Digital Customer Engagement Index launched by Mapp Digital to assess use of data for ecommerce

The study focuses on email, mobile apps and social media channels. It reveals that relatively few of the UK’s top ecommerce companies are taking user preferences, personalisation and optimisation across devices as seriously as they should.

According to this study, 96% of ecommerce players use email as their primary form of marketing communication, 26% personalise emails, 60% personalise the web experience, and 2% use a personal approach in their mobile apps – despite most brands asking for customer names and other identifiable information.

In mobile app marketing, where 92% of brands have a mobile app, most seek permission to send notifications. Despite this, only 17% actually delivered a message across the duration of Mapp’s study. The study is also noting that only 25% of the top brands with bricks-and-mortar stores are using technology to drive engagement when potential customers might be passing by.

Key findings from the study include that 94% of those analysed sent at least one email to their customer base during the study, and 78% of emails assessed during the study were not fully responsive, meaning that the mobile email experience for most customers is very limited.

It also reveals that 13% of brands assessed had a preference centre on their website, inhibiting personalisation of messages and content, 11% of brands with mobile apps connected the dots between digital channels (for example, by enabling social sign in), and when it comes to posting seasonal content on social media channels 45% of brands chose Facebook, 52% turned to a Twitter feed and only 20% utilised their Instagram account.