Options for web content personalisation

When, as marketers, we discuss personalised web communications everyone always talks about Amazon "€œCustomers who bought X also bought Y"€, yet this is old technology dating back 10+ years. Here is an update on the options from one of the leading providers.

For me, the most exciting development is on-demand web services such from the acquisition by ATG of eStara which appears to give a lower-cost entry point for personalised recommendations and another option in addition to Omniture Touch Clarity (now part of Omniture Test and Target).

Personalisation of promotions is now also available through eStara Recommendations (formerly Cleverset) and inbound contact options like click-to-call and click-to-chat for customers identified as high value / high propensity to convert.

Q1. Let"€™s start with the basics "€“ all marketers have seen the Amazon recommendations and are keen to deliver similar relevant contextual messages for their site visitors.

What are the options in terms of sophistication and what solution category are they looking for when evaluating their personalisation options "€“ is it contextual messaging, web targeting, personalised recommendations or behavioural targeting.

[Frank Lord, ATG]: Dave, ATG believes that personalisation helps companies with a web presence to entice and retain customers by displaying the merchandise and rich experience that consumers demand, at just the right time.

While there are many ways to personalise, using many different criteria, I"€™ll highlight three overall categories of personalisation that we concentrate on "€“ the ones that can strengthen the customer experience on your site.

The first is Rules-based "€” this leverages profile management, segmentation, content targeting, and rules builder.

The next is event-driven multi-stage "€” this approach creates targeted campaigns that are more complex and span time. And finally automated "€” the idea behind this flavour of personalisation is to understand the visitor"€™s real time behaviour and natural product affinities to automate the delivery of intelligent recommendations and more effective cross-sells and up-sells.

In terms of "€œautomated"€ personalisation, we use Statistical Relational Learning (SRL) as the core technology behind our recommendation service. This patented technology transforms information about customer behaviour, product data, and Web site structure transmitted through clickstream tracking and cookies into relational data.

Our relational modelling-based predictive technology platform then interprets this data, using it to understand and anticipate each visitor's intent. It then instantaneously displays relevant product or content suggestions on the Web page.

This powerful predictive algorithm tracks, analyses, and leverages the widest range of product, shopper, and clickstream information of any commercially available recommendation solution. Incorporating more data means more informed and more effective recommendations, so shoppers can more easily discover and purchase their most personally relevant and appealing items. Shoppers shouldn"€™t have to be inundated with offers relating to the baby book they purchased 5 years ago for their nephew!

Q2. What incremental improvements in sales have your customers seen? How do you establish the business case and what is a typical break-even period?

[Frank Lord, ATG]: We don"€™t have much disclosable data or figures around improvements in sales available at the moment. I am looking to source some figures which I can forward to you.

Q3. What about integration with email? Often personalised web and email communications are siloed and distinct - how many of your clients have successfully integrated event-triggered email and web marketing and traditional channels?

[Frank Lord, ATG]: Great question. We believe whole-heartedly that personalisation and email marketing go hand in hand. Our email marketing tool, ATG Outreach, leverages customer information gained through Web interactions, preferences, and behaviours, to enable enterprises to develop an effective Web site marketing strategy and create relevant, personalised outbound marketing and service campaigns.

We"€™ve got many clients, such as UPromise, Neiman Marcus, and others that have successfully integrated their event-triggered email and web marketing channels. This strategy has increased revenue and decreased expenses through cost-effective e-marketing campaigns that are consistent and relevant.

By understanding and respecting customer preferences, they can greatly increase customer satisfaction and loyalty.

Q4. What do you think are the real differentiators when selecting a company to deliver this type of service? What questions should clients ask at the pitch?

[Frank Lord, ATG]: Well, clients need to ask "€“ "€œhow long have you been at this game?"€ that question (and subsequent answer), is often very telling. ATG, for instance, as been developing, innovating, and acquiring companies in this personalisation space for over 10 years.

Thus, we have a ton of domain expertise that many of these start-up, or late comers simply don"€™t have. They should also ask "€“ "€œwhich flavour of personalisation do you support?"€ realistically, there are so many variables when it comes to customer behaviour. A vendor should offer a mix of personalisation solutions. ATG is the only vendor to offer event driven, rules based, and automated personalisation. They can be used separately, or, more powerfully, together.

Clients should also ask the usual questions "€“ how much cash do you have, how substantial are you, what does your client base look like, etc.

Q5. Personalised web recommendations are often thought of as solutions for retail merchandising and other high value transactional sites like finance or travel. Are examples from your clients of companies [brand, B2B, not-for-profit] using these techniques?

[Frank Lord, ATG]: Absolutely. In fact we"€™ve got a strong foothold in the telco market. Many big telcos are more and more keen on presenting a personalised web presence to their customers. ATG's products drive personalised applications for leading telecom companies such as Cingular Wireless, Vodafone, France Telecom, T-Mobile, and DirecTV.

As their customers become more mobile and sophisticated, the telcos must continually personalise offerings to meet their needs. This includes personalised pricing and promotions AND personalised service, across the complete range of media. This is essential not only to build customer loyalty but also to maximise revenue opportunities.