A large scale Retail Property Management company identified a key opportunity in their digital strategy - using their tech platform to drive foot traffic into their bricks and mortar stores.
They knew that content personalisation was one of their key tools for creating engaging customer experiences. However, the scale they are working at created a challenge for achieving personalisation on their digital platform - timeliness versus performance. Getting personalised content out at scale, in a timely manner, required a highly performant system and changes to their content publishing processes.
Working closely with their teams, Alembic was able to solve this technical challenge and deliver a personalisation solution that drove customer engagement.
The Challenge: Personalisation at Scale
The crux of the client’s challenge lay in the intricate balance between personalisation and timely delivery. In the world of email marketing, timing is everything. An email arriving in a customer's inbox at the right moment can significantly increase the chances of it being opened and read. However, when you're personalising content for millions of recipients, this becomes a complex dance of speed and relevance.
Unlike simple personalisation such as including a customer's name, which can be done quickly by most email platforms, creating truly personalised content for each recipient is a computationally complex process. The speed at which this personalised content can be generated and inserted into emails has far-reaching consequences. If the process takes too long, emails may arrive in inboxes at suboptimal times, drastically reducing the likelihood of them being opened or read.
This timing challenge was a critical hurdle in the initial phase of this project. With millions of personalised emails to send, even small delays in content generation could result in missed opportunities for customer engagement. We faced the risk of investing significant effort into creating tailored content for each recipient, only to have those emails arrive too late to capture the customer's attention.
Reimagining Content Creation and Management
The existing content creation process at the client was technically demanding, requiring HTML skills from the communications team. This not only limited the team's ability to quickly iterate on content but also introduced risks of rendering issues across different devices. Our solution was to separate the content structure from its representation.
We redesigned the content management process, creating a system where the semantic layout of the content was distinct from its visual representation. This approach lowered the technical skill requirements for the communications team, allowing them to focus on crafting engaging messages without worrying about the intricacies of HTML coding. As an added benefit, this separation reduced the potential for broken email rendering across various devices.
Scaling Quality Control
The transition to highly personalised emails presented a significant challenge to the client’s existing content curation and proofing processes. Traditionally, their team would meticulously review each outgoing email before sending. However, in a world of 1:1 personalisation, where each recipient receives unique content, this approach was no longer feasible.
We addressed this challenge by breaking it down into two key areas:
Visual Representation: Content appearance varied based on its placement within the email, utilising different layouts and images. To solve this, we developed a system within their Content Management System (CMS) that allowed the team to preview content in various placements. This solution not only streamlined the proofing process but also shortened the feedback cycle, pushing the team towards a state of continuous content readiness.
Overall Email Review: With each email now unique, reviewing every possible combination became impossible. Instead, we shifted focus to providing comprehensive reporting tools. These allowed the team to analyse the distribution of content across different slots within the email template and verify that all content met eligibility criteria. We also implemented a flexible control system, giving the team the ability to exclude or override certain content, and define fallback options for new customers or other scenarios where personalised content might be limited.
This approach empowered the client’s team to maintain their high standards of content quality and brand consistency, even in a highly personalised environment.
Performance Under Pressure
One of the most significant technical challenges we faced was meeting the strict performance requirements of the client’s email marketing system. We had a mere two-second window to respond through their content integration. This might seem like plenty of time for a single request, but it becomes a monumental task when processing millions of requests at a rate of 50,000 per minute.
This constraint forced us to rethink our approach to content delivery. We implemented an innovative solution that separated content integration requests into two phases:
First, a single request retrieved a document structure payload. This payload included the layout, content IDs, and ordering of the content—but not the actual content itself.
Second, the email platform made additional calls to retrieve the actual content, such as titles, descriptions, and images.
This multi-call approach reduced response times for individual requests and allowed us to easily implement content caching. Requests for smaller collections of content aligned well with caching individual elements. As a result, our solution achieved response times well under the two-second deadline.
An added benefit of this approach was its applicability to mobile and web integrations. These platforms could access their content via a GraphQL API without incurring the costs associated with email-specific content requirements.
Phased Implementation and Expansion
The project was executed in two main phases over a 12-month period. The initial six-month build focused on creating the base system and email integration. This was followed by a six-month enhancement phase, where we expanded the capabilities to mobile and web platforms.
Throughout the project, Alembic maintained a small team of 3-4 specialists who worked closely with the client’s existing teams. This collaborative approach allowed us to integrate seamlessly with their processes and systems, ensuring that the solution we developed fit perfectly within their technological ecosystem.
Key Outcomes and Business Impact
The personalisation platform we developed for the client achieved several key outcomes:
Empowered Content Team: The communications team could now manage personalisation without requiring HTML skills or significant team growth.
Improved Content Management: We expanded CMS-managed content across email, mobile, and web channels, providing greater flexibility and control.
Enhanced Quality Control: The new reporting system allowed the team to preview content distribution and maintain high standards despite increased personalisation.
Scalable Performance: We successfully met the challenge of processing millions of requests at 50,000 per minute, ensuring timely delivery of personalised content.
Future-Proof Solution: The flexible architecture allowed for easy expansion to mobile and web platforms without additional development work.
These outcomes directly supported the client’s goal of improving engagement through online channels and increasing awareness of centre-specific events. The new system enabled weekly personalised communications across email, app, and web landing pages, key drivers for their broader business strategy.
Why We Love Working with this Client
The client’s forward-thinking approach to digital engagement aligns perfectly with Alembic's passion for innovative solutions. Their willingness to embrace new approaches to content management and personalisation allowed us to push the boundaries of what's possible in large-scale customer communications.
We particularly appreciated the opportunity to integrate closely with their existing teams and systems. This collaborative approach not only led to a more effective solution but also demonstrated how external expertise can seamlessly enhance internal capabilities.
The challenge of meeting stringent performance requirements while delivering highly personalised content at scale was particularly exciting for our team. It pushed us to develop creative solutions that not only met immediate needs but also laid the groundwork for future enhancements. Working with the client reinforced our belief that the most impactful solutions come from true partnerships between client and consultant.
