Why is personalization important?
Have you ever visited a Website and were surprised to see that they remembered your name, address, previous order and important dates (anniversary, birth date, etc.). How did you feel about visiting a Website that knew so much about you? Were you pleasantly surprised or a little unnerved?
If done right, personalization can make your customer feel like they are remembered and the information on your site is tailored to their needs making their experience on your site more satisfying. If overused, it has the potential of giving the “conspiracy” seekers of the world cause to keep their much-prized personal information under wraps.
Some things to remember…
Personalization requires more programming on backend of your Website. You need to have a database system in place that stores harvested information from each visitor of your site. You need to have someone program this system for you, or you can subscribe to or purchase ready-made software that does this for you online.
Another thing to consider is that customers are reluctant to give you personal information or ask you to keep their credit information when they visit your site for the first time. Loyal customers are more likely to give you information to enhance their future shopping experiences (e.g. billing information, important dates, personal profile, etc.)
Finally, since a computer is guessing what a customer wants to buy based on a profile, it might guess wrong. Your customer may see products that he or she has no interest in at the time and on the flip side, may not see the products they really want to buy.
Is this strategy right for you?
- Do you sell products online?
- Do you want your potential clients to feel “at home” on your site?
- Do you want to gather important information that will help you sell more effectively?
Most likely one of these describes you and your business goal. Using personalization will help you accomplish these and more.
How to incorporate personalization into your Website:
- Put a customer profile request on your site and allow them to choose what information you are allowed to keep (e.g. billing address, credit card info, etc.)
- Publish a thorough and accurate privacy policy with a summary on all checkout pages to reassure your customer that you will not share or sell this information
- Join a branded organization (e.g. BBBonline.org) and put their logo on your site to show that you are a reputable company
- Let customer choose how to be marketed to by you (newsletters, notified of current sales, etc.) and how often they want to receive this information by email
- Ask if they wish to be reminded next year in advance of a special event in their lives (anniversary, birth date, etc.) and send a friendly reminder along with suggestions on gifts according to their profile
- Make this information available on your site for the customer to view and edit especially when it comes to credit card information as these expire
Contact Us for help on personalizing your Website.
