Break Down the Silos: 4 Ways to Solve Customer & Prospect Data Challenges

According to the newly released 2025 State of Your Stack Report from MarTech Is Marketing, data and resources represent the top hurdles facing marketers today. When asked about the future of their martech stacks, nearly 25% of survey respondents said data silos are a significant concern and 65.7% struggle the most with data integration.

As a performance marketing agency specializing in data compilation and customer acquisition, here are four strategies we rely upon to solve daily data headaches and eliminate those pesky silos:

1. Seamless Data Integration for Precision Targeting

Making the most of customer and prospect data while also gaining a holistic understanding of your target audience hinges upon seamless integration. But seamless integration in modern marketing environments is complex – because numerous data sources exist, including customer relationship management (CRM) data, real-time analytics, cross-channel analytics, telemetry data, third-party business contact data, and intent data. That’s why building APIs that connect data to popular tools and platforms to activate it quickly, easily and safely is critical for marketers today.

At OMI, one of our common integrations involves layering intent data on top of B2B prospect contact data to enable reach to specific, qualified and interested prospects. The combined data can be integrated across an entire marketing technology stack and applied to targeted audience campaigns across email acquisition marketing, social networks, programmatic display ads, and more. As a result, precision targeting is amplified for more impactful engagement across multiple channels. Suddenly, you’re not just marketing—you’re reaching people, at scale, who want to hear from you.

As another example, the topic of using AI as part of a marketing data strategy came up during a recent conversation on our podcast, The Marketing Vanguard. Our guest, Keith Goodman, VP of Corporate Sales and Marketing for Modern Postcard, mentioned that his company relies upon OpenAI to generate a list of targets for some clients and to append the domains of those targets. Then, leveraging their data team, they structure that list for integration into an ABM program, resulting in a ready-to-use custom audience.

Keith will also turn to OMI to drill down further after uncovering a list of companies that engaged with a client campaign. OMI will deliver more attributes for the prospects in that list, providing a robust profile for improved personalization and targeting.

2. Smart Data Collaboration for Scaling Your Reach

More data translates into more possibilities, but siloed data is a roadblock. Data collaboration is the answer. Merging and analyzing data sets while maintaining privacy and compliance requires breaking down silos both within the organization and external to the organization (such as when working with trusted third-party data providers and other partners). The aim is to ensure data is shared seamlessly and securely.

Modern identity graphs provide an efficient solution to this challenge, removing silos by bringing together diverse audience profiles including an organization’s first-party data and data sourced from multiple third-party data vendors. By providing seamless access to prospect data at massive scale, identify graphs unleash access to your most ideal targets, allow you to personalize your engagements with them, and enable more accurate omni-channel campaign measurement. Go here for a look at how top brands are advancing their identity graph strategies today by building their own graphs for improved control and cost savings.

3. B2B2C Matching for More Meaningful Connections

Today's marketers want more meaningful and direct ways to connect with their audiences—both at work and at home. That’s where B2B and B2C data convergence comes in: B2B2C data linkage breaks down the silos that exist between consumer and professional prospect data. As one of our most popular new services at OMI, it involves weaving together a prospect’s B2B attributes--sourced from our own massive B2B database--with that prospect’s B2C attributes, such as their LinkedIn profile, demographics and residential address. OMI then sends the combined B2B2C audience data to theTradeDesk, Google DV360, or other DSPs and leading social channels to fuel media activation, email acquisition marketing, CTV, programmatic, social, and other omni-channel campaigns for clients.

The bottom line is that B2B2C data linkage results in a more robust and complete prospect profile that elevates personalization and relevance while enabling our clients to reach prospects on personal and professional channels for higher ROI.

4. Uncompromising Data Quality to Fuel Your Success

Even with all the tools in the world, if your data isn’t clean, you’re building on a shaky foundation. Data quality underpins every successful marketing initiative, especially as AI and GenAI continue to take center stage.

Quality data starts with strong hygiene practices and trusted data partners. You need confidence that your data is accurate, up to date, and ready for action. That’s why we treat our award-winning OMI B2B prospect database as a Living File—continuously updating it to reflect market shifts and business changes. Our B2B Living File® licenses are crafted from our Master File, which is created through the processing of over 40 billion data signals per month.

The OMI B2B database encompasses 145MM+ verified contacts, including manager, director, and professional-level and above records with email/HEM, social URL, and other attributes. We also deliver the largest reach into the SMB marketplace and back up every client engagement with a 95% email validity guarantee for 30 days.

Reach out to our team at request@outwardmedia.com for guidance with optimizing your stack and gaining a competitive edge with data that works as hard as you do.