Use Case: Data Model

Let’s see how Data Model helps you combine different pieces of information using system and custom entities, giving you a complete view of each customer. In Data Cloud, profile and Interaction are system entities while Profile is the parent, and interaction is the child Entity.

Stage 1: Profile as the Parent Entity

Think of the Profile as the foundation. It holds all the essential details about your customer like their name, contact information, and account details. For example, you have John Doe’s Profile set up with the following:

• Customer Name: John Doe

• Email: [email protected]

• Phone: 555-1234

• Account Details: Account #12345

Stage 2: Child Entity – Interaction

Next is the interaction entity, in Data Cloud. This contains every touchpoint your customer has with your business—whether it’s a call, an email, or a store visit. For John Doe, this might look like:

• Interaction Type: Call

• Date: 2024-09-01

• Description: Follow-up call about a product inquiry

• Agent Involved: Sarah Smith

Stage 3: Custom Child Entity – Purchase History

In addition to the system entities, you can create a custom entity like Purchase History to track specific transactional data linked to the Profile. Now, let’s say you want to go further and track John’s purchases. You can create a custom entity called Purchase History to capture John’s transactions. For example, John’s Purchase History might look like this:

• Order ID: 001

• Purchase Date: 2024-08-20

• Product Name: Laptop

• Quantity: 1

• Purchase Amount: $1,200

Stage 4: Unique Identifiers for Child Entities

Configuring the right unique identifier for the child object is important to avoid data overwriting issues. Each child entity must have only one unique identifier to keep its records distinct and prevent data overwriting.

For example:

• In the Interaction entity, a unique Interaction ID or Campaign ID can be used to identify each record separately.

• In the Purchase History entity, the Order ID serves as the unique identifier. It ensures that each purchase is recorded as a separate entry, preventing one purchase from overwriting another.

Let’s say John makes multiple purchases. Order ID is one of the right unique identifiers for Purchase History because it keeps each transaction separate, preventing data from being overwritten. For instance:

• Order ID 001: John buys a Laptop.

• Order ID 002: John buys a Smartphone.

• Order ID 003: John buys a Tablet.

If the wrong identifier is used—like reusing the same identifier for each purchase—all transactions would overwrite each other, and only the latest one would remain. But by using the Order ID as the unique identifier, each purchase is kept separate and intact.

Stage 5: Link Child Records to the Parent

To connect each child entity to the Profile, Data Cloud uses the Profile Link field. This field shows the unique identifiers from the Profile entity, making sure each child record points to the right Profile.

For custom child entities like Purchase History:

• Profile Link Field: Displays unique identifiers such as John’s phone number (555-1234), which is used to link each purchase record to John’s Profile.

For system child entities like Interaction:

• Profile Link Field: This isn’t used here. Instead, the Profile ID directly links each Interaction to the Profile, making sure everything stays connected without needing a separate Profile Link field.

For example:

• Purchase History Record: Order ID 001 is linked to John’s Profile using John’s phone number (555-1234).

• Interaction Record: A call on 2024-09-01 is linked to John’s Profile using the Profile ID.

This setup ensures a clear one-to-many relationship: each child record is tied to one Profile, but a single Profile can have multiple child records.