What is interest-based data?
Interest-based data is information about what people care about, engage with, and show ongoing interest in. It is built from user behavior over time and helps businesses understand preferences, habits, and motivations.
Instead of focusing only on who a customer is, interest-based data focuses on what they are interested in.
How interest-based data is built
Interest-based data is created through repeated interactions across digital touchpoints. It reflects patterns over time rather than single actions.
Common sources include:
Website browsing behavior such as pages visited and time spent
Search behavior and topics explored
Engagement with content, including articles and videos
Social media interactions such as likes, follows, and shares
Purchase history and product interactions
These signals are used to identify recurring interests and preferences.
What interest-based data shows
Interest-based data helps answer a different type of question compared to other data types.
Demographic data shows who the customer is
Geographic data shows where they are
Behavioral data shows what they do
Interest-based data shows what they care about over time
This makes it useful for understanding long-term preferences rather than one-time intent.
Interest-based data vs intent data
It is important to separate interest-based data from intent data.
Interest-based data reflects ongoing interests, such as someone regularly engaging with travel content or fitness products. Intent data reflects immediate signals, such as searching for a specific product or comparing prices before a purchase.
Both are valuable, but they serve different purposes in marketing.
How interest-based data is used
Interest-based data is commonly used to make marketing more relevant and personalized.
It supports:
Audience segmentation based on shared interests
Personalized content and recommendations
Campaign targeting aligned with user preferences
Better understanding of customer behavior and trends
When used correctly, it helps reduce irrelevant communication and improves engagement.
Interest-based data and owned marketing
A large part of interest-based data in the market is collected through third-party tracking across websites and platforms.
However, businesses increasingly rely on owned data instead.
Owned interest-based data is built from:
This type of data is:
More accurate
More privacy-compliant
Based on real relationships
Fully controlled by the business
Using owned data allows businesses to build interest profiles without relying on external platforms.
Privacy and compliance
Interest-based data is subject to regulations such as GDPR.
This means businesses must:
Be transparent about data collection
Collect user consent where required
Ensure data is handled securely
Use data responsibly
When based on owned channels and consent-driven interactions, interest-based data can be used in a compliant and sustainable way.
Combining interest-based data with other data
Interest-based data becomes more valuable when combined with other data types.
Together, these data types create a more complete picture of the customer and allow for more precise segmentation.
Interest-based data in marketing automation
Interest-based data plays a central role in marketing automation.
It allows businesses to:
Trigger campaigns based on interests
Personalize messaging at scale
Build customer journeys based on behavior
Improve timing and relevance
This helps create communication that feels more aligned with what users actually want.
Using interest-based data in MyLINK MarketingPlatform
MyLINK MarketingPlatform enables businesses to use interest-based data across SMS and email.
With MyLINK MarketingPlatform, businesses can:
Segment audiences based on interests and behavior
Trigger automated campaigns
Personalize SMS and email communication
Monitor engagement and refine targeting
This makes it possible to turn interest-based data into structured and scalable campaigns.
Interest-based data in practice
Interest-based data is not about collecting more data. It is about using the right data.
By focusing on what users consistently engage with, businesses can create communication that is more relevant, timely, and effective.
When combined with owned data, marketing automation, and SMS and email channels, interest-based data becomes a strong foundation for modern marketing.
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