Personalizing Customer Interactions Based On Journey

STOP sending generic welcome emails ✋ Do this instead: Gautam Mehandru (Sr VP Revenue Marketing at CrowdStrike) joined us on CMO Diaries and broke down his playbook for customer marketing. Let's dive in 👇 CONTEXT Your customers watched your content for 18 months before buying. Then you send them a generic welcome email? This is how most B2B SaaS operates. Don't be most SaaS... Your goal is simple. 🤩 Happy customers that expand. Expansion starts from understanding. Understanding starts from your data sets. So... Where should you start? START by breaking down your customer journey into 🧵 "Micro segments" 1) Map customer journey broken down by each purchased feature 2) Identify expansion champions vs. at risk users (based on their actual login pattern data) 2) Target users who login 3x/week This messaging should be DIFFERENT VS users who haven't logged in for 14+ days Your messaging for these journeys should be unique. Based on their actual usage patterns. That starts with your data. "Having data around those customers is super critical. It'll help you identify your ideal candidates, number one. It'll help you focus on ones that have the high engagement, high adoption" You want to look for these super cohorts. And focus on making them even better. That requires a mindset swap: ❌ OLD WAY "one size fits all" welcome then expansion campaigns ✅ NEW WAY 1:1 personalized flows based on usage data from welcome to expansion Not sure where to start? Use this sequencing if you're starting from scratch: First 30 days: Focus exclusively on core feature mastery Days 31 - 60: Introduce your simple complementary features Days 61 - 90: Show ROI achieved by similar customers ONLY then introduce expansion opportunities by tracking these metrics: - Track "Time to Value" for every key feature purchased - Measure % of features activated in first 90 days  - Create an "Expansion Readiness Score" based on actual product usage You need to go well beyond NPS scores and renewal rates. These three metrics give you a deeper pov. 📌 Buyers are EXPECTING personalization now The KEY to happy expanding customers? SHOW them you really get them. That starts with your welcome. Invest accordingly ✌️

People don’t want another blast email—they want to feel like you’re talking to them. Marketo’s personalization tools help make each interaction unique, genuine, and relevant. Tools within Marketo to Personalize Your Outreach: 1. Dynamic Content Blocks: Dynamic content lets you tailor emails with the right message, image, or offer for each group. It’s especially useful for customizing specific sections within a single email while keeping the rest consistent. 2. Tokens for Personalization: A little personal touch, like a name or company mention, goes a long way. Tokens can be added across all folders by setting them at the top level or customized at the program level for maximum flexibility. 3. Behavioral Triggers: Timing is everything. Set up triggers based on actions like page visits or clicks to ensure you’re reaching out when your audience is most engaged. 4. Lead Scoring: Lead scoring helps you prioritize and deliver the right content at the right time, tailored to each lead’s journey. You may also want to bring in data from your ABM tool for this. What You Can Personalize: 1. Name: Start with the basics—everyone loves seeing their own name. 2. Geolocation: Context matters. Personalize based on region or city to show you understand their specific needs or local interests. 3. Persona: Tailor messages to different buyer personas, ensuring each one feels like it’s made just for them (because a CFO and a VP of Sales aren't interested in the same thing). 4. Images and Visuals: Swap out images based on location, industry, or interest to make your content feel relevant to each recipient. 5. Content Recommendations: Use browsing history or past interactions to recommend the next best asset. 6. Product or Service Interests: Send personalized messaging around the particular products or services each lead has shown interest in, making it feel like you’re offering a solution just for them. 7. Engagement Stage: Adapt your content based on where they are in the buyer’s journey, from awareness to decision-making. This ensures each message aligns with their current needs and level of interest. Again, your ABM tool might be helpful here. 8. Company Name and Industry: Recognize the lead’s company or industry to show that you understand their business context and challenges, especially useful for B2B audiences. 9. Past Purchases or Transactions: Make returning customers feel valued by referencing past purchases or transactions. This can work wonders for upsells, cross-sells, and loyalty programs. And don’t forget—this customization can be extended to landing pages too! Consistent, seamless experiences make all the difference. In today’s world, personalization isn’t just a nice-to-have—it’s how you build real connections. With Marketo, you’re not just sending messages; you’re creating relationships that feel authentic and worth investing in. #marketingoperations #marketingops #personalization #emailmarketing #landingpages #marketo

For years, companies have been leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning to provide personalized customer experiences. One widespread use case is showing product recommendations based on previous data. But there's so much more potential in AI that we're just scratching the surface. One of the most important things for any company is anticipating each customer's needs and delivering predictive personalization. Understanding customer intent is critical to shaping predictive personalization strategies. This involves interpreting signals from customers’ current and past behaviors to infer what they are likely to need or do next, and then dynamically surfacing that through a platform of their choice. Here’s how: 1. Customer Journey Mapping: Understanding the various stages a customer goes through, from awareness to purchase and beyond. This helps in identifying key moments where personalization can have the most impact. This doesn't have to be an exercise on a whiteboard; in fact, I would counsel against that. Journey analytics software can get you there quickly and keep journeys "alive" in real time, changing dynamically as customer needs evolve. 2. Behavioral Analysis: Examining how customers interact with your brand, including what they click on, how long they spend on certain pages, and what they search for. You will need analytical resources here, and hopefully you have them on your team. If not, find them in your organization; my experience has been that they find this type of exercise interesting and will want to help. 3. Sentiment Analysis: Using natural language processing to understand customer sentiment expressed in feedback, reviews, social media, or even case notes. This provides insights into how customers feel about your brand or products. As in journey analytics, technology and analytical resources will be important here. 4. Predictive Analytics: Employing advanced analytics to forecast future customer behavior based on current data. This can involve machine learning models that evolve and improve over time. 5. Feedback Loops: Continuously incorporate customer signals (not just survey feedback) to refine and enhance personalization strategies. Set these up through your analytics team. Predictive personalization is not just about selling more; it’s about enhancing the customer experience by making interactions more relevant, timely, and personalized. This customer-led approach leads to increased revenue and reduced cost-to-serve. How is your organization thinking about personalization in 2024? DM me if you want to talk it through. #customerexperience #artificialintelligence #ai #personalization #technology #ceo