3 Personalization Lessons From Lilly Pulitzer
Over the last few years, traditional resort wear line Lilly Pulitzer has evolved into a full-fledged lifestyle brand, complete with an almost “cult like” following. Hot off of a very successful collaboration with Target, Michelle Kelly, president of Lilly Pulitzer, shared how the company has used personalization successfully across its multigenerational customer base.
“Personalization is at the center of our brand,” said Kelly at last week’s Monetate Summit. “We started with personalized curated fabrics and we continue with personalization throughout our brand.”
Kelly discussed how Lilly Pulitzer segments consumers into six different personas to best acquire and retain them, as well as enhance the brand's personalization efforts. However, Kelly acknowledged that creating a message that can be personalized across six different personas can be challenging.
Personalization Begins In-Store
“We believe that every time someone walks into the store, we want to start a personalized journey,” said Kelly.
One of the ways Lilly Pulitzer adds a personalized touch to the in-store shopping experience is by having print designers paint each storefront with a chosen print. In addition, Lilly Pulitzer replicates the in-store shopping experience across all its sales channels. Kelly cited three omnichannel lessons the brand has learned along the way:
- Keep it simple (and printed!) and build. Think about your customer and stay true to your customer, Kelly said. Look at factors such as geography, strongest channel for point of sale, new vs. returning customers, etc.
- Actions speak louder then words. “What they [customers] do is so much louder than what they tell you,” said Kelly. She then shared a story of failed Lilly Pulitzer dog collars. While customers said they wanted them, the data proved otherwise.
- Follow the data. “Use a crawl, walk, run approach to leverage your data,” said Kelly. Be sure to take each piece and make sure the marketing execution aligns with your brand’s message, she added.
Kelly ended her presentation with this piece of advice, with a nod to the brand's humble beginnings: “Ensure that you're getting the most ‘juice’ out of your experience. And remember, just like personalization, it’s the party that never ends with your customers."
