Putting Personalization to Work for Your Business

Everyone wants an online experience that feels like it’s meant just for them, right? Browsing users are more likely to select and purchase when they can easily see how a product or service will fit happily into their lifestyle or solve a problem that they’ve been facing. But personalization covers a wide array of data and user behavior, which can be daunting for organizations to understand and implement in their advertising campaigns. 

Consumers are quick to respond when a business personalizes their offerings successfully. McKinsey estimates that personalization at scale can provide 5-15% revenue growth for companies in a variety of industries including retail, entertainment, and travel. The key is to find the right audience when they need you and to market to them in a series of subtle nudges, leading them to convert.

Strategic Audience Targeting

When companies are marketing products or services, they should always consider personas they’ve developed based on past buyers. Audience targeting taps into what companies know about those personas, identifying where prospective users are, what they’re already buying, and how to be most visible to those groups across channels and platforms. 

Leveraging consumer data

You may already have access to data that will help you reinforce your targeting strategies. If you’re using Google Analytics to analyze traffic to your site, you can configure your website to gather all sorts of helpful demographic information about site visitors. Information like age, gender, affinity for specific topics, like sports or tech, and other data points can be gathered through Google Analytics reporting features. You can then target ad campaigns to the appropriate interest categories or user demographics.

Connecting in real time

Businesses can make strategic connections and gather valuable data from social media by engaging with users and understanding their engagement topics. Timing is everything, so fast and valuable responses on social media will resonate with your audience. 

Whether you’re utilizing data you’ve already gathered or connecting directly on social media, you should aim to deliver recent and relevant content to your audience. Sharing the right products, services, and value propositions at the right time will help you appeal to customers while building lasting loyalty. 

Personalization Delivers What Customers Really Want

Online consumers have certainly come to expect personalization as they browse online. With major retailers constantly providing suggestions based on prior customer purchases, other buyer behavior, and similar products, shoppers pretty much expect that sites will provide them with informed recommendations. 

Effortless buying experiences

With more companies providing personalization, the attention span of buyers is shrinking; it’s critical to provide relevant content and products quickly. We know that the majority of consumers want to enable personalization; 83% report that they’re willing to share their personal data for that purpose. First-party data provides marketers with critical insights, helping them ask the right questions at the right time. 

Using your first-party data wisely is what makes personalization possible and it should be the top priority for advertisers. Understanding how current customers are using your site, engaging in loyalty programs, or purchasing products can drive future advertising and targeting goals.

Starting with the little things

If the idea of data algorithms and instant recommendations seems like an impossible leap compared to your current marketing strategy, there are other personalized options that utilize first-party data you already have in simple and impactful ways—and also bring you additional data about visitors.

• Loyalty programs provide incentives for consumers and also provide additional demographic information at sign-up

• Remarketing emails letting shoppers know something is still in their cart

• Downloadable resources deliver valuable content to visitors and tell advertisers what information is most important to them

• Sending a promotional code during the customer’s birthday month and including their name in the subject line to increase open rates

Personalized or…creepy?

When personalization goes too far, it can sometimes cause distrust in customers. However, most have come to expect that level of “service” from online shopping. It’s a fine line between delivering value and annoying potential customers, driving them straight to your competitors. This applies to how you are collecting

It’s important to be transparent with customers when delivering customized ads and product suggestions. Using phrases like “Other shoppers also purchased” or “Based on this item, you might also be interested in” when making recommendations can help shoppers feel like you’re simply paying attention to their interests, and not like you’re overstepping. Being upfront about the value exchange happening when you collect their data can also encourage them to share their information with you.

Some of the most interesting include that 91% of consumers claim they’re more likely to shop brands that provide accurate recommendations and relevant offers, and 90% of respondents are willing to share personal data with companies if that means they get discounts or an easier shopping experience. 

When retailers are honest and transparent in delivering personalized content in relevant, well-timed, targeted environments, the return on investment is clear. Start small, test, scale up, and enjoy getting to know your customers.