Personalization is no longer a secret weapon; it’s a must-have. Especially now, with experts from McKinsey predicting COVID-19 has propelled consumer and business digital adoption forward by several years. As a result, organizations have been forced to transform the way they operate, prioritizing the tailoring of customer experiences to not only meet rising demands but also edge out the competition.
To better understand the state of personalization maturity, every year, we generate and analyze the responses from our personalization maturity self-assessment test. This marks the fourth consecutive year reporting on the results of our findings.
We survey marketers, executives, developers, and other key stakeholders involved in customer experience design across the globe to learn about their organization's current technology stack, organizational structure, and internal commitment to personalization. Respondents are representative across demographic profiles and industries.
The survey explores four stages of personalization maturity: absent, basic, advanced, pioneer, based on an organization’s ability to unify data, dedicate resources to drive personalization, visionary outlook, and more.
At 93%, the vast majority of companies shared that they either believe in the value personalization, understand its benefits to the larger business strategy, or have made it the core to their customer experience operations.
More than half of global organizations now have on-demand or fully dedicated resources available for personalization. And only 13% reported they are short on time or money, a 9% decrease from 2020. Teams have also prioritized standardizing essential and strategic processes to effectively manage and scale their programs.
Up from merely 10% last year, 31% of companies shared that they can now personalize most digital interactions, a huge positive signal for 2021. As a result, the number of success stories are also on the rise, with 35% now able to tie their work to key business metrics.
Despite the challenges businesses have had to overcome following the onset of COVID-19, the majority have been able to push forward, lean into digital, and generate real, long-term value.
As a result, for the first time in four years, belief in the value of personalization is being actualized across the globe. More companies have prioritized the right resources and processes for success, bringing the level of maturity up to Advanced.
To not only keep pace but also continue the market’s evolution, leaders and marketers alike will have to push for continued resources, most notably in the area of technology, where cohesive and powerful personalization across the customer journey cannot be achieved without a unified stack.