Why personalization is important

People are different and have different needs. Therefore, personal consultation is important to meet individual needs. Nowadays, business contacts mainly take place digitally, which often makes the shopping experience impersonal. Optimal personalized on-site consulting offers an individual customer approach that comes close to a personal relationship in brick-and-mortar retail. In this way, customer needs can be taken into account even in the digital age.

Successful personalization - an approach

Successful personalization requires knowledge about your customers. To do this, it is important to gather important information about the behavior and needs of your customers. Here are some questions that can help you do that:

  • How do customers use your website (e. B. mobile or desktop)?
  • From where do customers access your website (e.g. B. over which channel)?
  • What are the social and demographic characteristics of customers?
  • Have customers visited your website before?
  • Do customers spend time on specific product detail pages?
  • Are customers reading product information or adding directly to their shopping cart?

By answering these questions, you can gain a better understanding of your target audience and their needs. This allows you to tailor your website and marketing accordingly for more effective personalization.

Data is the key: How to personalize your users

Knowledge is power - and in the digital age, it's more important than ever to know as much as you can about your users. By analyzing data, you can understand the needs and interests of your target audience and target them specifically.

Put your users at the center: Tips for personalization

A personalized approach can also work wonders. Greet your logged-in customers by name and address them according to their needs. This strengthens the bond between your users and your store and increases their attention.

  1. Pop-up messages
    2.

    ... effective way to attract attention, but be careful!

    Pop-ups can attract users' attention at the right time and with an appropriate message. This can be an indication of promotions or offers, but caution is advised as pop-ups can be considered annoying.

  2. Dynamic content customization
    3.

    ... makes it easier for users to navigate the website!

    Users are flooded with information as they scroll through a page. Help your users filter out relevant information by highlighting important content or hiding unimportant content.

  3. Recommendations
    4.

    ... relevant content for customer retention!

    Offer personalized recommendations for users you already know, based on their interests and behavior patterns. These can be products that correspond to similar interests, interesting offers or current trends.

  4. Personalized address
    5.

    ... strengthens attention and relationship!

    Greet existing customers who are logged in by name. This creates a personal touch and strengthens their attention and loyalty to your business. Also consider the needs of different types of customers to ensure a tailored approach.

These are just a few examples of how you can personalize your website, but there are many more....

But how do you find out what drives your users at different points in time? At this point it makes sense to use the scientific findings of behavioral economics to use. This way, we know how your users feel at different points in time and can provide them with appropriate support in real time.

Behavioral economics and its relevance to our actions

Behavioral economics is a branch of economics that deals with irrational behavior. In contrast to classical economic theory, the aim here is to explain human actions that are not always rational. In this context, cognitive biases that influence our actions and perceptions, such as the "social proof effect", play a role.

The "social proof effect" is a cognitive phenomenon that describes how people tend to be influenced by the opinions or behavior of others. This influence may lead us to prefer certain products or services that are already purchased or used by many others. A classic example of the "social proof effect" is going to a restaurant on a Saturday night. A full restaurant is perceived as more attractive than an empty one, even though the quality of the food may be the same in both cases.

The "social proof effect" is also very important in online shopping. Ratings and reviews from other buyers play an important role in deciding for or against a particular product. A high rating or many positive reviews can make us more willing to accept a higher price or decide against a similar but cheaper product.

A little push in the right direction: Nudging in e-commerce

Nudging is a concept from behavioral economics in which small incentives or cues are used to steer people's behavior in a particular direction without restricting their freedom.

In the context of an online store, nudging can be used to optimize the customer journey and promote certain offers. Some examples of the use of nudging in an online store:

  1. Use of availability bias.

    2. By displaying limited offers or sale periods, availability bias can be used to increase customers' desire to buy.

  2. Using default settings

    3. By presetting certain options, a nudging effect can be achieved to encourage certain actions. For example, a default option can be used to choose the shipping method or payment method.

  3. Use of personalized recommendations

    4. Personalized recommendations based on customer behavior and preferences can be used to create a nudging effect to promote specific products or categories.

Satisfied customers, our goal!

Only if you know what needs and (subconscious) desires your users have can you provide them with targeted support on their customer journey. We help you understand the people behind the users and provide them with a simplified decision-making process.

Want to learn more about how we personalize your users' shopping experience? Then contact us!

Your Smartstore Team

Email: info@smartstore.com
Fon: +49 (0)231-5335-0
SmartStore Inc.
Kaiserstrasse 63-65
44135 Dortmund