Composable Software/Composable CDP - Glossary- CDP.com (2024)

What is Composable Software?

Composable software is an approach to building system infrastructure through modules. By deploying a composable architecture, companies can repurpose existing code with the intent to streamline toolsets with agility. Composable software components can be swapped easily when needed. This allows code to be written once and reused across multiple instances by breaking core applications into specialized microservices.

Microservices make applications easier to scale and faster to develop, which can help to improve innovation and speed up time-to-market. They typically communicate through APIs.

What is the Difference Between Composable Software and Platform Software?

Composable systems are different from platform architectures because every component can be replaced. Unlike platform systems, no individual component is required for the entire system to function. In platform architecture, replaceable modules depend on a shared core system that cannot be moved.

CDPs and Composability

A CDP can be looked at as a composable module of the larger marketing technology (MarTech) stack. It is something that can be easily switched out for new software when needed.

SinceCDPs are based on being built from the ground up with built-in connectors or APIs, they can help companies make their technology stack moreeasy to integrate and interconnect with other sources or systems in the tech stack.

A CDP makes it easier to collect and share data between different platforms, making it more practical for companies to use multiple best-of-breed MarTech platforms. This allows brands to reduce dependency on a single vendor when building an ideal tech stack.

What is a Composable CDP?

According to theCDP Institute, a CDP is “package software.” Meaning the CDP itself is a full suite, not a collection of modules. In that case, can a composable CDP really be called a CDP?

Proponents of the “composable” CDP see the CDP itself as a software platform that could be broken up into components.

One argument is that CDPs shouldn’t handle everything from data collection, to integration, to profile unification. Instead, other systems or components should be stitched together to complete different functions.Composable CDP advocates argue that the core of the CDP, the customer database, does not need to be there, as many companies already have various data warehouse solutions. As an alternate approach, brands should supplement their legacy data warehouse solutions with modules to expand their functionality.