Strategies and tactics to qualify your contacts
The more information you acquire about your users, the better chance you have of turning a lead, firstly into a prospect, and then into a customer. How to do this? The answer is encapsulated in two simple words: progressive profiling. In the many in-depth articles we have devoted to audience profiling and segmentation strategies, we have seen how it is possible to learn a great deal about our users by collecting and analysing biographical data, behavioural information about, for example, the navigation and purchase path. Very often, however, such information is not sufficient to bring out key data that may relate more closely to interests and preferences, needs and requirements.
To do this, a profiling strategy should be put in place that involves a direct request for data and information from users, all through the use of effective dynamic profiling forms.
Progressive profiling: what is it and why can it be so important?
The term progressive profiling defines a technique by which progressive contact profiling is carried out by collecting data and information repeatedly during different stages of the customer journey.
All of this is made possible by the use of dynamic smart forms. As can be easily guessed from their very name, they allow the collection of data and information to be personalised based on the user’s browsing context: in a nutshell, different questions can be shown to different users, even at different times, making it consistent with their browsing experience.
It is not possible to ask our users for all the data and information we might need as soon as they land on our site or fill out one of our forms, but it is essential to have the users themselves release it in a completely natural way. Progressive profiling enables just that, allowing us to request the right information at the right time.
Short forms that can be filled out quickly can thus also be shown to users at different follow-up stages: the goal remains to qualify the contact in order to offer increasingly personalised customer experiences.
While first name, last name, and email represent key information that can be collected even at an early stage, there are others that can help create increasingly comprehensive user profiles that also vary according to business objectives. Here are a few:
- date of birth;
- job position;
- company;
- physical characteristics (size, shoe size…);
- tastes and interests;
- preference of styles (classic, casual..);
- passions.
Progressive profiling: how to put it into action?
The first step in deploying effective progressive profiling is to focus on the information that we believe is critical to knowing our audience thoroughly.
Starting from these it is in fact possible to go on to define the modalities of interaction with the user: we must never forget that the request for data and information is fully part of the design of a lead nurturing strategy, fundamental in the B2B sphere, but also B2C to accompany the user to make the first purchase.
However, the moment we decide to rely on progressive profiling, we must always remember to strike the right balance between the benefit offered and the data and information requested: although more and more users are willing to release data and information in exchange for a personalised and valuable experience, it is also true that it is always good to appeal to common sense and commensurate the value offered with the data requested.
Here we can thus identify three different types of forms that can be implemented based on the depth of data we wish to collect.
- Surveys or polls: these represent the most complex type of form but, undoubtedly, the one that can allow very detailed collection of information. This is why you should be able to best engage the user.
- Soft leads: simpler forms such as newsletter subscription forms that do not require particularly articulate data fall into this category. The advice to make it clear to the user the benefit he or she can get from that particular action (e.g., receiving a preview of promotions, a discount on the first purchase…) also applies here.
- Hard leads: these are forms usually devoted to gathering more detailed information (company, date of birth, professional role, interests..) and therefore perhaps involve receiving valuable in-depth content such as an ebook, case study, infographic.
Progressive profiling: is it only possible through forms?
Although, from a purely theoretical standpoint, the term progressive profiling refers only to form profiling, it is important to remember that there are other ways in which we can qualify our audience and thus deploy strategies to personalise the customer experience.
The reference, in this case, is to the technique of tagging, which in a latent mode in the eyes of the end user, allows the latter to be associated with particular tags according to the performance of certain actions, rather than the achievement of particular goals (e.g., opening an email, clicking on a link, browsing a particular product category, rather than the repeated purchase of a product, just to name a few examples).
In this case, tags provide ancillary information about the contact and allow filtering and segmenting of users who share the same characteristics. The association can be done manually or dynamically.
Effective progressive profiling is essential to best qualify and enhance your audience.
