Studies show that personalized digital experiences are more effective at helping marketing and sales teams achieve their goals. That’s no surprise. We all want to engage with companies that understand our needs and demonstrate that they respect our time by making it easy to get the information we’re after.
Global professional services experts Deloitte quantified that preference in a study that found, among other things:
Brands that personalize their digital offerings are 48% more likely to exceed their revenue targets than those with low personalization.
Companies that prioritize personalization are 71% more likely to report improved customer loyalty.
A recent Think with Google survey also found that around 90% of marketers believe that personalization contributes to profitability, and 75% of consumers are more likely to buy from companies that recognize them (by name or past purchases).
To put some real-world context around what’s driving those numbers, imagine you’re researching a particular type of product. You’ve engaged with a company on multiple occasions, including providing your contact information and some details on what you’re looking for.
Then, you receive a marketing email from them exclusively touting a product completely different from what they know (from prior interactions) you’re considering. You open and read the email start to finish, thinking maybe they will get to the point at the end. Only they don’t. They’ve simply wasted your time, treating you like every other recipient on their target list.
Or this: You visit their website again, and it’s as if you’ve never been there before. They ask you the same questions, highlight products you’re not interested in, etc. No personalization. No recognition that you’ve previously expressed interest in a particular product. Not only does that mistake on their part reduce the likelihood of you making a purchase today, but it might also drive you away from their website permanently—and directly to a competitor’s site.
The flip side of that frustrating scenario is one where, for example, you:
- Express interest in a product
- Receive helpful information about it in subsequent emails
- Are welcomed back to the company’s website like a family member when you return
The result of that type of warm, engaging experience? Often, it’s a sale, but at a minimum, it tends to deepen the relationship that will eventually lead to revenue.
Customized Digital Experiences: Nuanced Personalization Is Key
Customizing digital experiences is about more than simply including personal information in them. You’ve got to interact with your audience in subtle, human-like ways, even when technology is handling some or all of the communication.
Most people have experienced an example of personalization gone wrong. You know you’re in one when you can almost see the placeholder brackets for the recipient-specific text, like in an email, website, or in-product interaction that sounds like this:
Hello, [Kathy]! We wanted to remind you, [Kathy], that the [general liability insurance] you inquired about is essential to protecting your [bakery] because [general liability insurance] covers an array of risks [bakers] like you, [Kathy], face.
Hello, [Kathy]! We wanted to remind you, [Kathy], that the [general liability insurance] you inquired about is essential to protecting your [bakery] because [general liability insurance] covers an array of risks [bakers] like you, [Kathy], face.
That type of robotic, artificial tone is a turn-off, and it demonstrates that you’re not really invested in genuine connections with your audience. Too many interactions like that, and your potential customers are likely to look elsewhere for the products or services they need.
The goal is to engage with customers and potential customers like you would a friend stopping by your home. Using behavioral and intent data to understand customer and prospective customer needs and provide personalized assistance in a timely and tactful way helps you establish and nurture trusting relationships.
6 Tips for Customizing Digital Experiences
At The Creative Alliance, we help clients achieve tremendous success through digital experience customization using these best practices:
1. Research and segment your customer base.
High-level information (like knowing your products are popular with small to medium-sized businesses) is helpful, but actionable (and profitable) insights are in the details (like 63% of sales are to risk management experts with 3-5 years of experience who said their top priority in insurance products was affordability).
2. Assess your target industries and markets.
Personalization requires “speaking the language” of your prospective customers. Understanding the challenges they face and the opportunities they pursue helps you connect with them more deeply and meaningfully.
3. Leverage observations and analytics to understand your customers’ journey.
How the people in a particular market segment get to the point of paying for a product or service varies. Using subjective insights (from your sales team, for example) and objective data to learn how your different customer groups choose you is essential. That knowledge enables you to provide the type of assistance a person needs precisely when and where they need it.
4. Personalize across all touchpoints.
If you engage with prospects in three primary ways but only personalize one of those experiences, that asymmetry can confuse or irritate them. Infusing a little humanity in all your touchpoints is essential.
5. Continually seek feedback.
How you view your personalization efforts and how your audience receives them can be two very different things. Building and sustaining a feedback loop helps ensure your activities are—and continue to be—effective.
6. Offer personalized content that solves problems.
The most effective interactions are those that are personalized and helpful. Customizing an email containing a standard list of product features isn’t nearly as effective as personalizing a note that, for example, clears up common misconceptions about the product, provides best practices for using it, etc.
Grow Your Brand With Holistic, Helpful, Tailored Digital Experiences
Successful companies today have recognized a critical fact: People buy from people. Someone might be working on behalf of their company to find a product or service offered by yours, but purchase decisions come down to humans making choices.
If you can ensure they feel valued and respected by personalizing interactions with them, they’re much more likely to become your customers or clients. Achieving that goal requires the kind of deep expertise in market research, user experience (UX) design, and business communication we have at The Creative Alliance.
Learn more about our award-winning services.