Contextualization, as a concept, seems simple: it determines the conditions and the meaning in which something happens. Simple, isn’t it? Well, not really when you factor in time, place, circumstances, background and environment into a particular situation – suddenly context becomes overwhelming, especially if you don’t have the tools to understand it. When it comes to retail and the shopper experience, context has become everything. It is the key to delivering powerful, personalized messages to your customer – both offline and online.
Marketing now demands a complete understanding of the individual consumer; their location, habits, behaviors, demographic and situation. As customers are given increased shopping options which heighten their shopping expectations, retailers are tasked with providing tailored shopping experiences.
Taking some inspiration from the movies, here’s how context can be a little better understood.
Getting to grips with location targeting
With Burns Night nearly upon us, this example seems apt. Question: when was the kilt introduced to Scotland? If, despite the advice out there, you consider ‘Braveheart’ to be more of a documentary than a movie (and they’ll never take our freedom, because we’ll decline in it a formal, democratic election), then you’ll be surprised – nay, appalled – to discover that the kilt Mel wears as he strides through the Scottish wilds is an anachronism. He may be in Scotland, but the kilt hadn’t technically been introduced at that time.
Right location, wrong product
Similarly, retailers are advised to offer the right product to a customer in the right location, at the right moment. Understanding their geographic location highlights the importance of this.
Example: It would be like pushing a special offer for a delicious meal in an Edinburgh-based restaurant while your customer is in London. Totally out of their context.
Understanding who your customer is to predict future actions
Marty McFly, of 'Back to the Future' fame, is something of a hero of mine. I’d go as far to say that I prefer his version of Johnny B Goode to Chuck Berry’s original. But it’s not him I’m using as an example to talk about relevance within the concept of contextualization, but his sidekick, Doc Brown. Doc guides Marty through multiple dimensions, detailing what he can and can’t say or do and enforcing the importance of understanding history – as well as the future.
The Doc kept all of Marty’s actions (mostly) relevant
Doc’s focus on keeping Marty relevant and ‘in time’ is a good example of how historical data can help retailers understand what their customers bought or browsed in the past. This will give you a greater insight into their behavior/patterns and allow you predict their future actions. For example, what size clothes have they bought, what colors and from which brands?
Example: Imagine recommending or offering a discount on a product your customer has already bought, or recommending related products based on an item your customer bought for someone else. Not relevant!
Situational data is key to ‘right here, right now’
Situational data is what’s going on with your customer in the moment. This might include factors like time of day, what device they’re using (mobile, tablet, desktop etc) and also extraneous factors like the weather. Let’s use the weather example. To me, there’s only one movie that springs to mind if anyone says ‘weather’, and that’s 1996 classic, 'Twister'. The movie’s meteorologists made a big blunder, and the movie handles the tornado quite inaccurately.
Make sure your weather notifications are udder control
For one thing, the tornado in 'Twister' started in a day which anyone who has an ounce of weather know-how will call out as absurd. We also can’t know the strength of a tornado by looking it – it’s based on pure estimates – unlike in the movie. Their data was all wrong!
One of my favorite weather-related movie moments comes from romantic flick, 'The Holiday'. Kate Winslet’s impossibly idyllic house in Surrey (UK) is constantly scattered with just the right amount of snow for an extended period before Christmas. However, as anyone in the UK (and the Met Office) will tell you, the likelihood of snow any time in the UK in December is next to zero. If it does snow, it turns to not-so-romantic slush rather quickly.
Not a context the UK is familiar with
Weather is a good indication of a customer’s current situation. You can use this type of data to predict what an individual customer may be trying to achieve at a given time. Weather can completely change and negate a message – but also provide opportunities.
Example: Recommending flip-flops to a customer when it’s snowing outside. Or, conversely, not taking advantage of the snow by – for example - offering warm drinks available at a café just round the corner from your customer’s current location.
All these factors, when combined, create contextualization. Understanding your customer’s whereabouts, likes, dislikes and situation means that you target them with relevant experiences that meets their requirements.
Interested in learning more? Keen to understand your customer? SmartFocus and guest speaker, Rusty Warner, from Forrester Research Inc. are presenting a special Contextualization Webinar! This session will cover:
- How context-aware messages must adapt to both environment and time
- Marketing programs led by you, triggered by customer behavior and optimized for mobile
- Generate higher ROI through 20:20 customer insight via email, push and proximity marketing
- How contextualization is being used across the retail, eCommerce, travel and hospitality industries
- How retailers use contextualization in their marketing today