Zero-Party Data and Loyalty: Build Better Consumer Data

Zero-party data is information a customer deliberately chooses to tell a brand, such as preferences, purchase intentions, personal context and how they want to be recognized, as opposed to first-party data the brand observes from what the customer does or buys. The line between the two is a marketing convention, not a legal category: privacy law treats both as personal information.

Forrester defines zero-party data as "Data that a customer intentionally and proactively shares with a brand, which can include preference center data, purchase intentions, personal context, and how the individual wants the brand to recognize her" (Forrester). Loyalty programs are well placed to collect it, because they give members a reason to share: rewards, recognition and more relevant offers. This guide covers how loyalty programs collect zero-party data, how it fits with first-party data, how to use it within privacy rules and how to tell whether it is paying off. For tactics that make sharing more engaging, see gamified data collection.

Key Takeaways

Why does zero-party data matter for loyalty programs?

Where platforms let users refuse cross-company tracking, as Apple does on iOS, data customers share directly with a brand, in exchange for value, is less exposed to those limits.

Tracking across other companies' apps and sites increasingly depends on user permission, at least on iOS. Apple's App Tracking Transparency "empowers users to choose whether an app has permission to track their activity across other companies' apps and websites for the purposes of advertising or sharing with data brokers" (Apple). That can include data a brand collects in its own app if it is linked with other companies' data for advertising or shared with data brokers. Chrome, by contrast, has not removed third-party cookies: Google said in October 2025 that Chrome "will maintain our current approach to offering users third-party cookie choice in Chrome," and it is retiring most of its Privacy Sandbox technologies (Google). Either way, data customers share knowingly with a brand does not depend on cross-site tracking.

Zero-party data has limits too. People do not always do what they say, preferences go out of date and stated answers reflect only the questions asked. That is why it works best alongside first-party data.

How is zero-party data different from first-party data?

Zero-party data is stated by the customer; first-party data is observed by the brand. Both come from a direct relationship, and each can check the other.

A member who says they care about sustainability but never engages with sustainability content is telling you something useful: the stated preference may be aspirational, the content may not be what they want, or they may act on it at the shelf rather than online. Use the two types together rather than treating either as the whole truth.

How do loyalty programs collect zero-party data?

Ask for a little at enrollment, build a preference center members can update and invite more sharing over time in exchange for clearly better offers or recognition.

Enrollment is the first chance to collect zero-party data, but a long form asks for effort before the member has received anything. Progressive profiling spreads the asking out: collect what you need to personalize at the start, deliver value quickly and ask for more later, with each request tied to a visible benefit. A preference center, a member profile that can be updated at any time, turns collection into an ongoing relationship, and updates show the data is current. Short surveys, quizzes and goal-setting prompts can be rewarded with points. A simple sequence shows the idea. At enrollment, ask for an email address and one category interest. After the welcome benefit arrives, ask how the member prefers to hear from the brand. After a few purchases or receipt uploads, invite a short survey about upcoming needs, such as a planned purchase. Each step asks for one or two items and pays them back with a more relevant offer. Rewards can also invite quick or careless answers, so check rewarded responses against behavior before relying on them. BLOYL™, Brandmovers' loyalty platform, supports earning for non-purchase actions such as profile completion and surveys, so programs can reward members for sharing. Ask only for data the program will use, and say how it will be used.

Why should you give value before asking for data?

Giving something useful first, such as content, a welcome benefit or a relevant recommendation, makes the request for data part of a fair exchange rather than a toll.

The value can be content, a welcome bonus or a personalized recommendation; the request for data follows. At the moment of asking, say what the member will get for answering, such as offers matched to the category they choose, then deliver it soon after, so the next request feels earned. If a question has no visible payoff yet, it can wait. To check whether the order matters for your members, offer the benefit first to one random group and ask first for another, then compare completion rates.

How do receipt uploads and missions add first-party signals?

Receipts show what members actually bought, and mission choices show what they actually engage with. These observed signals complement stated preferences.

Receipt validation, in which members upload a store receipt to earn points or entries, gives brands sold through retailers member-level purchase data that retailers do not necessarily share. Mission-based programs show which activities members choose. This guide treats neither as zero-party data, because both record behavior rather than stated preferences, even though members choose to submit receipts, but both help test whether what members say matches what they do. Receipts can include other brands' products and store details, so tell members what is captured and how it is used. The guide to receipt validation covers the mechanics, and building first-party data in CPG covers brands without direct retail data.

How do you use zero-party data within privacy rules?

Use data only for the purposes members were told about, give them access and control, and treat rewards for sharing data as a possible financial incentive under California law.

Data members share for better recommendations should be used for those recommendations, not for unrelated targeting or sharing with third parties they were not told about. California's privacy law states that it "does not prohibit a business from offering loyalty, rewards, premium features, discounts, or club card programs," but it sets conditions. For businesses covered by the California Consumer Privacy Act, a business offering financial incentives "shall notify consumers of the financial incentives" and needs "prior opt-in consent," which "may be revoked by the consumer at any time" (Cal. Civ. Code 1798.125). That can apply whenever a loyalty program offers rewards or discounts in exchange for personal information, including at enrollment, not only for surveys, and any price or service difference must be "reasonably related to the value provided to the business by the consumer's data." When a California consumer makes a verifiable request, the business must provide the specific pieces of personal information in a format that is easily understandable and, "to the extent technically feasible," in "a structured, commonly used, machine-readable format" (Cal. Civ. Code 1798.130). Questions about health can collect sensitive personal information: California's definition includes "personal information collected and analyzed concerning a consumer's health" (Cal. Civ. Code 1798.140), so ask only what the program needs. Being volunteered does not exempt data from these rules. The guide to loyalty program terms and conditions covers the notice. This is general information, not legal advice.

How do you measure whether zero-party data is paying off?

Track how much members share and how current it is, then withhold preference-based offers from a random group of members who stated preferences and compare results.

Useful collection measures include profile completion rate, the share of members who update preferences within a year and response to each data request. The business measure is whether using stated preferences improves results: among members who stated preferences, send preference-based offers to most and generic offers to a random holdout, then compare response, repeat purchase and opt-outs. Weigh any lift against the cost of the points used to collect the data. Members who complete profiles are often more engaged to begin with, so comparing them with members who do not can overstate the effect of the data itself. Drop data fields that no campaign uses.

Conclusion

Zero-party data is most useful when members share it knowingly, in exchange for clear value, and when brands use it as promised. Collect it progressively, give value before asking, combine it with observed first-party data, respect the notice and consent rules where they apply and measure whether it actually improves results.

Sources

• Forrester, "Straight From The Source: Collecting Zero-Party Data From Customers," July 30, 2020
• Apple Developer, "User Privacy and Data Use"
• Google Privacy Sandbox, "Update on Plans for Privacy Sandbox Technologies," October 17, 2025
• California Civil Code section 1798.125 (financial incentives)
• California Civil Code section 1798.130 (consumer requests)
• California Civil Code section 1798.140 (definitions)
• Brandmovers, Feeling Gerber Good case study
• Brandmovers, Essentia Change The Equation Summer Sweepstakes case study