Relevance beat discounts – and relevance is achieved through personalisation

How does a retailer engage their customers to keep returning? In earlier days, the only way to engage with your customers was through mass promotions that was available in all stores, giving customers a discounted price or extra value. This means, that the retailer has no real understanding about the individual customer and does the mass promotions without knowing how to engage and meet with the customers’ needs. In today's hyper-competitive retail landscape, personalisation is not just a buzzword—it's a fundamental shift in how retailers connect with their customers. With technology evolving at a rapid pace, consumers now expect tailored experiences that meet their specific needs, desires, and preferences. This means that targeted offers and personalised shopping experiences are becoming essential for building stronger customer relationships and driving more traffic to the retailers.

Our take on it is through different levels of personalisation to each customer which varies from none with mass promotions to hyper-personalisation in the moment.

Personalisation is now an expectation

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Personalisation has become a customer expectation in the digital age. 71% of consumers expect personalisation, 76% get frustrated when they don’t receive it, 72% expect the businesses they buy from to recognise them as individuals and know their interests, 78% are more likely to make repeat purchases for companies that personalise and 78% are more likely to refer companies that personalise to family and friends. These statistics clearly shows a pattern that retailers need to take into consideration when planning promotions and loyalty programs for their customers.

The rise of Targeted Offers

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Targeted offers have become a core strategy for brands looking to engage consumers effectively. By using data analytics and consumer insights, businesses can deliver offers that resonate with their audience, addressing their specific desires, behaviours, and purchasing patterns. This approach has proven to drive customer satisfaction, as shoppers feel understood and valued by the brands they engage with.

Why does hyper-personalisation matter?

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As more companies have adopted personalisation along the customer journey, from product design to outreach and from the consumer experience to dynamic pricing, it has created a certain level of expectation for personalised interaction among consumers. Gone are the days of mass media where general advertisements to all potential consumers would successfully engage a wide variety of consumers. Technology now allows for every interaction to be unique and personal, and consumers expect a personal connection with the companies with which they interact.

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According to Deloitte, hyper-personalisation involves real-time adjustments to the user experience, allowing brands to respond instantly to the consumer's current context, needs, and behaviours. Whether through location-based offers, time-sensitive promotions, or real-time recommendations, hyper-personalisation ensures that the consumer feels understood at every touchpoint, enhancing both engagement and loyalty.

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The New Customer Manifesto

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In a rapidly changing retail landscape, the New Customer Manifesto is clear: customers want to be at the centre of the shopping experience. Brands that focus on personalisation empower their customers by giving them control over how they engage with products and services. The emphasis is on creating moments that matter—whether it’s a tailored offer, a custom product recommendation, or a seamless shopping experience. It’s all about knowing who the customer is and what they like, respond quickly real time, be where the customer wants to be, to tell the customer what the brand stands for, to create meaning and speak to the pains and passions, giving value back for the customers privacy in exchange for their data, and reward the for their loyalty in points, status, discounts, convenience and much more.

Personalised offers enhance the shopping experience

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Not only does personalised offers enhance the shopping experience, it also incentivises customers to increase their spending. We have seen that customers spend 22% more in weeks they activate a personal offer (which is driven by 14% more trips) and customers spend 10% more in the months following the first activation. It also engages customers at home and drives them to the store, as up to 79% of personal offers are activated outside the store, while nearly 40% of all activated personal offers are purchased in the store. This enables the retailer to promote high-margin products and potential marketing fees from external brands.

In conclusion, the retail landscape is experiencing a fundamental shift as consumers increasingly demand personalisation at every touchpoint. Recent data proves that personalisation is no longer an advantage, but an expectation. To remain competitive, businesses must transition from outdated strategies like mass promotions to a more customised approach that prioritises the individual needs and preferences of each customer. The key to do that? Embracing personalisation and delivering targeted offers from which retailers can create meaningful connections with their customers, enhance the shopping experience, and build lasting loyalty. Businesses’ end goal should be not just meeting consumer expectations but exceeding them, ensuring that every interaction adds value, builds trust, and strengthens the brand-customer relationship.

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