In the last year and a half, almost every purchase I made was online. And with not much else to do, I did a lot of online shopping, alternating between different websites to find the perfect pair of mom jeans and the right SPF for my skin tone. Shopping online was a different experience than my pre-pandemic habits because my purchases were driven by research and how easy it was to find what I wanted at the right prices. In the past, I probably would’ve looked no further than a few different brands for a pair of jeans, but this new way of shopping online changed my loyalties.
Research from PwC found that 32% of consumers will leave a brand they love after a single bad experience, and this increases to around half of consumers after several bad experiences. But as consumers shop online more frequently, the landscape is different. Now, a personalized digital experience could be the difference between a loyal consumer or a lost opportunity. Consumers expect these stellar experiences, and delivering them shows that you understand their needs — which drives consumer loyalty and business growth.
The cost of attracting new customers is more than keeping existing ones — about five times more expensive, in fact. This is partly because the conversion rates for existing clients tend to be higher, especially if they’re loyal. A mere 5% bump in retention can increase company profits by as much as 95%. This means that creating personalized digital experiences is critical to your bottom line.
Personalization is also critical to building better relationships. Offering relevant experiences creates longer-lasting partnerships because it builds trust with customers. You should know what information they want and need to see. So at the end of the day, if you want a loyal customer, you have to invest in creating that kind of positive relationship via personalization.
So how do you optimize your digital experiences to create the personalized content that consumers crave and that your business needs to thrive? Start with these strategies:
Dynamic segmentation allows brands to go beyond basic demographics and use contextual factors to provide more relevant experiences. For example, one of our customers (a German hair and beauty company) uses dynamic segmentation to provide personalized product recommendations and content for consumers. Breinify’s artificial intelligence identifies segments based on hair characteristics such as texture, color, and length.
That means a consumer with dyed hair can see product recommendations for dyed hair, whereas someone with long hair would only receive recommendations for long hair. Once consumers can rely on a brand to find what they are looking for — like with these hair care recommendations — they are more likely to be loyal.
Optimizing product recommendations is important if you’re a retail or e-commerce brand because it helps increase sales and conversions. These recommendations can be based on a number of different contextual factors, such as product views, geolocation, season, or weather.
For example, an alcohol retailer that has both physical stores and e-commerce can optimize recommendations for consumers who are looking at products for pickup at a physical store. They are able to show only what products are in stock, provide recommendations based on whether the consumer is a wine drinker or a gin drinker, and whether it’s a hot day perfect for a cold beer or a rainy day that calls for a bottle of whiskey.
Enabling fully predictive and dynamic personalized experiences for consumers allows you to provide relevant journeys that adapt to changing consumer preferences in real time. For example, a new dog owner might search a pet care retailer for puppy products. As the dog grows, the dog’s (and therefore the owner’s) needs evolve. AI-driven predictive personalization recognizes this and provides recommendations and content that help customers grow with their dogs.
With personalization, you can also optimize pricing to increase conversions. For example, if your consumer is looking for mascara, they don’t necessarily want to see discounted foundation. Everyone is looking for something different, but everyone wants to feel understood and find exactly what they’re looking for at the right price.
Regardless of how you get started, you have to know what your consumers are looking for. Customer experience is incredibly important for the success of digital marketing, and personalization is a major piece of that puzzle.
With personalization in digital marketing, you can provide optimized discounts, content, and loyalty programs to show that you know — and care about — your consumers. Personalized experiences like these will stand out to them and will lead to greater loyalty in the future when they’re deciding which brands to use. The digital landscape is increasingly competitive, and offering personalized experiences to help consumers through the discovery process is the best way to stand out as a brand.
Looking at the personalization process holistically is key. Only doing A/B testing, providing product recommendations, or manually segmenting audiences is not enough. A predictive personalization solution allows you to offer optimized experiences at scale, taking into account all aspects of the personalization process — and the needs of your individual consumers.
The digital landscape is extremely competitive, and personalization in digital marketing clearly impacts a company’s bottom line. If brands are looking to increase consumer loyalty, they need to invest in providing personalized digital consumer experiences.
Ultimately, the way that brands view their relationships with consumers has evolved, and marketers now need to look for ways to personalize experiences across every channel. Having a predictive and adaptive AI that understands consumers’ needs in real-time is critical to creating meaningful moments that turn them into loyal customers.
Reach out today to learn more!