Digitally Focused

Personalization is a catch all phrase in the digital world. In reality, personalization can be executed in many ways. For example, a desktop display ad targeted to thousands based on a generic search term, all the way to an individualized dynamic product offer email. Yes both of these are personalized, just at a different levels. Personalization can be defined by the size of the audience, the specificity of the content that is being presented, the channel being used and even the timing of the message. The mix of these determines the "personalization" level. The findings are that the more personalized, i.e. catered to an individual level the better performing the KPIs. Though a great personalization mix at a group or segment level can provide higher performing ROIs too. The challenge to marketers is to optimize the personalization level and the cost to do this, and depending on the industry, the product or CTA, performance will vary. The direct to consumer retail ...

Experience is not a one size fits all solution. Though today most conversations are around a generic bucket of experience tactics being delivered to a universe of prospects, customers, partners and employees. The reality though is that this universe is made up of many different sets of experience expectations. If we want more satisfied customers, increased loyalty, a lower cost to serve, more engaged employees and ultimately an increase in net promoter score, then we need to think differently. What is needed are different iterations of experience based on user scenarios. I use the term scenario instead of segment because experiences are dynamic, ever changing like scenes of life. Segments are static slivers in time. Here are some vastly different user scenarios. A 38 year old "technology social" woman who likes to shop high-end brands is traveling alone to work by train, using her tablet to discuss the latest style of dress shoes with her community. A 23 year o...

Earned; the 3rd gear in the digital media machine. It is the least understood though offers the greatest value. Earned media has shown to provide the highest impact on conversion rate of any digital media. It is the "seal of approval." Earned media like the name implies is "free." You can't buy it directly. How do you earn it? Provide a compelling description of the product or service. Meet or exceed buyer expectations. Or provide an exceptional service experience. Each of these strategies will resonate differently with prospects, customers and category watchers. What kinds of actions can you earn: likes, reposts, retweets, shares, mentions, ratings, comments, replies, link saves, endorsements, subscribers, followers, pick-ups, recommendations, testimonials, reviews, and pick-ups. Effectively this is user generated content (UGC), which carries higher credibility within a network or community than company generated marketing material. These e...