Personalization is the talk of the town. And why not? Users have a minuscule attention span, and every second is precious. Any time that can be saved will help engage users and capture that all-important qualified lead.
UX Researcher Robert Mohns and I recently attended a great event put on by MassTLC, How Personalization Tools Further the Customer Experience. In this session, five very talented marketing experts shared their experience with personalization in their roles. They described what tactics have broken through the clutter, and what tactics have enticed them.
I have to admit I was wary of the session – would this panel be filled with more concepts of artificial intelligence (AI) and how we should be all using it? While AI is important, is it something we should be using in B2B marketing? Do most B2B companies even generate enough daily traffic to their sites to garner specific trends or information? It seems that the answer to all of these is a simple no. This is where personalization and genuine human interaction come into play.
One of the most important takeaways from the session is that we need to step back, slow down, and think about the entire customer experience. One of the panelists pointed out that personalization can be done in three phases: crawl, walk, and run.
Crawl
You’re probably already using personalization in some way, even if you don’t realize it. Almost every marketer out there has some form of customer relationship management (CRM) tool, Google Analytics, or other marketing tools in their stack. Use that information to start crawling. Instead of just collecting data, take a step back and analyze it. Use your findings to establish a foundation for measuring success, and pinpoint what tactics are moving the needle.
Walk
To take the next step and “walk,” you need to identify what is true to your brand. Be genuine in your messaging, and stick with your brand pillars to drive a personalized experience. Use your brand tone to connect with your users and demonstrate the value of who you truly are as a brand. Remember, it’s not one-to-one, but one-to-many.
Run
Lastly, it’s time to run and to take personalization to the next phase. This is where you move beyond your website and expand your personalization into other touchpoints. You get to see how your brand can impact many, while helping you stand out from competitors and drive sales.
This post originally appeared on the Imarc blog.
