The word “personalization” is used a lot, but here’s what robust website personalization really looks like, and the dramatic results that integrated marketers can expect.
Integrated marketers talk a lot about Web personalization, and they’re usually referring to a website that remembers your name and some of your previously established preferences. But there’s an even more robust approach that doesn’t just recognize you, it customizes the entire web experience, including serving up photos, content, and offers tailored to each individual and where they are on their customer journey.
Here’s What Personalization Looks Like
Say you’re a vitamin/wellness shop – you have offerings for men, women, hardcore fitness enthusiasts, seniors and more. You appeal to each audience with unique digital campaigns run on targeted media, as well as social media posts that drive to a specific page on your site. So, you tell your platform (more on this later), if the user clicked from a banner ad on a CrossFit website or has clicked through a social media post aimed at gym-goers, this user would be shown products and content related to fitness. They would also receive messages and offers that welcome them as a new customer who’d not shopped on the site before.
(A very famous, real-world example of personalization in action is the tale of how Target accurately “outed” a pregnant teen to her family by mailing her coupons for diapers and baby bags.)
The goals of personalization are to get your audience deeper into the funnel and make them repeat customers. And it works: 85% of consumers say they purchased as a result of a personalized homepage. In fact, Amazon reports that 35% of the site’s revenue comes from personalized recommendations and content.
Here’s How You Get There (In 3 Drastically-Oversimplified Steps)
Good personalization starts with a deep-dive on customer behavior and taming the wealth of data you probably already have on those who visit your website, as well as where they’re coming from.You already know why you need CMS and DAM, but to personalize, you’re also going to need a DMP (data management platform). Marketo and Optimizely are two of the most popular. These platforms help turn your data into insights that determine how content gets served up.
Keep creating content that’s both personalized and relevant. Even if you decide not to totally embrace personalization, well-thought out (and well-planned) content is what’s going to help you connect to your customers. And for integrated marketers who carry the personalized experience through email marketing and other channels, 40% of your customers will buy even more.
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