.
Question: How much does SaaS cost?
Answer: More details are available
here. This model minimizes initial expenses. With Altcraft SaaS, you pay a fixed monthly fee based on the volume of data. At the same time, sending messages through many channels is not charged separately: for example, Altcraft does not limit email campaigns or push notifications and does not charge for each message sent. You can send millions of emails without changing the cost. Only channels that involve external providers remain paid, such as SMS and messaging apps (they are billed according to the rates of the corresponding gateways). Communication channels can be combined to reduce costs: for example, using email and push where possible, and only if there is no result switching to more expensive options like SMS or a phone call.
Question: How quickly does a CDP pay for itself?
Answer: There is no exact timeline — it depends on the volume of data and the level of activity. In most cases, ROI comes from two sources: increased revenue through personalization and reduced channel costs. In Altcraft cases, this has been reflected, for example, in marketing ROI growth of up to +250% and a 50% reduction in SMS expenses by shifting part of communication to push notifications, as well as a 714% increase in profit from CRM marketing over several years. At the same time, automation reduces manual work: campaigns can be launched much faster.
Question: Will a CDP be more cost-effective than using separate marketing tools?
Answer: Often yes. Instead of paying separately for email services, SMS gateways, push platforms, analytics tools, and other systems, you get everything within one Altcraft CDP license: data storage, segmentation, messaging, analytics, integrations, and support. As a result, the overall cost of marketing technology can decrease, especially considering improved efficiency, consulting support, and free updates.
What Specialists Are Needed to Support a CDP on Your Own Infrastructure?
You will need a system administrator or DevOps engineer to maintain the platform, a marketer, and a developer during the integration stage. In large companies, the information security team is usually involved as well.
In general, supporting an on-premises CDP requires roughly the same roles as any corporate information system. At a minimum, you need an infrastructure specialist and a marketing specialist.
During implementation, Altcraft assigns a project manager who supports your team, and if necessary, a technical consultant who can answer questions from IT specialists. At the same time, it is important to appoint responsible team members within your organization. This ensures that the CDP will be used properly and deliver real value.
Question: What should we do if we do not have the required specialists?
Answer: If your company lacks the specialists needed to implement and support a CDP, some tasks can be delegated to external contractors. Many vendors, including Altcraft, work with integration partners or have their own service teams. They assist with platform setup, integrations, launching scenarios, and ongoing support of the solution.
Who Definitely Needs a CDP?
Companies that work with customers across multiple channels and want to consolidate data in one place: e-commerce, retail, banks, fintech, media, subscription services, B2B companies with long sales cycles, and fast-growing businesses.
Question: Why do e-commerce companies and online services need a CDP?
Answer: To combine user behavior, purchases, and responses to communications into a single profile and build personalized scenarios — from recommendations to abandoned cart flows.
Question: Why is a CDP especially useful for retail and omnichannel companies?
Answer: It combines offline and online data, eliminates duplicate communications, and provides a complete 360° customer profile, which increases repeat purchases and LTV.
Question: Why do banks, fintech, and insurance companies need a CDP?
Answer: To bring together fragmented data across products and channels into a single system, automate personalized scenarios, and reduce the workload for managers while meeting security requirements.
Question: Is a CDP suitable for B2B companies?
Answer: Yes. It collects the entire history of interactions with a client, synchronizes marketing and sales, and works well in an ABM approach even without large volumes of data.
Question: Do startups and small companies need a CDP?
Answer: Yes, especially during periods of growth. A CDP helps organize data from the start, automate communications, and build scalable marketing without chaos or manual work.
How Long Does CDP Implementation Take?
If you choose the cloud version of a CDP (SaaS), the technical deployment happens instantly. Access to Altcraft Platform can be obtained within one day. This means that within a day your team can log into the system, upload data, and create the first campaigns. Of course, campaigns will not run automatically without preparation, but there is no technical barrier — you do not need to spend months installing the system.
Question: How quickly can the first automated scenarios be launched in Altcraft CDP?
Answer: In the cloud version, basic CDP implementation can take as little as one week, and the first automated scenarios can be launched within that time if the number of integrations is small. In projects with a large number of systems, timelines may be longer, but the first results still appear relatively quickly.
Question: Is it possible to launch a CDP within a couple of months?
Answer: Yes. The financial marketplace Vyberu implemented Altcraft CDP in two months, consolidated data and channels, and automated communications, which led to nearly a 250% increase in marketing ROI.
Question: Have there been cases where triggers were launched without a long project?
Answer: Clients using the cloud version of Altcraft CDP report that their first automated communication sequences were launched within a week after starting work with the platform.
Final Thoughts
CDP is a tool designed to simplify marketers’ work, not make it more complicated. That is why more and more companies, both large and small, are choosing omnichannel CDP platforms and successfully transforming their marketing.
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