Marketers have long known the power of personalisation when it comes to connecting with customers. Rather than blasting out standard, generic messages, they segment campaigns to make them more relevant to distinct groups.
The key benefit of this is better connection. In today's highly competitive business landscape, customers can all too often feel overwhelmed with the sheer volume of marketing being directed at them. If they can't relate to a product's message on a personal level, they're likely to lose interest and shift attention to one where they do.
Start building relationships early
Successful businesses strive to build strong connections with their customers as quickly as possible. They know that such connections are critical in the creation of loyalty and long-lasting relationships. However many don't realise just how soon this process of connection can begin. Indeed, in many cases, it can start even before a person is actually a customer.
People share information about themselves through a variety of channels. It could come in the form of visits to a website, requests for information, details held in a CRM system and information captured by a marketing automation platform. As marketers shift their focus to creating targeted campaigns that begin as early as possible, integrating the data held in such systems becomes imperative.
Data powers personalisation
The efficient capture of customer (and potential customer) data and the use of it to segment audiences provides significant insight. This insight reveals what your customers care about, and how you can build effective marketing campaigns. It's about building a personalisation strategy.
An effective personalisation strategy involves understanding a customer's buying intent and then dynamically delivering highly relevant content to them based on their interests and stage in the buying process. By providing customers with information that meets their specific needs, businesses can create meaningful, engaging and long-lasting relationships.
Website experience is critical
While most marketers make use of personalisation when it comes to email campaigns and other early stage activities, many spend little time thinking about how buyers interact with a business's website. It's here that prospects often first make themselves known and it represents a golden opportunity to start the process of building a relationship.
By Christian Hyland
Senior manager, strategic consulting
Oracle Marketing Cloud APAC