The number of online stores in Brazil grew 16,5%, passing from 1.640.076 in 2022 to 1.911.164 in 2023, according to the survey "Profile of Brazilian E-commerce 2023", carried out by BigDataCorp. To stand out in a competitive market, personalization has ceased to be just a differentiator and has become an essential component of the consumer journey.
The study "CX Trends 2024", carried out by Octadesk in partnership with Opinion Box, reveals that, for 65% of consumers, personalized experiences have a great impact on your purchasing decisions. The research suggests that, now, companies need to go beyond the basics to attract and retain consumers
To win the public's preference, it's not enough to just provide products: it's necessary to offer a unique shopping experience tailored to the individual needs and preferences of each customer. The recommendation is to build a journey that is relevant and engages the consumer, from the moment he accesses the store until the completion of the purchase, during thecheckout and payment.
Thinking about it, The Brazilian Service of Support for Micro and Small Enterprises (Sebrae) emphasizes that segmenting customers intelligently is one of the foundations for achieving personalization that ensures results. This implies grouping consumers based on their behavioral characteristics, demographics and purchasing preferences.
In this way, e-commerces can offer deals and communications based on the needs of each segment and, consequently, increase the chances of conversion, as reported by Sebrae. Furthermore, it is possible to offer a service tailored to the preferences of each customer, through the channels he uses the most, like chats, emails, social networks or phone calls.
According to "CX Trends 2024", 67% of consumers see personalized service as the main factor for purchasing. Already 82% consider it important or very important for brands to offer real-time support
The head of insights at Opinion Box, Julia Villela, evaluate that, although it seems simple, talking to the audience is the easiest and most efficient way to identify and prevent trends. Collect feedback, conduct research periodically and, thus, you can gain valuable insights, that help to better understand consumer behavior and anticipate what they expect from you, suggest
Artificial Intelligence can assist in personalization
The study also shows that it is natural for companies to encounter difficulties when trying to offer a personalized experience at scale, because personalization is, frequently, associated with high costs and a long execution time.
However, with the right approaches and the support of technology, it is possible to provide personalized service. For that, the recommendation is to use resources, how Artificial Intelligence (AI). Solutions to create afree online storethey also present themselves as an option to test personalization strategies without large initial investments
According to the research, 42% of consumers have already interacted with AI during customer service, highlighting the relevance of this technology in the purchasing process. For them, among the advantages of this technology is the reduction of time in checkout lines (26%), the most effective customer service (22%) and personalized offers (18%).
Furthermore, 35% of respondents believe that AI is essential for providing more accurate promotions, based on the purchase history and online behavior of consumers.
Sebrae explains that offering personalized offers is a way to engage customers.
Instead of treating everyone with the same approach, e-commerce should use data on purchasing behavior, as purchase history, special data and cart abandonment, to send personalized offers and coupons. In this way, the brand shows that it pays attention to the details and preferences of each customer
Challenges for the use of technology
Despite its benefits, the research shows that there are also concerns regarding the use of AI in the shopping experience. Among the main ones is the lack of personalized human interaction (41%), concern for data privacy (40%), and the distrust regarding the accuracy of the recommendations (21%)
Therefore, the study emphasizes that solutions for customer experience should not replace human customer service agents. The ideal is that they work together, aiming to simplify workflows and repetitive tasks, allowing human agents more time to solve complex problems
About data security, the company should adopt strategies that emphasize transparency and security, communicating ethical practices, values and privacy policies clearly, what includes the detailing of how customer data is collected, stored and used
