Data Cloud Glossary of Terms: An Ultimate Guide 2024

Understanding the vast array of terminology in the data cloud environment is essential for leveraging its full potential. 

This comprehensive glossary will help you navigate the key concepts and terms you need to know.

A

Activation

The process of publishing a segment to activation platforms or targets.

Activation Membership

The collection of fields from various data model objects (DMOs) is included in an activation.

Activation Target

The destination, including authentication and authorization details, where a segment’s data is sent during activation, such as Marketing Cloud.

Allowlist

A list that controls which IP addresses can access a Data Cloud instance.

Anonymous Data

Data not linked to a specific person or account, like mobile ad IDs or hashed email addresses, is included in Data Cloud. It includes profiles that can be either anonymous or known.

Amazon S3 (Amazon Simple Storage Service)

A web service by Amazon Web Services (AWS) provides object storage through a web interface, also known as Cloud Storage.

API Access

Allows calls to or from your Data Cloud instance outside the user interface.

API Calls

Client applications invoke operations at runtime to perform tasks such as querying data, obtaining metadata, running utilities, and data transfer.

API Name

The unique identifier for a Data Cloud object, field, segment, or insight within an API call.

Attributes

Data found in DMOs. They come in two types: Direct (1:1) and Related (1).

Audience

A collection of individuals used for various purposes within an activation target, like Marketing Cloud.

Business to Business (B2B)

Businesses that market to other companies.

Business to Consumer (B2C)

Businesses that market directly to consumers.

Blocklist

A list of email addresses, IP addresses, or domains denied access.

Business Unit

A hierarchical structure within the Marketing Cloud is used to control access and the sharing of information by user roles.

C

Calculated Insight (CI)

A tool that queries, transforms and creates complex calculations based on stored data.

Calculated Insight Object (CIO)

A data model object is created after a calculated insight is processed.

Category

A grouping selected when importing data into Data Cloud, such as Profile, Engagement, or Other.

Composite Key

A primary key comprises multiple fields from source data created during data ingestion.

Consent Management

Capturing and managing consumer consent for data accessibility, usage, and deletion.

Contact Point

Data points like email or phone are used to contact an individual.

Cookie

Data is generated by a website and saved by a web browser to remember information about the viewer.

CRM Analytics

A service for Salesforce CRM providing actionable insights and AI-driven analytics within workflows.

Customer 360 Data Model

The standard data model used in Data Cloud for interoperability across systems.

Customer Data Platform (CDP)

Software that stores and manages data across systems to create a unified customer database.

Customer Relationship Management (CRM)

Technology for managing a company’s relationships and interactions with customers.

Also Read – Generative AI Glossary: A Complete Guide to Key Terms and Concepts

D

Data Action

A process triggering actions based on streaming insights data.

Data Action Target

A record storing authentication and authorization information for a platform, like webhooks and Salesforce CRM.

Data Architecture

Standards for organizing, integrating, and using data in systems.

Data Bundle

A collection of data streams automatically mapped to DMOs.

Data Capture

Methods for capturing data from various systems, including pixel tagging, manual upload, or API.

Data Cloud

A product for organizing and unifying data across Salesforce and external sources.

Data Cloud Admin

A permission set including access to Data Cloud Setup for configuring data sources and creating data kits.

Data Cloud Enrichment

Queries or copies data from Data Cloud into an org, including copy fields and related lists.

Data Cloud for Marketing

Standard permission sets for managing data, creating segments, and more.

Data Collection

Acquiring data from different systems and sources.

Data Connector

A data stream communicating with external sources to transmit data into the Data Cloud.

Data Explorer

A tool for viewing data from DMOs, DLOs, or CIOs.

Data Governance

Company initiatives to enforce rules and policies regarding data.

Data Graph

Grouping of data combining and transforming normalized table data into new, materialized views.

Data Kit

A portable metadata bundle was created in Data Cloud to streamline package creation and installation.

Data Lake

A repository for all types of enterprise data used for reporting, visualization, analytics, and machine learning.

Data Lake Object (DLO)

Storage containers within the data lake for ingested data.

Data Mapping

Associating DLOs to DMOs after data ingestion for segmentation and activation.

Data Model

Organizing and standardizing data elements and relationships. A tab in Data Cloud for creating and viewing DMOs.

Data Model Objects (DMOs)

Groupings of data created from data streams, insights, and other sources can be standard or custom.

Data Share

A collection of DLOs, DMOs, and CIOs for making queries without moving data out of Data Cloud.

Data Source

Any system exchanging data.

Data Space

Logical partition for organizing data in Data Cloud for profile unification, insights, and marketing.

Data Stream

A data source brought into Data Cloud, based on batched or streaming data.

Data Transform

Combines, shapes, cleans, and preps data directly in Data Cloud.

Data Type

The source data type and format ingested, such as text, number, and datetime.

Database

An organized collection of structured data stored in a computer system.

Device ID

The unique identifier for electronic devices is used to relate devices to a “person-based” ID.

Dimension

A qualitative value categorizes a measure, like a customer ID, for the total amount spent.

E

Endpoint

A final system where customer data is sent and used for targeting.

Expression

An SQL expression or statement.

Extensibility

A design principle allows for future growth, easy development, and sharing of capabilities.

External Activation Target

Publishes segments to an external platform account.

External Data Lake Object (DLO)

A metadata container for federated data from an external source.

F

Field

A storage container for data, interchangeable with attributes.

First-Party Data

Data collected directly from your audience.

Foreign Key

A field in a table refers to the primary key of another table, linking two tables together.

Fully Qualified Key (FQK)

A composite key with a source key and key qualifier to avoid conflicts.

