The Forrester Wave™: Customer Data Platforms For B2C, Q3 2024 Read the report

Digital Experience Platform (DXP)

A digital experience platform is a set of tools that allows businesses to manage and improve the digital experience across channels and devices. The integrated content platform enables creation, personalization, delivery, and optimization of digital user experiences.

DXPs evolved from other tools such as CMSs and web experience management (WEM) systems. The digital experience platform becomes a hub for content management, analytics, asset management, and data management. Some DXPs even allow you to build your own customized suite of technology.

What are the goals of a Digital Experience Platform?

The primary goal of a digital experience platform is to improve the user experience for customers on all platforms, whether that’s a website, mobile app, or blog. They allow you to meet customer expectations and ensure consistent marketing across every channel. 

Digital experience platforms also help improve targeting accuracy by providing new insights into customer expectations. DXPs can pinpoint immediate customer needs and help marketers fill them at the right phase of the customer journey.

Types of Digital Experience Platforms

There are three types of digital experience platforms, each with slightly different uses. 

  • CMS DXP: Provides detailed analytics that accelerate the customer journey.
  • Portal DXP: Focuses on integrating with different intranet portals, such as suppliers and partners. 
  • Commercial DXP: Primarily offers support for e-commerce transactions. They can manage data from online shopping carts and inventory.

Common Digital Experience Platform Capabilities

A DXP offers many useful features, either natively or through integration with other technologies. 

  • Delivery of content and experiences
  • Cross-platform support
  • Content and asset management
  • Detailed, real-time analytics
  • Optimization and personalization tools
  • Customer data management
  • Integration with other tools

Other features that a modern DXP may offer include:

How to Evaluate Different Digital Experience Platform Vendors

If you’re considering DXP vendors, look for capabilities like:

  • The tools you need in your industry
  • A track record of excellent performance
  • Robust security, backups, and reliability
  • Scalability and openness to third-party systems
  • Cutting-edge technology such as the latest AI 

How A DXP Works in Your MarTech Stack

DXPs are a great execution channel, but without connecting data and other tools, it can easily become nothing more than an expensive CMS. To get the most out of your DXP, start by integrating a full-fledged customer data platform. CDPs collect customer data, and DXPs can help you use that data to get real results. 

You also need to invest in the right application programming interface (API). An API allows two applications to communicate with each other. You can ease the integration process and build new features with APIs—they even help you maintain flexibility. In short, a great API is at the heart of your DXP’s connectivity and functionality.

CDP.com Staff
CDP.com Staff
The CDP.com staff has collaborated to deliver the latest information and insights on the customer data platform industry.

More To Explore

Is 2024 the Year of the CDP?

Discover why 2024 will be a critical year for the CDP market. Learn more about the latest trends, challenges and opportunities shaping customer data platforms.