ChoiceStream

As I prepare for my presentation at eTail West’s ‘Personalization Day’ on Thursday in Scottsdale, I am searching for the right data points as well as the right ‘sizzle’ or analogy to drive my points home.

The news of the past two days has given me a great start… Comscore just reported some interesting retail research showing that, among other things, the Internet has increased as an important pre-shop tool. 65% of consumers now cite pre-shop web research as important or very important in making buying decisions; that’s up 50% from a year ago. Research also shows that the only bright spot in retail is in ecommerce sales--specifically sales to individuals in the upper income brackets. Interestingly, this is the same group found by our research to be the most positively influenced by well-targeted, personalized online advertising.

Given the increasing importance of online pre-shop research and the dwindling purchase opportunities for a retailer to capture, it strikes me as funny that many advertisers are still limiting their opportunities to put themselves in the customer consideration set.

The best personalization and product recommendation tools have been relegated to retailers’ ecommerce sites. The biggest increases in marketing dollars have gone towards SEM where essentially you are bidding on a single chance to capture an in-market shopper who has actively raised their hand.
While this was an effective combination in the past when consumer demand was skyrocketing and brand dollars ran rampant, it’s feeling like a Field of Dreams strategy in this economy. You know:

Voice: “Build it and [they] will come.”

Annie: “If you build what, who will come?”

Ray: “He didn’t say.”

(While I may have found the data I need for Thursday, I may need to keep looking for my analogy!).

I understand the ROI concerns with display advertising from the past when CPMs we’re sky high, but with high quality inventory available on the cheap these days, it really is time to revisit display.

Yahoo’s announcement of search retargeting is an excellent opportunity to jump back in to increase message reach and frequency to in-market shoppers. And on Thursday I am going to talk about how we need to change how we use personalized product recommendations. We need to get them out of the box they’re in on ecommerce sites and in front of every possible consumer as part of display advertising campaigns that drive new opportunities to purchase, product research, and eventually sales.

Can’t wait to see lots of you on Thursday…and can’t wait to see what I come up with for the sizzle in my presentation.