–Johannes Vermeer [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons
I had the opportunity this weekend to listen as customers encountered a newly personalized customer experience. Each customer was presented with a web page of content entirely selected based on his or her profile. When asked if they valued the News email they received, the answer was no, it is so rarely relevant it’s not worth the trouble to open. When asked if they valued a News tab on their personal page, the answer was no, the News will be the same irrelevant stuff delivered by email.
But when confronted by personalized News, the reaction was…
“Wow, this is great! This is really useful information!”
Marketers believe, or desperately want to believe, that the privacy downside of targeted content is redeemed by the upside of the improved customer experience.
I’ve just watched proof that customers can agree with that viewpoint.
But the question remains: is your content selection good enough to delight your customers? How do you know?
On Target 