The best kind of data? The information that audiences actively give you themselves.

by Kate Dimbleby | May 2026

To use a marketing buzzword from McKinsey & Co, we’re talking about zero-party data. In the hierarchy of customer data, you’ll probably know the order, but to recap:

• Third-party data: on the lowest rung, this is consumer data bought from unknown external sources from data vendors
• Second-party data – customer information sourced from trusted partners
• First-party – data collected directly from customers, such as website browsing behaviour or transaction history

For many businesses, first-party data is the gold standard. But there’s actually one better – information the customer actively gives you during their engagement with you.

First-party data still requires a level of guesswork. Website browsing history won’t give you the full story. And transaction history can only tell you so much (just because someone bought a fridge doesn’t mean they’re going to do it again any time soon).

For us, the gold standard of personalisation comes from two-way conversations where the customer has the opportunity to share information and receive helpful advice or solutions in return. As they say, the best marketing is customer service.

At Stornaway, we’ve been working to make two-way conversations even easier and, now, we’ve just hit the next level. Our brand new features (free text and input fields) allow your audience to type their preferences, interests or requirements in their own words. The interactive video experience can then be adapted to personalise their journey in real time.

A genuinely two-way conversation delivering the most powerful of data.

We’ve coupled this with expanded analytics that let creators delve into the granular details of their video journey. This level of insight reveals a data story that will help businesses gain a deeper understanding of their audiences with information shared directly from the customer.

That’s true personalisation.