When it comes to creating videos for your Windsor customers, customization and personalization are key. This level of detail helps to form a real connection and makes the customer feel special. However, you can definitely overdo it. Too much customization and personalization can come across as creepy or unnatural. The key is to balance the amount of personalized detail you offer with the core message you are trying to deliver.

So how do you determine the right balance? Too little customization and your video will feel canned. Too much personalization can be off-putting and weird. The answer is to use personalization in places that will have high impact and avoid it in areas of low impact.

The Power of Personalization in Video

People respond to personalization because it makes them feel special. When you take the time to customize a video or message for someone, it shows that you care and that you went out of your way to make them feel important. This level of individual attention is something most people crave and appreciate. It's one way to stand out from the crowd and show that you genuinely care about your customers.

When there is no personalization, people can feel like they are just another number or face in the crowd. They may feel like you don't care about them or that you don't think they are worth the extra effort. This can lead to a feeling of devaluation and alienation. When customers feel like they are just a name or statistic, they are likely to take their business elsewhere.

The good news is that personalization does not have to be complicated. You do, however, need an understanding of what details to leverage and what details to omit to maximize the impact of your efforts.

High-Impact Areas of Personalization

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Name

The first, most immediate way to personalize a video for a customer is by referring to them by name.

Just as an email that addresses the recipient by name is more resonant than one that simply says, "hello," a video that includes the viewer's name is sure to get their attention.

Product purchased

Calling out a product or service purchased is also a meaningful, and entirely appropriate, detail to include in a video. This piece of information is specific enough that the viewer knows not only is the message specific to them but also that you are paying attention to the details and interests of each customer.

Imagine a video saying "thank you for your purchase, we hope you are pleased!" While that is better than no sign of appreciation at all, its impact pales in comparison to a video message of "thank you for choosing the Whamo 5000. We really think you're going to love the extra rocket boosters we added to the package before shipping it to you!"

Product suggested

In that same vein, offering personalized product recommendations is a useful thing to customize in your video messages. A personalized product recommendation serves two purposes. First, it gives your customer a chance to learn about something new that might be interesting to them. If they purchased a new set of shoes then a video offering great-fitting socks could be much more appealing than a video offering a new raincoat. At the same time, a relevant product or service offer increases the chance of them becoming a repeat customer and buying that product.

Customizing product or service suggestions can be good for the customer and for your business.

Area of interaction

When customers interact with your brand they are expressing an interest. For example, if a customer contacts support or "Likes" a Tweet then they are showing you that they care about your business, products, or services enough to spend some of their attention with you above and beyond an initial purchase.

These interactions represent an opportunity ripe for personalization. Imagine the impact a customer would feel if every support interaction was followed by a video. In that video, imagine a short message like "Hi Janet, I see that you contact support about a missing item when you ordered a few shirts and a pair of shoes last week. I show that a new order, number 4521, was entered on your behalf and the missing items are on the way. Please let me know if I can be of any more service. Sorry for the inconvenience, thank you for choosing our company."

Talk about impact! That level of personalization shows the customer they are valued and that you DO care about their experience with your company.

Lower Impact Areas of Personalization

Personal information other than name

Information like address or phone number should never be placed in a customer video. Aside from posing a security risk in exposing their personally identifiable information, your customer is likely to feel creeped out by such details.

Put yourself in the place of your customer. You've made a purchase at an online store. You are pleased with the purchase and going about your day as normal. Then an email shows up including a video that says something like, "Hi Greg, thank you for your purchase. Hope you are enjoying the weather this week in Ohio!"

There is essentially no scenario in which the inclusion of that information generates positive sentiment from the recipient.

Company information or announcement

When communicating information about your company some information should be customized in your videos. For example, a customer that buys a lot of outdoor furniture might enjoy hearing about new outdoor products for sale instead of hearing about lampshades.

Information like an announcement of a new newsletter or upcoming holiday sale may not need to be customized. The impact of tailoring this information to specific customers simply may not be worth the trouble. Remember, customization and personalization in our emails should not be done without reason. You are seeking ways to improve your messages and have an impact.

The Right Balance in Video Personalization

When deciding how much to customize your videos think about the customer's needs. What would add value to their experience? What has the best chance to thrill customers and move you closer to your business goals? Being helpful, informative, and relevant is usually a good idea. Being too detailed or sharing that you know more about them than they might be comfortable with is not a good idea.

The key is to find a balance that works for your business. Personalize where it makes sense and don't be afraid to experiment to see what has the biggest impact. With Windsor, you can customize videos at scale so all the relevant and impactful details can be included no matter how many video messages you send. Keep reading to learn more about leveraging customization to improve customer retention and increase customer spend.

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