What’s actually driving zero-party data sharing in 2026 — and what brands are getting wrong.
There’s a gap at the center of most loyalty programs. Brands have built the infrastructure for AI-driven personalization — the data architecture, the preference centers, the privacy controls. What they often don’t have is the data to make any of it work. The problem isn’t consumer resistance. It’s that brands are leading with the wrong message.
The Mental Math Consumers Do Before They Share
Before a customer shares anything – a preference, a birthday, a purchase motivation – they run a quick calculation. Kobie’s 2026 Heart of Loyalty Research calls this the privacy calculus effect: a subconscious weighing of what’s being asked against what’s being offered in return.
This year, Kobie set out to define that equation more precisely. The research examined two distinct layers that shape a consumer’s willingness to share data as part of a loyalty program.
The trust layer covers what you’d expect: data security, clarity on how information will be used, consumer control, context relevance. Consumers care about these things. In the study, 95% said trust was at least somewhat important to their sharing decisions, and 89% wanted clarity on how their data would be used.
Here’s where the findings get extra interesting.
What Actually Moves the Needle
When researchers dug deeper to identify which factors were statistically significant in driving sharing comfort, the trust layer largely fell away. Of its seven variables, only two proved significant: keeping data secure and clarity of data use. The control variables — the ability to cancel, manage what’s shared, limit third-party access — didn’t register as meaningful drivers.
The effort value layer told a completely different story. Six of its seven factors were statistically significant: ease of sharing, level of effort, relevant messaging, rewards for sharing, access to additional benefits, and visible proof that shared data improved a product or experience.
The single strongest driver across all six countries in the study? Rewards for sharing.
This matters because most brands invest heavily in privacy language and control mechanisms — and underinvest in the thing that actually earns the share. Only 65% of loyalty practitioners surveyed actually reward customers for sharing data, despite rewards ranking as the top motivator for consumers.
Less Is More — and the First Ask Sets the Tone
The research also reveals something important about format and volume. Consumers are most willing to share through short, low-effort touchpoints: one-time mini-surveys (71%), short-form quizzes (64%), and mini-surveys conducted over time (63%). Willingness drops significantly for full profiles (55%) and preference centers (51%).
81% of respondents said they won’t share if they feel they’re being asked for too much at once — with no meaningful difference across countries.
Overloading a data collection moment doesn’t just reduce response rates. It actively damages the trust needed to make future sharing possible.
The implication is direct: brands have one early opportunity to demonstrate that sharing is worth it. A rewarding, relevant first exchange compounds over time. A friction-heavy one does the opposite. The research found that 71% of consumers said a positive past data-sharing experience makes them more likely to share again in the future — a figure that held steady across every country studied.
What This Means for Loyalty Leaders in 2026
The brands that will win on zero-party data aren’t the ones with the most sophisticated consent frameworks. They’re the ones that make the value of sharing immediately, obviously clear.
Lead with what the customer gets. Use your loyalty program as the incentive engine. Collect in small doses over time, not in comprehensive one-time asks. And treat each data request as a transaction with a cost — keep it small, make it relevant, make it worth it.
The data is there to be collected. Customers are willing to share it. The gap, more often than not, is in how brands are asking.
The 2026 Heart of Loyalty Research explores this and five other forces shaping loyalty strategy today. Download the full report to look into the complete findings.
The 2026 Heart of Loyalty Research explores this and five
other forces shaping loyalty strategy today. Download
the full report to look into the complete findings.
