Once it becomes obvious that personalization has impact, creating software and automated tools to appear more personal just have to be built. Since Facebook and Linkedin are large personal information farms, everyone is sure to receive new personal messages as if they are your next door neighbor.
It appears though that people are either smarter than that or they simply have little patience for shallow and insincere messages.
Marketing Charts article reviews the data in a recent study about how customers say "What ever" to personal messages.
While you can read the article and the study, it may be more important to pause and ask: "Since 'everyone' is now using shallow, superficial personalization with marketing messages, should I stop?"
The answer: Vision trumps everything. If there is sincerity and commitment from the message through to the delivery and then the follow up as well, it will be easier than ever to stand out.
After 30 years in the restaurant business, I look back and realize that the reason sales have doubled repeatedly was not necessarily because we were always "that good". In fact, the reason we doubled sales so often in many different states and locations was because "they were that marginal, superficial and uncommitted".
A marketing message is more than a TV commercial, email, tweet and Linkedin message. People identify character by more than a quick 30 seconds.,
Personalization is not a strategy or tactic. Personal is how you approach people because you and your team care enough to make an effort with each and every activity. Whether it is the initial introduction to after they make a purchase, your personal touch is seen to an extreme where people will 'get it".
There might be more doubt in the marketplace. Believing your company is sincere and committed may be more difficult in the new world of media but that will only make you look more awesome when they realize the truth. They will say: 'Hey! You are the real deal!" The superficial of others will become an opportunity for you but you have to stick with it.
People want to believe there are others like them who care. Marketing messages needs to stay personal.
