A new report from Twilio reveals that while consumers want personalized ad experiences, they don’t want their privacy to be compromised. 
According to the report:
- 49% of consumers are willing to become repeat customers if they are offered a personalized experience by a retail brand.
- 62% say they expect personalization and could dump a business that does not offer a personalized experience. This percentage has increased from 45% in 2021, which shows the increasing importance of personalization.
- Three-fourths of business leaders say that one-third more (34%) is spent by customers who receive a personalized shopping experience.
- Only about one-third (35%) of brands think they have achieved omnichannel personalization.
- Just under half (47%) of companies base their personalized experience on live data, which means that a big chunk of personalization is being overlooked by more than half of companies.
Personalization is made more difficult by the various polices, regulations and consumer ideas on privacy. Because of the many changes from Google and Apple, many brands are moving to gather first-party data with their own systems. Over one-third of brands are using first-party exclusively for personalization, an increase from 31% in 2021.
One channel offering personalized experiences without the intrusive collection of data is email. Data privacy changes and a dislike of social media and digital ads are not as big a concern with email. One recent report found that 55% of consumers are willing to give up personal information as long as doing so is their choice and is used to benefit them. The report also found email marketing can drive sales far more than social and display ads because of consumer distrust of those ads.
To avoid distasteful data collection measures, email marketing and loyalty programs can provide a means of developing customer relationships. In addition, brands should consider developing their own ad systems with partnerships or custom technology.
What is your organization’s personalization strategy?