In this episode of Hello $Firstname, I’m joined by Nikolaj Skarbye from Scratcher.io for a deep dive into what might be the most overlooked shortcut to personalization: asking people directly - while making it fun.

At the heart of our conversation is zero-party data: the kind of willingly shared data that can include preferences, intentions, interests - even motivations. And instead of waiting for transactional behaviour to build up, gamification offers a way to collect this data early in the journey, at scale, and in ways that engage rather than interrupt.

The twist? If done well, gamification doesn’t just capture data - it builds emotional connection with the brand while it’s at it.

• Beyond Spin-the-Wheel: From preference quizzes to product advisors and loyalty re-engagements, the real power of gamification lies in how it's designed, branded, and contextualized - not just the mechanics.
• Short-cut to Smart Segmentation: You don’t have to wait for purchase data to personalize. Interactive experiences can surface intent and profile data long before a sale.
• Data That Feeds the CX Layers: Zero-party data connects the Content Layer, Data Layer, and Personalization Layer - bridging marketing, CRM, and even call centre scripting.
• Creative Use Cases: From Penguin knowledge tests for NGOs to Whopper giveaways at Burger King, and B2B IT assessments - Nikolaj shares cases that go well beyond e-commerce.
• The Incentive Myth: Big prizes don’t always mean better participation. Smaller, brand-relevant rewards often lead to higher redemption rates and better lead quality.
• From Collecting to Activating: We explore how zero-party data gets mapped, enriched, and activated across CDPs, ESPs, web personalization, and even in-store experiences.

📺 Watch the full video 🎮 Check out Scratcher

This episode is part of Season 2 of Hello $Firstname, based on the book Hello $Firstname – Profiting from Personalization and the Content Crisis Manifesto.

📘 Buy the book 📄 Get the abstract 🎧 Listen to the audiobook 🖼️ Download the models & illustrations 🎤 Book Rasmus for a keynote or workshop

What happens when the Content Crisis meets AI creativity?

In this episode of the Hello $Firstname podcast, I sat down with Villads Leth, CEO and Founder at Alvas.ai, to explore what fully individualised, AI-written email content looks like in practice. And why it’s forcing marketers to rethink what content is, how it’s created, and what it means to personalise at scale.

🎯 Here’s what makes this conversation so relevant:

Villads and his team are enabling brands to go far beyond segmentation. They’re generating email content that’s 100% unique—based not just on the products in a customer’s basket, but also their behavioural history, preferences, and context. It’s 1:1 communication, built in real time by AI.

But this isn’t just a story about scale.

It’s a story about what happens when content creation becomes decisioning—and when marketing teams have to shift from writing to prompting, from planning to QA.

• The Two Modes of Content Production:
  • Hyper-individualised 1:1 emails for triggered flows
  • Efficiently produced, semi-personalised content for broader segments and campaigns
• Prompting ≠ Briefing: Why marketers need to learn to talk to machines—and teach them to speak brand.
• Content QA at Scale: What internal processes are needed to safely roll out GenAI-driven content.
• When Not to Personalise (or at least individualise): Yes, really. Villads makes a strong case for restraint when intent is fuzzy.
• The New Content Pipeline: How GenAI transforms not just what content gets made—but how, when, and by whom.

Villads also reflects on how fast things are moving: 🧠 The cost of content creation with AI has dropped by a factor of 200. ⚠️ But trust is fragile—one bad AI-generated message, and the damage is done. 💡 That’s why they’re big on guardrails, education, and starting small.

📺 Watch the full video here 📥 Download the CX Layers & Content Crisis Manifesto

• The book 'Hello $Firstname – Profiting from Personalization'
• The Content Crisis Manifesto

📘 Buy the book 📄 Download the abstract 🎧 Get the audiobook (free) 🖼️ Download all illustrations & models 🎤 Book me for a talk or workshop

In the latest episode of the Hello $Firstname podcast, I’m joined (Again! Congrats on being the first 2nd-time guest, David) by David Mannheim — author of The Person in Personalisation, founder of MadeWithIntent.ai, avid Disney fan and all-around provocateur of personalization norms.

David and I go way back — he even wrote the foreword for Hello $Firstname — but this episode isn’t just a nostalgic reunion. It’s a bold look at how website personalization has lagged behind other parts of the customer experience, and how understanding customer intent is the key to finally catching up.

📊 What’s the Intent Gap? David’s team recently released a report that shows just how off the mark many ecommerce websites are. Despite having tons of data, 63% of online shoppers say digital experiences feel “inappropriate” or even “manipulative.” That’s not just a CX issue — it’s a trust issue.

💥 The Big Idea: Most web personalization doesn’t match buying stages, it matches page templates. But just because I’m on a product page doesn’t mean I’m ready to buy. (Maybe I’m still browsing, maybe I’m stuck, maybe I’m about to bounce.) David argues — convincingly — that we should personalize for intent, not location.

🔁 Context Is King What’s powerful here is how MadeWithIntent generates real-time data signals based on digital body language — scroll depth, mouse movements, time between clicks — and turns that into insights about a user’s mindset. The aim? To surface the right message at the right time, both onsite and in outbound comms.

And this connects beautifully to the CX Layers framework. MadeWithIntent enriches the Data Layer with real-time context, enabling the Personalization Layer to act meaningfully — not just generically.

🧠 We also dive into:

• Why discounting might feel like the only optimization lever (but is often a race to the bottom)
• The difference between existing content and new nudges
• How outbound marketing can learn from onsite signals
• Why most retargeting emails are just… bad
• The long-term promise (and current limits) of GenAI in website personalization

🎧 This one’s packed with sharp insights, useful provocations, and some delightfully David-style perspectives on what real personalization should look like in 2025 and beyond.

