Engaging your Audiences with Personalized Content

Personalized content is a powerful tool that can help you address the needs of different geographic regions by serving them relevant, personalized messaging and content. By engaging the visitor based on their location, you can serve the right message at the right time, which can complement and support your other marketing efforts.

On episode 144 of The Layover Live, Andrea Robyns, Marketing Technology Director at Experience Grand Rapids, joined Jason alongside our very own Michele Barnes, Senior CRO Analyst, to discuss content personalization. Andrea shared how Experience Grand Rapids has pivoted their content strategy throughout this year, how they've implemented content personalization on their website, and the results they’ve seen so far.

Because of the drastic change in travel trends and website traffic due to COVID-19, Experience Grand Rapids and Simpleview worked together to ensure the content on their website shifted to meet the immediate needs of locals and have appropriate messaging. At the same time, Grand Rapids did not want to alienate out-of-market visitors to the website.

To help meet the needs of both markets, Simpleview recommended using dynamic content to serve relevant information to in- and out-of-market visitors in order to help provide them with the most relevant information. The initial setup of dynamic content for in-market visitors featured content created to encourage support of local restaurants with carryout & delivery options, support area shops, and feature virtual events and activities to keep visitors engaged with partners. The out-of-market content focused on inspirational content and encouraged visitors to sign-up for a newsletter so that Grand Rapids could market to them in the future when it became safer to travel.

Experience Grand Rapids and Simpleview worked together to ensure the content on their website shifted to meet the immediate needs of locals and have appropriate messaging.
 

As the curve began to flatten and restaurants, stores, and attractions began to reopen, featured content for each market changed. Grand Rapids began to showcase what was open and available for in-market visitors, and shifted to a “we’re ready for visitors” type of messaging for out-of-market visitors.

With the initial launch of dynamic content on the homepage, performance for 45 days across 8,800 visitors saw a strong increase in engagement for in-market visitors over out-of-market; a 50.31% increase in pages per session and 126.44% increase in average session duration, and for out-of-market visitors, there was a 140% increase in newsletter sign-ups compared to in-market visitors.

The second iteration, with the change in traffic and content on the site, performance for 35 days across 13,600 visitors continued to see strong engagement for the in-market visitors compared to out-of-market, with an increase of 42.35% in pages per session and 70.37% increase in average session duration; for out of market there was a 550% increase in newsletter sign-ups compared to in-market traffic.

Looking to learn more about content personalization? Contact your Customer Success Manager.