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What: The Data Layer connection allows you to enrich BlueConic profiles with data from a data layer and to export BlueConic data into a data layer. You can use an existing data layer or create a new BlueConic data layer. This connection supports real-time import and export.

About BlueConic: The BlueConic customer data platform harnesses the data required to power the recognition of an individual at each interaction, and then synchronizes their intent across the marketing ecosystem.

Why: Your marketing stack partly lives on your channels and can integrate data from a data layer. Use this connection to share first-party data out to the stack for your known and anonymous users, whether it was collected by BlueConic or integrated through another BlueConic connection.

Adding a Data Layer connection

1. Click Connections in the Navigation bar.
2. Click Add Connection.
3. A pop-up window appears. Check the Show all box. Enter "data layer" in the Search bar.
4. Click Data Layer connection.
   The Data Layer connection page opens.

   You can expand or collapse metadata fields (favorite, labels, and description) by clicking the gray chevron at the top of the page.
   

Configuring a Data Layer Connection with BlueConic

Setup

• Optional: Restrict the connection to only be active on specific channels or URLs.
• Check the box Create a new data layer to tell the connection to create a new data layer on the page. Set up the connection by confirming the Data layer name that you will be using. You can enter the name of an existing data layer or use a custom name.
  
• Click Save to store the information.

Data exchange shows the total number of unique profiles that have been imported or exported via the connection. Note that these are unique profiles; if the same profile is exported multiple times, it is counted as 1.

To make the connection work, you have to add at least one goal and switch the connection on.

Import data into BlueConic

To import profile and event data into BlueConic, click the Add goal button to add an import goal and follow the steps laid out in the goal.

1. Select the BlueConic segment that holds the profiles that can be enriched with data from the data layer. Only profiles in this segment will be used.
   
2. Optional: Map the data layer fields to BlueConic either manually or by using the visual picker.  Enter the name of the data layer field, or enter a JSONPath expression (that starts with $.) to select the data. Select the BlueConic profile property the data populates by entering a search term.
   
   

   Select how to import the data from the drop-down list:

   • Set
   • Set if empty
   • Set or clear: The value in the profile property will be cleared if the import contains no value.
   • Add the data field to the list of existing values
   • Sum a number with the existing values (if the data field is a number)
     
     Note about dates: If you remove the event date/time mapping row, BlueConic stores the current time as the event's date/time.
     
     Adding Restrictions to the data import
     Using restrictions helps you control the amount and type of data imported through the data layer. Click the settings cogwheel to restrict when a value is allowed to be picked up. Enter a variable name and the value it should be equal to and click OK.
     
     Click Save on the top right corner of the screen to save your import goal.

    

3. Optional: Import Timeline events into BlueConic
   You can import events from the data layer to enrich BlueConic Timeline events. Either add the event mapping manually using the fields below or straight from your webpage by using the visual picker. As you navigate through the site via the visual picker, new events will be automatically added to the data layer for selection, but you can only select one at a time.
   
   Note: In order for Timeline events to be imported correctly, the data layer object must contain an event key and value. For example:

   {
       "event": "PageView",
       "Item": "676f986e-132b-40e9-8d1d-06dfaae20a34"
   }

Export data from BlueConic into a data layer

To export BlueConic profile data into a data layer, add an export goal and follow the steps laid out in the goal.

1. Select the BlueConic customer segment that holds the visitors that will be exported to the data layer when they visit one of the channels selected under Setup.
2. Map the BlueConic data that you want to export into the data layer. 
   Select a BlueConic profile property by entering a search term and enter the data field value it should populate. Click Add mapping to add a new mapping rule for a property, or click Add multiple mappings to add rules for a number of properties.

   Click the BlueConic icon to open a drop-down menu where you can switch between the type of information you want to export. Pick one of:

   • Profile property: The value of a specific profile property
   • BlueConic profile identifier: The unique identifier for a profile
   • Associated segments: All segments, or a selection of one or more specific segments that the profile is associated with
   • Associated lifecycles: All lifecycles this profile is associated with. Learn more about Lifecycles.
   • All viewed interactions (page view): The interactions that the profile has seen
   • Permission level: The permission level set in the profile
   • Text value: Enter any static text
   
   
3. Set up data configuration for exporting profile properties to the data layer -- as a single text value (string) or as a list with multiple values (an array). Enter the character to be used as a separator between values.
4. Define when BlueConic data should be pushed to the data layer:
   • Select the Push frequency you prefer: Upon each page view, only when values for the export properties change, once per visit, or when permission levels change.
   • Optional: Select a BlueConic event that should also trigger this goal - in addition to the push frequency above.

Note that you can use the Add goal button to create multiple export goals for this connection.

Connection status

Once you've set up and saved your connection, the icon at the top will reflect the status of the connection.

There is an arrow going from the data layer to BlueConic, signifying that data is being imported. At the same time, there is also an arrow going the other way, meaning data is being also exported from BlueConic to the data layer. Also, the arrows are green, meaning the connection is ready to be used.

On the Setup tab, under Data exchange you can see the number of unique profiles that were imported or exported by the connection.

Privacy management

Connections can be added to Objectives, allowing for privacy management of the information that is being picked up. A connection will only process the profiles of visitors who have consented to at least one of the objectives that the connection is linked to.