G

Google Cloud Storage

A RESTful online file storage web service for storing and accessing data on Google Cloud Platform.

H

Harmonization

Mapping ingested data into the Customer 360 Data Model.

Hashed Email (HEM)

An anonymized email with a unique key is created using a secure hash algorithm.

Hashed Phone

An anonymized phone number using a secure hash algorithm.

I

Identity Resolution

Matching and reconciling data about people into unified profiles using rulesets.

Identity Resolution Rulesets

Rulesets combining match and reconciliation rules for identity resolution.

Ingestion

Importing data from multiple sources into Data Cloud.

Insights Builder

A tool for creating insights with limited SQL knowledge.

Installed Package

A package is uploaded to an org from another org or AppExchange.

Instance

A cluster of software and hardware is represented as a single logical server hosting an organization’s data and applications.

Interoperability

The ability of systems to connect and communicate easily.

J

Java Database Connectivity (JDBC)

An API for Java programming language defining client access to a database.

JavaScript Object Notation (JSON)

A lightweight format for transferring data.

Journey Builder

A Marketing Cloud feature for creating, sending, tracking, and optimizing cross-channel customer journey campaigns.

K

Key Qualifier Fields

Schema fields added to DLOs and DMOs containing key qualifiers to identify the data source.

L

Known Data

Most companies have data about their customers, like postal or email addresses.

Label

A user-created name identifies an object, field, or attribute.

M

Marketing Cloud Intelligence

An AI-powered marketing intelligence engine for connecting and acting on marketing data.

Marketing Cloud Personalization

A tool for creating relevant customer experiences.

Match Rules

Rules linking multiple records into a unified individual within identity resolution rulesets.

Measure

An aggregated value of attributes, like the total amount a customer spends.

Metadata

Data describes other data relating to fields, configurations, and code in the Data Cloud.

Mobile Advertising Identifier (MAID)

A unique ID for mobile devices is used in external activation platforms.

Mobile App

An application on iOS or Android.

MuleSoft

Software for connecting disparate applications within an enterprise, providing a unified view of the customer.

N

Next Best Action

A marketing paradigm considers different actions for a customer and decides on the best one.

Next Best Offer

A customized offer delivering what the customer wants at the right time, price, and communication channel.

Node

A UI option in Insights Builder after Selecting Objects.

O

Objects

A term for data in a database related to data model objects in a Data Cloud.

Object Manager

An admin tool for creating custom objects, using schema builder, and viewing all objects stored in Data Cloud.

Org (Organization)

A deployment of Salesforce with a defined set of licensed users and a collection of data and metadata tied to a specific customer.

P

Package Manager

A tool in Salesforce Setup for packaging components.

Party

A term for a subject area or field in Data Cloud reflects a unique identifier, such as a driver’s license number.

Permission

A setting granting user access to specific tools or areas in Salesforce.

Permission Set

A collection of permissions and settings granting user access to specific tools and functions.

Population Count

The number of records or contacts identified in a segment.

Point-of-Sale (POS)

A system managing transaction data at the point of purchase.

Primary Key

An object’s unique identifier, like a customer email address, matches values in a foreign key.

Profile Explorer

A tool in Data Cloud for viewing Unified Individual profiles.

Push Notifications, Mobile

Alerts are rendered on mobile device home screens when users aren’t using the app.

Q

Query

A request for data or information from a database.

Query Editor

A tool for writing and executing SQL queries in the Data Cloud.

R

Real-Time Interaction Management (RTIM)

Marketing technology delivers contextually relevant experiences at the appropriate moment.

Reconciliation Rules

User-defined rules determine which source to use when creating unified individual profiles.

Relational Data

Data is organized into tables of rows and columns, with unique keys for each row.

Relationships

Connections between objects or sets of data, including one-to-one and one-to-many relationships.

Ruleset

A combination of match and reconciliation rules for identity resolution and creating unified profiles.

Also Read – Salesforce Data Cloud Consultant: The Role and Importance

S

Salesforce Advertising Studio

A product for engaging customers and prospects, including Advertising Audience, Journey Builder Advertising, and Lead Capture.

Salesforce CRM

Refers to Sales Cloud and Service Cloud accounts within Data Cloud.

Salesforce Data Pipelines

A product for cleaning, transforming, and enriching large volumes of data at scale.

Second-Party Data

Data provided by a partner.

Segment

A set of objects sharing characteristics related to an audience and population count.

Segments

A tab in Data Cloud for creating segments to send to activation targets.

Segment On

Defines the target object used to build your segment in segmentation.

Segmentation

Data will be Queryed and split into groups based on attributes or characteristics.

Streaming Insights

Calculations and queries based on near real-time data create data actions.

Structured Query Language (SQL)

A query language for accessing and modifying information in a database.

Subject Area

Groups similar DMOs to aid in data modeling, like party or engagement.

T

Tableau

A data analytics platform acquired by Salesforce in 2019.

Tenant

An organization in the service, with multiple orgs residing on the same app servers.

Tenant-Specific Endpoint (TSE)

A unique system-generated subdomain is assigned to your tenant.

Third-Party Data

Information collected by a group without a direct relationship with the user’s data.

U

Unified Profile

A profile containing reconciled customer data from multiple sources as a single record.

W

Webhook

An API allowing web applications to communicate based on events used as data action targets.

Conclusion

Navigating the complex world of Data Cloud is made easier by clearly understanding its terminology. This glossary provides a comprehensive reference to key terms and concepts, helping you better utilize Data Cloud’s powerful capabilities. Whether you’re a marketer, data analyst, or IT professional, familiarizing yourself with these terms will enhance your ability to manage, analyze, and leverage data effectively within the Salesforce ecosystem.

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