In the age of individuality, marketers must ‘make it personal’ to succeed

Through the course of our lives, we’re labelled and categorised according to all sorts of criteria – some useful, but many increasingly arbitrary. These labels not only restrict the unique expression of identities, but from a business perspective, they limit brands’ abilities to impress their customers by offering the increasingly personalised experiences that today’s consumer demands.

Adobe’s recent ‘Make It Personal‘ research explored this in detail by asking 2,000 customers in the UK about their opinions of themselves as individuals and, most importantly, how regularly and consistently brands are showing they understand who they truly are, right now.

The findings are crystal clear: people do not want to be pigeon-holed by age or any other broad category – they want to be recognised and treated as the unique individuals they are.

People want brands to demonstrate empathy, align with causes that resonate with them, and understand their wants, needs and preferences. Not yesterday, last month or last year – but right now, in the moment.

Earning the trust of the modern consumer

The trust of customers, the primary form of currency in the digital economy, will be won or lost by how well brands can deliver against these expectations.

It’s therefore time to shake our reliance on generation-based insights and build the capabilities to treat every single one of our customers as the unique individual they are today.

So how do your customers view themselves, and what do they expect from you in the digital economy?

1. Get to know customers in the moment

As humans, we change our minds, opinions and preferences all the time. In fact, over three-quarters (76%) of our respondents say their tastes change every few months, and they are unimpressed by brands that can’t keep up.

Without the most up-to-date view of your unique customer right now, brands will struggle to build trusted relationships.

O2-Telefonica understands this and is overhauling its approach to the customer experience by combining online behavioural data with existing customer information, all in real-time: “The whole experience will traverse online and offline with real omnichannel marketing across all relevant touchpoints,” says Telefonica’s Steven Burkhardt, head of digital analytics.

2. Democratise data to act with empathy

Consumers feel closer to brands that understand them and engage with their passions and interests, irrelevant of age demographic. Indeed, half our respondents expect brands to understand virtually every aspect of their lives, so they know them as a complete person.

By bringing every piece of customer data available to you into one centralised location, brands can establish more direct two-way communication with their customers. Invariably, better understanding leads to more empathy and will help brands as they look to democratise the customer experience.

3. Create little moments of magic

The way to a consumer’s heart is through consistent, thoughtful interactions, while showing a deep understanding of who they are and what is relevant to them in that moment. Indeed, our research shows that nearly twice as many consumers (44%) would rather receive regular thoughtful gestures from brands based on their interests than one-off offers (21%).

With a shrinking pool of third-party data, brands must look for other ways to gain consented customer information and build direct relationships through moments of relevant and authentic magic.

Welcome the age of the individual

Clearly, it’s time for a change. Consumer interests are constantly shifting, and it’s our duty as brands to respect their capacity to make choices for themselves, to explore their passions without restriction and, most importantly, to grow alongside them.

We should meet them in the place of their choosing, with timely and personalised experiences they expect, rather than making sweeping generalisations based on broad categories that they don’t identify with. But, to do that, we need access to the right data and technology, and to deliver against these expectations.

The technology now exists to do this at scale, consistently across channels, while always honouring customer preferences and respecting their privacy. The brands that adopt this technology and use it to act now will be the ones that rapidly emerge as customer experience leaders in their respective markets.

To discover how brands can connect with their customers and Make It Personal, visit here.

Alvaro del Pozo is vice-president of international marketing at Adobe.