The number of online stores in Brazil grew by 16.5%, increasing from 1,640,076 in 2022 to 1,911,164 in 2023, according to the survey "Brazilian E-commerce Profile 2023" conducted 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's journey.
The study "CX Trends 2024," conducted by Octadesk in partnership with Opinion Box, reveals that for 65% of consumers, personalized experiences have a significant impact on their 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 offer products: you need to provide 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 they access the store until the purchase is completed, during thecheckout and payment.
With that in mind, the Brazilian Service of Support for Micro and Small Enterprises (Sebrae) highlights that intelligently segmenting customers is one of the foundations for achieving personalization that guarantees results. This involves grouping consumers based on their behavioral, demographic, and purchasing preference characteristics.
In this way, e-commerce businesses can offer deals and communications based on the needs of each segment and, consequently, increase conversion chances, as Sebrae reports. Furthermore, it is possible to offer a service tailored to each customer's preferences through the channels they use most, such as chats, emails, social media, or phone calls.
According to "CX Trends 2024," 67% of consumers see personalized service as the main factor in their purchasing decision. Already 82% consider it important or very important that brands offer real-time support.
Opinion Box's insights head, Julia Villela, assesses that, although it seems simple, talking to the audience is the easiest and most effective way to identify and prevent trends. "Collect feedback, conduct surveys periodically, and thus you can gain valuable insights that help better understand consumer behavior and anticipate what they expect from you," he/she/they suggests.
Artificial Intelligence can help personalization
The study also shows that it is natural for companies to encounter difficulties when trying to offer a personalized experience at scale, as personalization is often associated with high costs and a long execution time.
However, with the right approaches and technological support, it is possible to deliver personalized service. For this, the recommendation is to use resources such as Artificial Intelligence (AI). Solutions to create afree online storeThey also present themselves as an option for testing personalization strategies without large initial investments.
According to the survey, 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 are reduced checkout queue times (26%), more effective customer service (22%), and personalized offers (18%).
Additionally, 35% of respondents believe that AI is essential for offering more targeted promotions based on purchase history and consumers' online behavior.
Sebrae explains that offering personalized offers is a way to attract customers.
Instead of treating everyone with the same approach, e-commerce businesses should use data on purchasing behavior, such as purchase history, special dates, and cart abandonments, to send personalized offers and coupons. In this way, the brand demonstrates that it pays attention to the details and preferences of each customer.
Challenges for using technology
Despite its benefits, research shows that there are also concerns regarding the use of AI in the shopping experience. Among the main concerns are the lack of personalized human interaction (41%), concerns about data privacy (40%), and distrust regarding the accuracy of recommendations (21%).
Therefore, the study emphasizes that solutions for the customer experience should not replace human support agents. The ideal is for them to work together, aiming to simplify workflows and repetitive tasks, allowing human agents to have more time to solve complex problems.
Regarding data security, the company must adopt strategies that emphasize transparency and security, communicating ethical practices, values and privacy policies clearly, which includes detailing how customer data is collected, stored and used.
