One of the things that modern consumers want from digital marketing is personalization, as long as it’s done right (see the title above for an example of how NOT to do it).
This can be overwhelming at times, especially for small business owners who believe they don’t have the resources needed to personalize. In reality, technology has made it easy for businesses of all sizes and types to personalize their marketing strategy.
The following are some of the simplest and most effective methods that small businesses can use to personalize their digital marketing:
1. Gather Data
The first step to personalizing your digital marketing is to gather as much data about your customers as you can. You will use this to segment your audience and help with the personalization. The more data you have, the better.
While getting clients to fill out a survey is a convenient way to gather data, your clients likely won’t want to. You can offer them an incentive to do so or ask for bits and pieces of information over time.
2. Use Buyer Personas
Once you have enough data, take some time to create buyer personas. These are representations of your typical target audience. They should include information like gender, age, other demographics, goals, and why they want your product.
Create as many buyer personas as you need to fully represent your audience. For example, if you are a small business selling jewelry, two buyer personas maybe someone who buys the jewelry for themselves and someone who buys it for someone else.
As you create your digital marketing efforts, you will keep these personas in mind. Ideally, you will create variations of strategies based on the personas.
3. Create Targeted Content
You will use those buyer personas to create targeted content for each group of customers. Google Ads, Facebook, and other major platforms you will advertise on will let you target a specific audience.
Take advantage of this feature. After creating content or ads, use this targeting to make sure the correct segment of your audience sees it.
4. Use Retargeted Ads
Ad retargeting is yet another type of personalization that can do wonders for your small business. This refers to when you target people who have already seen your ad, visited your website, and/or made a purchase. The idea is that these people are more likely to convert into customers or make repeat purchases.
The most common example of retargeted ads is showing products that a customer has previously bought or viewed. You can also use retargeted ads to show that your company is part of the local community or highlight events, such as Small Business Week.
Apple is making this a bit more challenging with their newest privacy updates that prevent a lot of information being passed to the advertising networks, but don’t let it stop you – there is still plenty of good retargeting to be done!
5. Use Multiple Content Delivery Types
Once you know how to personalize your digital marketing to appeal to various segments, incorporate it into as many of your marketing strategies as you can. The following are excellent examples of options:
Personalized Email Marketing
Email marketing is one of the most important types of marketing to personalize. Start with something simple, such as greeting them by name in the email.
You should also segment your email list, so you can send better-targeted and more personalized emails. For example, you would maybe create a slightly different email campaign for each buyer persona. Or maybe you would send different emails depending on whether someone is a new customer, a repeat customer, or still a lead. Or you could create segments based on the types of products people are interested in. Figure out which method (or methods) works best.
The good news is that there are numerous automated tools you can use to help with this. For example, both Shopify and WordPress let you send automated, personalized emails based on items people left in their shopping cart.
Personalized Text Messages
You can also send your customers personalized text messages. Automated programs let you easily personalize these texts just like you would for emails. This lets you take advantage of the higher open rate of text messages compared to emails.
Personalized Ads
We already mentioned how you could use personalization in Google Ads or social media ads. Still, it is worth mentioning again as an excellent way to incorporate this tactic into your digital marketing.
6. Localize Your Social Media Efforts
You should hopefully have a social media marketing strategy in place. This is yet another opportunity to personalize your marketing. In this case, your main priority will be personalizing the page and your posts to focus on an area. If your area has a dedicated local page, join and engage with locals using that page. Make sure that you comply with all terms of use before doing so.
With all of the above tips in mind, you should be on your way to delivering the personalized digital marketing your customers expect and seeing the results of your efforts.