The Content Crisis in Personalization and the Content Layer

In the season premiere of Hello $Firstname Season 2, I had the privilege of sitting down with my co-author, Frans Riemersma, founder of MartechTribe and a global thought leader in marketing technology.

Frans is working closely together with Scott Brinker on the MartechMap.com that most marketers are familiar with (hint: crazy map with an ever increasing list of vendors).

Together, we introduced the theme of this season: how to solve the content crisis for personalization.

The content crisis has become the key bottleneck for scaling personalization. In this episode, Frans sheds light on:

• The Content Layer Vision: Much like the Data Layer revolutionized marketing, Frans predicts the emergence of a Content Layer, enabling seamless content flow from master files to personalized messages. Together - Frans and I - have been putting a lot of work into demystifying this layer and how it works.

• GenAI’s Role: Generative AI isn't just a tool; it’s a game-changer for creativity, localization, and scalability. Frans introduces the idea of Brand LLMs—custom AI models trained on a company’s unique assets, values, and tone.

• Personalization as Dialogue: Frans reframes personalization as a human-like conversation between a brand and its customers. Imagine talking directly to the essence of a brand’s founder—deeply personal and deeply effective.

• Metrics That Matter: Personalization must drive real business value. Frans emphasizes ROI and innovative metrics like return on content to optimize marketing efforts.

We also explored how GenAI and the Content Pipeline can fix common pitfalls, like brands overselling (or over-personalizing!) irrelevant products.

Watch the full Episode with video on Youtube here.

The full book is available in print and kindle and can be bought here.

(or your local amazon...)

An abstract of the book can be downloaded here.

All models and illustrations from the book can be downloaded here.

This is the last episode of this season of the 'Hello $FirstName' podcast. It consists of an audio book chapter - well two actually - namely...

CHAPTER 22: ACHIEVING ORGANIZATIONAL MATURITY FOR PERSONALIZATION - with the points:

• The glass ceilings and how to break them
• Breaking the glass ceiling between the Hack and Pack levels
• Stabilize the performance of your core platforms
• Transition your team of builders to a team of executors (Makers to Marketers)
• Secure resources for both campaigns and marketing automation
• Secure data quality and format for marketing automation
• Switch from a project-based to a hybrid operating model
• Change from a simple ESP to a real MAP
• Breaking the glass ceiling between the Pack and Stack levels
• Establish cross-functional teams
• Centralize data and insights
• Centralize production and orchestration of content
• Realign your incentives and personalization accountability around customer-centricity

and

CHAPTER 23: CONCLUSION

• Conclusion
• About the authors

The full book is available in print and kindle and can be bought here.

(or your local amazon...)

An abstract of the book can be downloaded here.

All models and illustrations from the book can be downloaded here.

In this week's episode of the 'Hello $FirstName' podcast we'll be discussing chapter 21: ’GOVERNANCE.

Our special guest this week is Tina Lambert from Danish Industry. Tina is currently working as Head of CRM after many years within the political organization. Stakeholders wanting to inform all clients are many and the need for balancing priorities within CRM makes it necessary to rely on fixed processes and governance.

In the episode we cover the following points:

• Tina's background and career
• The importance of Governance in CRM and Marketing
• How data processing, privacy regulations, and consent management play into the CRM strategies at Danish Industry
• How the CRM department connects with both Legal, Procurement and IT
• How the CRM department interplays with other departments to get the client communications rolling
• What stakeholder strategies they use to align internally on customer communications and lastly...
• Tina's own favourite example of personalization that he has experienced personally

Based on Rasmus Houlind's book ’Hello $FirstName - Profiting from Personalization’

Watch the full Episode with video on Youtube here.

The full book is available in print and kindle and can be bought here.

(or your local amazon...)

An abstract of the book can be downloaded here.

All models and illustrations from the book can be downloaded here.