We originally classified Signal as a Customer Data Platform, but the company repositioned as an identity resolution system so we took them at their word. New management has since pivoted back in the CDP direction although they don’t use the term. It’s now moot, since they were just purchased by data collection giant TransUnion, which describes them as a tool for real-time data collection and customer data management.

This report from personalization vendor Formation.ai found an increase in loyalty compared with five years ago, but responses were collected before the pandemic began. The over-all finding that personalization generates loyalty is still probably valid, although customers like personalized rewards and discounts much more than personalized advertising. One weird twist: personalized Web experience, marketing email, and mobile notifications were rated both the most likely to increase brand loyalty and to decrease it.

Just over half of consumers (54%) like to receive personalized messages because they show the consumers are known to the brand, plus they can be time savers. The rest (46%) find it at best unimportant, at worst creepy. Relevance far outstrips personalization when it comes to driving email opens (54% vs. 19%). Takeaway: treat each customer the way they prefer.