Consider walking into a mattress store. One sales rep stands off to the side and casually points to a sign about discount mattresses, saying, “Can I interest you in a comfy queen-sized bed?”
While you shrug off the offer, another sales rep walks up, shakes your hand and offers you a premade cup of coffee that just so happens to be your favorite blend. They use your name and ask if you’d be interested in a mattress that’s known to help alleviate the back pain you’ve been struggling with for months, since it’s been causing severe insomnia?
Which sales rep would you respond to more positively? At the best, with the first one you might get vague interest or mere indifference—or you could just be immediately irritated by the mental intrusion. Whereas with the second, you’re more likely to be at least open to have a conversation with the person and see if there’s something further worth exploring with the product they’re pointing out.
Why?
Because of personalization—the act of approaching and communicating with your audience with their unique needs and preferences in mind. This is an increasingly critical aspect of modern digital marketing.
Adlucent research found that:
- 71% of consumers prefer ads tailored to interests and shopping habits1
- 44% of consumers are willing to give up personal data to get more relevant advertising1
Isn’t this just customization?
To clarify, while personalization and customization both keep your clients at the center of your perspective and potential decision-making, they’re not quite the same. Customization means giving your clients the ability to alter a product or service based on their preferences.
Personalization is about establishing a one-on-one interaction with the customer that’s relevant to their needs, desires, and other demographics.
The primary benefits of personalization
What should companies expect when they invest in personalization strategies and tools? Here are a handful of the big benefits to this approach:
- Boosted customer loyalty – When a company offers customers a catered buying experience and clients know they’ll receive focused and personal attention from a brand, they’re more likely to stay loyal to that brand for the long-term.
- Higher revenue – Shoppers are more likely to buy from organizations that offer personalized experiences. This increased business drives higher profitability and allows the company to reinvest in further outreach.
- Increase of repeat business – First-time customers who have a more personalized experience with a business are more likely to make a second purchase than those who undergo a generalized buying experience.
Overcoming the B2B personalization disconnect
This personalization approach can be relevant to not only how you reach out to your own clients but also how you can help your customers also reach their own client base.
Studies have shown that, similar to the B2C demographics, 73% of B2B buyers want personalized business interaction experiences. However, the same studies show that just 22% of B2B customers actually have encountered personalized business transactions online.3
In upcoming posts, we’ll discuss specific strategies and tools you can implement to personalize your outreach and help your clients also adopt effective approaches to personalization (thus offering them more value from your services).
- https://www.marketingdive.com/news/study-71-of-consumers-prefer-personalized-ads/418831/
- https://spectrm.io/insights/blog/how-personalization-in-digital-marketing-improves-conversion-rates-increases-roi/#:~:text=Increase%20purchases%3A%2080%25%20of%20consumers,revenue%20by%20up%20to%2015%25
- https://www.bloomreach.com/en/blog/2017/08/ecommerce personalization.html#:~:text=44%25%20of%20consumers%20say%20that,a%20personalized%20service%20or%20experience
