I just wanted to share with the Audience Manager community why our organization doesn't use file transfer when on-boarding CRM data. We do recognize that it offers more flexibility in some respects than using the DCS API (for instance to disqualify a user from a trait).
- Our Enterprise Architects push for API based integration and can delay or veto projects that don't comply.
- Our Enterprise Architects push for (near) real-time interactions wherever possible and AAM file transfer doesn't deliver that.
- Our Security Governance staff blocked the use of file transfer towards AAM because it passes through Amazon S3 storage and while we have a Non-Disclosure Agreement with Adobe, we do not have one with Amazon.
- Our Legal department insists that we follow GDPR privacy rules, including opt-in/-out for web advertising and they want changes in customer consent to be applied as quickly as possible (we handle this through segment exclusions).
- Our Marketing department wants to remove users from a segment very quickly once they have purchased a product or rejected an offer (to change the advert).
Because of these reasons, we have chosen the DCS API as the way to on-board our 1st party CRM data. We look forward to the day when that API (or perhaps a new one that supports mutual authentication - another annoyance for our Security Governance staff) will be capable of delivering the same features for trait and segment assignment as today's file transfer mechanism. Fingers crossed for 2019. - Sincerely, Hugh