From Artificial Intelligence to Human Experience: redefining personalization*
In a world increasingly dominated by algorithms, where artificial intelligence can generate new patterns with speed, efficiency, and realism, we need to take advantage of what sets us apart – what lies behind the numbers – personalized experience. We have increasingly demanding customers who expect personalized service through their preferred channels. More than that, they want their entire history stored and their issues resolved at their stage without always needing to go back to the beginning.
The adoption of technologies such as Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning is the path to building a hyper-personalized consumer journey. Customers want to be present across different channels and have the best experience, regardless of the chosen channel. The major challenge for companies is to manage customer data, derive insights from the information, and turn this analysis into action to promote a personalized experience.
For companies dealing with large volumes of data, technology-supported business intelligence will be the main driver of operations. At this point, integrated systems make all the difference, increasing productivity and delivering faster results. According to the International Data Corporation (IDC), by 2025, the volume of data generated worldwide will reach 175 zettabytes or 175 trillion terabytes.
It’s hard to think of a single business area that hasn’t been impacted by AI, whether in customer service channels, to maximize sales, or to automate tasks. According to the IDC’s “Worldwide Artificial Intelligence Spending Guide”, global spending on Artificial Intelligence, including software, hardware, and services for AI-focused systems, reached nearly 118 billion dollars in 2022 and will exceed 300 billion dollars by 2026. Banking and Retail are the industries that have invested the most in AI. Together, they represent a quarter of all AI investments made worldwide.
Hyper-personalization challenge: divergent preferences in B2B and B2C buyers
Hyper-personalization is a significant challenge for B2B and B2C companies. Preferences can differ by industry sectors and generations. Only 6% of B2B buyers from Generation X and Boomers want personalized communications from all brands. About 65% of this older group only want personalized messages from brands to which they have given consent. Conversely, millennials are more likely to accept personalized communications from all B2B brands (41%).
According to Gartner research, 82% of B2B buyers desire personalized communications, and 57% view personalized communication as positive. However, the same research warns that excessive personalization can evoke negative feelings, as indicated by 14% of participants.
Responsible personalization: global challenges in data management and privacy
Paying attention to the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is necessary. Managing personal data is still a significant challenge for companies, especially when data is managed by various departments, business units, and in different countries.
The challenges increase with an extensive customer base shared with third parties, demanding a clear and transparent policy in compliance with GDPR. The sectors with the highest volume of fines are Industry and Trade (429, amounting to 870,213,061 euros), Media and Telecommunications (282, totaling 3,312,235,866 euros), Private Associations (254, totaling 2,004,686 euros), and Public Sector and Education (205, totaling 24,975,063 euros). The data is from the Law GDPR Enforcement Tracker.
Ireland, Luxembourg, France, and Italy lead the ranking of countries with the highest number of fines in total. Meta, Amazon Europe, TikTok, WhatsApp, and Google are the companies that have faced the most penalties.
*This article was originally published in Observador.