The marketer's guide to website personalization

How to turn more site visits into revenue with personalization

Introduction

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Today’s buyers have high expectations for the website experience.

Thanks to B2C personalization pioneers like Amazon and Netflix, buyers and customers alike expect companies to build streamlined experiences that meet them where they are. In fact, Salesforce found that 78% of B2B buyers expect companies to adapt their experiences¹ to their changing needs and preferences.

But while buyers have clearly shown that they’ve moved on from the generic past, many companies are still stuck in their old ways. In the same Salesforce report, a whopping 85% of B2B buyers stated that customer experiences should be better given all the data that they know today’s companies collect about them.

This disconnect means that B2B companies are often disappointing their website visitors and leaving money on the table for their competitors to profit off. According to a report by McKinsey², the fastest-growing companies drive 40% more of their revenue from personalization than their slower-growing counterparts.

All of this goes to show that if B2B companies don’t get with the times, they’ll inevitably be left behind.

Fortunately, it’s never been easier to get started with website personalization. This ebook will outline how to develop and implement a successful website personalization strategy that drives conversions and increases revenue.

Ready to throw out the old, and bring in the new? Let’s go!

¹https://www.salesforce.com/in/resources/research-reports/state-of-the-connected-customer/

²https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/growth-marketing-and-sales/our-insights/the-value-of-getting-personalization-right-or-wrong-is-multiplying

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Chapter 1

The 3 golden rules of personalization

Guidelines to providing exceptional website experiences

Jen Lacey

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Whether it’s on your website, in your emails, or elsewhere, good personalization always requires data. But, as with all things data-related, there’s a fine line between effective and invasive.

Twilio Segment found that only 51% of consumers³ today trust brands to keep their personal data secure and use it responsibly. And consumers have proven that an irresponsible use of data comes at a high price: A SmarterHQ report found that 63% of consumers⁴ said they would stop purchasing products and services from companies that take “creepy” marketing too far.

This is why the key to doing personalization successfully is to find the right balance between personalization and privacy. To help you find that equilibrium, we’ve developed three rules marketers should always keep in mind:

‍Don’t be invasive. If you were meeting someone for the first time in person, you wouldn’t blurt out their name and job title before they offered that information. The same applies to buyers on your website. You don’t need to flaunt all of the data you have — so don’t use names or personal details unless they add value to your messaging, especially on someone’s first visit.
Keep personalization relevant, useful, and helpful. With your messaging, focus on showing your understanding of the buyer and how you can solve their unique pain points. By providing value-driven messaging, you can ensure that your brand will resonate with the buyer instead of scaring them off. ‍
Treat customers like humans and engage in conversations. Remember that at the end of the day, even with B2B buyers, you’re dealing with a human on the other side of the screen. And as humans, we want to build authentic connections.

That’s why it’s important to have real conversations with your buyers. Instead of forcing one-sided conversations where you ask a long list of questions, act as a trusted advisor. This means you should ask genuine questions, take the buyer’s inputs into account, and guide them to the information that will be most useful to them.

By keeping these three rules top of mind, you’ll be able to create a personalized website experience that genuinely helps all of your site visitors and keeps them engaged, no matter where they are in the buying journey.