Personalization

2020 presented challenge after challenge for the retail industry. While COVID-related online shopping resulted in an estimated revenue boost of $175 billion, the industry itself took a loss, with total sales dropping 10.5 percent — a number not seen since 2016. This unique combination created new challenges for retailers and brands of every shape and size,…

The results are in for this year’s Retail Personalization Index (RPI), and Sephora earned top marks for the fourth year in a row. The RPI uses a 5,000 strong consumer survey to determine the most important elements of personalized customer experience across the web, email, mobile, other digital channels and in stores. Sailthru’s research team…

COVID-19 forced retailers and restaurants to squeeze years’ worth of digital transformations in the span of a few weeks. As in-store shopping and in-person dining models became untenable in March 2020, retailers and restaurants pivoted to contactless delivery/pickup; buy online, pick up in-store (BOPIS); and mobile and loyalty apps to keep their businesses open. In…

Customer experience (CX) has always been a priority for retailers as they seek to improve engagement and drive customer loyalty. However, the huge shift to largely online shopping, accelerated by five or more years as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, has every retailer competing in the same online world without the benefit of eye-catching…

Customer experience has been all the rage in B-to-B marketing, but it’s given way to defined, personalized journeys for win-win scenarios for each consumer. I recently received an email that opened with, “Hi Justin,” and thought, “Maybe this company will do it right.” Unfortunately, the rest of the email was a big disappointment and I…

Coming out of an explosive year, retailers and brands alike are looking to be better prepared to capitalize on the rapidly changing nature of retail. With e-commerce experiencing unprecedented growth during the pandemic, online retailers are looking to automation to enhance their overburdened merchandising teams' capabilities, without massive investment. In 2020, we saw online sales…

Eighty years after the classic movie "Casablanca" made its debut, lyrics from the film’s signature song still ring true today — “the fundamental things in life apply, as time goes by.” I think of this every time there’s another story about the ways that retail shopping habits have been impacted by digital technologies and, over…

For e-commerce businesses, artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning are nothing new. Both have been gradually transforming the way retailers operate and improve their online offerings through enabling greater efficiency and a better understanding of their markets. In 2021, however, technological advancements and enhanced intelligence in these areas will expand the way businesses can benefit…

The November partnership between Target and Ulta Beauty exemplifies how retail disruption in 2020 forced brands, particularly brands in niche segments, to rethink go-to-market strategies in the wake of fewer in-store visits, declining sales, and consumers’ increasing preferences for contactless interactions. Like many retailers, Ulta was hit with store closures, experiencing a 27 percent year-over-year…

E-commerce personalization has come a long way. Personalized product recommendations and content, as well as personalized social media ads, emails and more are now increasingly being adopted by retailers to enhance multichannel shopping journeys and to drive sales. The increasing interest in the technology is fueling further innovation. Based on our knowledge of the latest…