Better Data, Smarter Marketing & Stronger Security with Bill Bruno

What happens when your CEO and CMO are both out, and the tech and sales teams take the reins? You get one of the most dynamic and insightful episodes of Deconstructing Data to date.

In this special episode, BDEX's Chief Technology Officer David Wellborn and Enterprise Sales Director Adam Fitzgerald host Bill Bruno, CEO of Celebrus. Broadcasting live while Jessie Lizak (Fractional CMO at BDEX) was on the road in Florida and David Finkelstein (CEO of BDEX) was tending to family matters, this episode didn’t skip a beat. Instead, it delivered one of the most valuable conversations we've had this season.

With over two decades in the data and analytics industry, Bill Bruno has lived through the evolution of digital marketing—from the early days of web analytics to today’s complex landscape of AI, compliance, and personalization. He brings his no-BS perspective to the mic and shares how Celebrus is building deterministic, cookieless, and compliant data strategies for some of the world’s top brands—including three of the top five global banks.

🔍 What we cover in this episode:

• Capturing Digital Data: Why Quality Matters
Bill explains why most companies are stuck with legacy tools and low-quality data—and how that compromises everything from personalization to AI models.

• More Data ≠ Better Data
We tackle the myth that collecting more data is always better. Bill challenges this with the idea that “inaccurate data is the real problem,” especially in today’s AI-driven world.

• Cookieless Tracking & Deterministic Identity
Celebrus has pioneered anonymized data collection—giving brands visibility while respecting privacy. We break down what “cookieless” really means and how it’s changing compliance.

• Personalization at Scale (Without the Creep Factor)
From product recommendations to on-site behavior tracking, we discuss what true personalization looks like, how to start small, and how to avoid “creepy” customer experiences.

• CDP Controversy
Bill drops a hot take: “If your first step to personalization is buying a CDP, you’re doing it wrong.” He dives into why so many CDP projects fail—and what to do instead.

• Fraud Prevention with Behavioral Biometrics
Learn how Celebrus is using digital data in real-time to fight fraud—reducing false positives and protecting customer experiences before damage is done.

• Tech Stack Talk
While Bill’s day-to-day tools are simple, his team at Celebrus is working on some exciting things with Kubernetes, AWS, and AI-enhanced analytics through Metabase and beyond.

• Why Better Data Means Better Business
The key takeaway? Quality data isn’t just for marketing—it’s the connective tissue for fraud prevention, customer experience, compliance, and revenue growth.

🔥 Bonus Insight:
You’ll hear live questions from listeners around data diets, ethical AI, fraud, compliance, and more. This was one of our most interactive livestreams to date.

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Whether you’re a marketer, technologist, or data leader, this episode is packed with straightforward advice, smart strategy, and a fresh perspective on what it means to work with data in 2025.

→ Ready to stop wasting time and start doing more with your data?

🎧 Listen now and catch the full episode on your favorite podcast app.
Find us at: https://www.bdex.com/deconstructing-data-podcast/

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Hosted by BDEX’s David Wellborn and Adam Fitzgerald
Produced by Jessie Lizak, Fractional CMO at BDEX

New episodes of Deconstructing Data air live every Thursday at 4:15 PM EST on LinkedIn and YouTube.