Digital marketing has changed the game in terms of how companies can promote their products and services to customers and clients. While for a great number of years businesses were most concerned with simply having an online presence, their focus has now shifted to how they effectively use that to boost their operations.
The rise of personalisation
One trend which is increasingly becoming integral to digital marketing is the concept of personalisation. Where once customers simply faced having to wade through page after page of a website to find the offers, products and services which were suited to them, advances in marketing technology mean they can now use insights gained from online data to ensure that people receive tailored suggestions. The importance of having the ability to do this has been put into the spotlight in a range of sectors across the past few months.
The recent InternetRetailing Expo held at Birmingham’s NEC highlighted how the issue is a vital theme in retail at present, with Next’s first Head of Personalisation Rob Pearson talking to attendees about how personalisation can drive differentiation. In addition, in the iGaming sector the Mr Green casino recently joined a joint venture from NetEnt and Ve Group which will help it improve online player acquisition and retention through personalisation and targeting. The issue is also growing in importance in the food and drink domain too, with The Drum recently reporting how companies are using a range of new technologies including one which can base recommendations on a customer’s saliva.
Consumers ready
So while many sectors are switched onto the potential of personalisation, what do customers think about such services? Well, according to recent research from Epsilon, almost a third of customers want brands to adopt personalisation strategies and tailor services to suit their needs. According to MarketingTechNews.net, the study also revealed that 80 percent of consumers are more likely to buy products and services from businesses which offer a personalised experience. However, 27 percent added that they did not feel many companies were doing enough to boost their tailored offerings.
Interestingly, such views were also reflected in the 2017 Adobe Digital Insights report, where just 38 percent of customers said brands were making improvements in terms of providing the right experiences. This was in stark contrast to the finding that 58 percent of advertisers feel their ability to offer a quality customer experience had got better.
A need to improve
All of this suggests that businesses and consumers both agree that the time for personalisation is now. Companies and organisations are clearly waking up to the importance of the concept, while many customers are undoubtedly ready to wholeheartedly embrace it.
However, if the reports mentioned above are to be believed, there seemingly remains much that companies need to do to ensure that they are offering properly tailored services to their client base. With the issue of personalisation seemingly only likely to become more important in the future, businesses would be wise to start properly considering how it could impact on or improve their offerings.
