Is Personalization the Secret Sauce for Doubling B2B Engagement?

How important is personalization in today's B2B engagement? ON24 has unveiled its "2024 Digital Engagement Benchmarks Report," shedding light on key trends in B2B customer and prospect digital behavior. The report delves into insights from millions of B2B professionals engaging in numerous webinars, virtual events, and content experiences throughout 2023, highlighting the substantial impact of personalization on marketing channel performance.

"For the past decade, go-to-market teams have known the power of personalization to unlock business results, but the challenge of scaling personalization has stood in the way. Now, with the rise of AI, we believe there is a tremendous opportunity for sales and marketers to achieve both personalization and scale, helping businesses significantly increase revenue performance while improving their efficiency. Our findings demonstrate the potential for AI-powered personalization and content to make digital engagement more intelligent and transform the B2B buying experience,” said Callan Young, CMO, ON24.

A standout discovery from the analysis is the remarkable influence of personalization on B2B prospects and customers. When a digital experience is personalized, engagement with calls-to-actions nearly doubles, and individuals become four times more likely to advance in their buying journey. This finding underscores the pivotal role of personalization in enabling sales and marketing teams to achieve enhanced ROI and business outcomes.

The biggest shifts in B2B customer and prospect digital behavior 

Intensified Engagement: The average number of unique interactions per attendee has risen by 20% since 2021, signaling heightened engagement with digital experiences.

Increased Buying Intent: B2B customers and prospects display elevated buying intent, with requests for product demonstrations per attendee from webinar experiences growing by almost 60%.

Personalization Impact: Personalization is a game-changer in the B2B buying journey, evident in a nearly 70% YoY increase in engagement with calls-to-actions, a fourfold growth in requests for product demonstrations, and a doubling of conversion rates for personalized experiences.

Anytime, Anywhere Engagement: Audiences express a preference for engaging with experiences at their convenience, as the average number of unique interactions per attendee within on-demand experiences has grown by 13% YoY.

Content Demand and Generative AI: There is a surge in audience demand for content, reflected in a twofold YoY increase in content hub visitors and an almost 40% YoY rise in content views within personalized experiences. This underscores the growing need for generative AI to meet the escalating demand for tailored content.

Speaking of engagement, ON24 has unveiled its next-generation Intelligent Engagement Platform, representing a significant leap in its innovative strategic approach.