
How to meaningfully achieve personalization
Published on 4 August, 2025 | Author: Digitalzone
Let’s start with the obvious: personalization is everywhere.
From Spotify playlists that seem to know your soul, to those eerily spot-on product recommendations on Amazon—you’re constantly being “spoken to” in ways that feel custom-made. And as a marketer, you probably hear this all the time: “You’ve got to personalize your outreach if you want to stand out.”
But here’s the tricky part…
What does meaningful personalization actually look like in B2B marketing?
Is it just throwing someone’s first name into a subject line? Or tailoring ads to industries? Or is it something deeper—something that actually connects with real human needs?
Let’s unpack that. Together.
Why personalization matters (and why It’s hard to get right).
Imagine walking into your favorite coffee shop. The barista sees you and says, “the usual?” You nod, smile, and five minutes later you’ve got your vanilla oat milk latte without saying a word. That’s the magic of being known.
Now contrast that with the dozens of irrelevant emails flooding your inbox daily. “Hey [First_Name], thought you’d love this webinar!”
You don’t feel seen—you feel targeted.
Step 1: Know who you’re talking to (no, really).
It all starts here.
You can’t personalize meaningfully if you don’t understand your audience on a human level. Job titles and company names only tell part of the story.
Ask yourself:
- What are their daily struggles?
- What tools do they already use?
- What pressures are they under (budget, performance, deadlines)?
- What have they clicked on, downloaded, or ignored?
This kind of insight doesn’t come from a static list. It comes from behavior. And that’s where contact-level intelligence matters.
Scenario:
Let’s say you’re targeting demand gen managers in SaaS. Two people might hold the same job title, but one is exploring ABM tools, and the other is obsessed with improving MQL-to-SQL conversion. Same role, different needs. Same email? Nope.
Step 2: Let their actions lead the way.
Here’s the truth: your prospects will tell you what they care about. You just have to listen. Not literally, of course (that’s creepy). But through their:
- Website visits
- Content downloads
- Event attendance
- Email clicks
- Ad engagement
This is important intent data—and it’s your best friend when it comes to personalization that actually resonates.
So instead of this:
“We thought you might like our new whitepaper on B2B data strategies.”
Try this:
“Since you checked out our blog on cleaning up bad data, we thought this whitepaper on advanced data governance might help.”
One is a guess. The other is a connection.
Step 3: Go beyond names—tap into context.
Personalization isn’t just who they are—it’s what they’re going through.
- Are they mid-research?
- Are they comparing vendors?
- Did they just attend your webinar?
- Did their company just raise Series B funding?
These are golden nuggets. And when you combine them, you can create micro-personas or dynamic segments that allow for smarter, more timely outreach.
Scenario:
You notice a VP of Marketing has visited your pricing page three times in the past week, watched a demo video, but hasn’t signed up for a trial. That’s not the time for a generic newsletter—it’s the time to send a quick, helpful email:
“Noticed you were exploring our plans. Want to jump on a quick call to compare options based on your team size?”
Boom. That’s relevance.
Step 4: Make your content work smarter.
Here’s where a lot of marketers get overwhelmed: “We don’t have the time to create 10 versions of every asset!”
Good news: you don’t have to.
Start modular.
Break content down into building blocks that can be reassembled based on who’s viewing it.
For example:
- A whitepaper with “choose your own path” sections by industry
- A landing page with dynamic copy blocks for job roles
- A nurture stream that adapts based on previous clicks
Technology can help here (hello, personalization platforms), but even basic email tools let you swap content blocks or route different journeys.
Step 5: Don’t just personalize—humanize.
This is where it gets real.
Personalization without empathy still falls flat. You’re not just trying to sell—you’re trying to solve.
- Keep the tone conversational.
- Use real language, not corporate-speak.
- Offer help before asking for a meeting.
- Acknowledge the human on the other side of the screen.
Example: “Saw you’ve been digging into ABM trends—hope our latest guide gave you something useful. No pitch here, just wanted to share a case study I thought might be helpful.”
That kind of outreach doesn’t get deleted. It gets remembered.
Step 6: Measure what actually matters.
Clicks are nice. Conversions are better. But what really matters in personalization is engagement over time.
Ask:
- Are people staying on the page longer?
- Are they coming back for more content?
- Are open rates improving?
- Are more people responding with real replies?
These signals tell you your personalization is actually hitting the mark—not just creating noise.
Personalization should feel human.
Here’s your shortcut to meaningful personalization:
- Understand your audience beyond demographics
- Follow behavior, not assumptions
- Use intent signals to time your outreach
- Adapt content based on context
- Sound like a real human
- Measure and tweak often
Because at the end of the day, meaningful personalization isn’t just about better marketing. It’s about creating trust, relevance, and relationships that last.