Boston, MA - The most mature MarTech vendors sell the most immature Customer Data Platform (CDP) technology, according to updated vendor evaluation research released today by independent analyst firm, Real Story Group (RSG).

RSG tracks nearly thirty CDP vendors in this highly fragmented marketplace, and applies a rigorous evaluation methodology based on business use-case fit.

RSG found that independent CDP vendors typically integrate more readily with the increasingly diverse MarTech and CX stacks found within larger enterprises, while major suite vendors have focused their CDP offerings on tying together their own platforms. 

Moreover, major suite vendors came late to the CDP marketplace, and their offerings remain comparatively immature.  For example, RSG found:

• Adobe's Real-time CDP remains feature-thin and structurally underdeveloped, as well as tightly bound to other Adobe platforms
• Salesforce acquired the Evergage CDP in early 2020, but appears to have redirected that platform in favor of its new "Audiences" CDP, which remains very much under construction
• Microsoft's Dynamics 365 CDP remains focused on unifying customer data between Redmond's B2B-focused CRM and Marketing Automation platforms
• Oracle, SAP, and Acoustic have created only small ripples in this market

"If you believe unified customer data should be liberated from any specific engagement channel, than independent CDP vendors likely provide your better alternative for a truly omnichannel architecture," argues RSG founder Tony Byrne.  "Major MarTech vendors tout roadmap ambitions, but if you're looking for significant business value from your CDP in the 2021-2022 timeframe, you're likely better off looking elsewhere," Byrne concludes.

Real Story Group's CDP vendor evaluation research is available by subscription.