1. Check out 'The Intent Gap Report' here or

2. 'Made with Intent' here or

3. Connect with David here

As always the episode is based on Rasmus Houlind's book ’Hello $FirstName - Profiting from Personalization’ and in turn the Content Crisis Manifesto.

The Content Crisis Manifesto can be downloaded here.

The full book is available in print and kindle and can be bought here (or your local amazon in case it doesn't work...)

An written abstract of the book can be downloaded here.

The full audiobook can be downloaded here (courtesy of Agillic).

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

Book me for a presentation, meeting or talk here!

Not Enough Traffic for A/B Testing?

Here’s How VodafoneZiggo Scales Personalization Anyway

📉 In B2B marketing, low traffic volume is often a CRO killer. But that hasn’t stopped VodafoneZiggo from building a smart, insight-driven personalization engine anyway.

In the latest episode of the Hello $Firstname podcast, I had the pleasure of speaking with Daniel Granja Baltazar, CRO Specialist at VodafoneZiggo, about how his team is rethinking Conversion Rate Optimization and Personalization in a B2B context—where statistical significance isn’t always an option, and complexity is the norm.

Daniel shared how qualitative research, from customer interviews to service center conversations, plays a central role in shaping the personalized customer experience. The transcripts and insights collected feed directly into the Personalization Layer—alongside behavioral data—and are then activated across web and email touchpoints.

🔍 Key Insights from the Episode

🎯 Why qualitative research is the backbone of B2B CRO With limited traffic and massive variation in the SME segment, Daniel's team relies heavily on qualitative methods—interviews, feedback loops, and even in-person time at customer service—to shape hypotheses and content strategies.

🧠 From assumptions to insights: how interviews feed content strategy By analyzing common misunderstandings and recurring questions, the team uncovers "invisible friction" in the journey—then translates that into smarter, simpler content that helps guide customers toward the right solution.

📬 Lifecycle content that prevents service calls Many of the best content ideas come directly from the call center. Proactive outbound emails that answer questions before they’re asked can save thousands of service hours—and create a better experience in the process.

🌐 Personalization in B2B is about people, not just companies At VodafoneZiggo, they’re working toward tailoring content not just by segment or industry, but by the individual’s role, preferences, and behavior—whether that’s a founder, an IT manager, or someone else entirely.

🤖 Generative AI as a CRO co-pilot Daniel also shares how their internal GPT instance helps summarize interviews, categorize feedback, and analyze large sets of qualitative data—saving time and enabling faster learning.

🔗 How It All Connects to the CX Layers

Daniel’s approach aligns beautifully with the CX Layers framework—with qualitative insights feeding the Content Layer, behavioral signals informing the Data Layer, and personalization being orchestrated across inbound and outbound channels.

It’s a great example of how Experience Optimization in B2B isn’t about volume—it’s about relevance. And sometimes, it starts by just sitting down and listening to your customers.

As always the episode is based on Rasmus Houlind's book ’Hello $FirstName - Profiting from Personalization’ and in turn the Content Crisis Manifesto.

The Content Crisis Manifesto can be downloaded here.

The full book is available in print and kindle and can be bought here (or your local amazon in case it doesn't work...)

An written abstract of the book can be downloaded here.

The full audiobook can be downloaded here (courtesy of Agillic).

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

Book me for a presentation, meeting or talk here!

In this special episode of the Hello $Firstname podcast, I had the pleasure of speaking with Ronald Griffin, CEO and co-founder of SEEN.io—a trailblazer in personalized video content for marketing.

I first met Ronald at Dialogkonferansen 2024 in Sweden, where his powerful presentation on Generative AI and video creation left a lasting impression. He introduced the now-famous phrase: “That’s cute, but so what?”—a challenge to all marketers using AI to move beyond creating visually impressive content and focus on making it meaningful.

In this episode, we dive deep into how personalized video fits within the Content Layer of the CX Layers framework. Ronald shares how SEEN is helping brands like Norsk Rikstoto, Nespresso, and Carrefour deliver videos that not only grab attention but also drive real business outcomes like customer engagement and retention.

🎯 The Content Layer’s Power in Personalization We explore how the Content Layer—especially through video—can elevate personalization strategies, creating more emotionally resonant and memorable customer experiences.

📊 Personalized Video That Delivers Results SEEN’s work with Rikstoto shows how incorporating personalized video into onboarding flows lifted 29-day repeat business by 37%—a clear sign that well-timed, data-driven video makes a difference.

🤖 Generative AI: Streamlining Video Creation Ronald discusses how Generative AI is making it faster and easier for brands to produce, update, and repurpose video content without sacrificing brand guidelines or quality.

🚧 The Challenges of Personalized Video at Scale From brand consistency to data privacy, Ronald shares the hurdles enterprises face in adopting AI-driven video solutions—and how SEEN is overcoming them with innovative tools and processes.

🚀 What’s Next for Personalized Video? Could creating a personalized video become as simple as sending a personalized email? Ronald believes that with the rise of AI-powered tools, video personalization at scale is closer than we think.

Marketers have long focused on data for personalization—but the power of personalized video is often overlooked. As Ronald points out, video uniquely captures attention and emotion in a way static content simply can’t.

With Generative AI making personalized video more scalable and cost-effective, this content format is poised to become a game-changer for brands looking to stand out and foster deeper customer connections.

As always the episode is based on Rasmus Houlind's book ’Hello $FirstName - Profiting from Personalization’ and in turn the Content Crisis Manifesto.

The Content Crisis Manifesto can be downloaded here.

The full book is available in print and kindle and can be bought here (or your local amazon in case it doesn't work...)

An written abstract of the book can be downloaded here.

The full audiobook can be downloaded here (courtesy of Agillic).

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

Book me for a presentation, meeting or talk here!