We’ve all been there, right? You meet somebody new, they’re interesting, and you engage in conversation. At the end of the evening, you look back and you wonder, “Why did I share so much with this person I hardly know?” It was the start to a beautiful relationship.
Fast forward three months, you’re married and wondering how you ever lived without this person. Thirty years later, you celebrate your anniversary at Disney World. It’s a tale as old as time, am I right?
Data personalization is basically the same thing. No…bear with me.
Imagine you just landed on a new website. You had never been there before, but it looked interesting. Good visuals, clever products or services, tasteful use of videos and insightful content and blogs. So…you engage a little bit. Get to know the “brand” a little better. And, let the site get to know you a little bit too. You sign up for the newsletter. Take a short survey on your interests and how you found the site. Maybe you even add something to your cart. Things are going great.
What happens next is like a dream. Even though you didn’t purchase that day, the company began to build rapport by up to letting you know they were sorry they “missed” you and then suggesting some content that you might find interesting. Nothing more. A couple days later, you get another recommendation along with a request to tell them some of your interests. They also ask what your favorite movie is, but nothing about buying anything.
Over the next two weeks, you receive article they found about one of your hobbies, and an email from the CEO thanking you for taking the time to visit their site. Still no “deals” being pushed. You finally take the leap and make a purchase. When you go back in and find the item you had abandoned three weeks earlier, you see that a 15% discount was automatically applied to your purchase along with a short video welcoming you to the “family.”
So begins a lifelong customer/brand relationship that both sides value highly. Thirty years later, that company sends you to Disney World for your anniversary.
You get them a nice T-shirt as thanks.
Everybody wins.