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​How the ANWB set up its award-winning personalisation programme

By combining information from seven channels, the ANWB can construct a fairly complete picture of its customers. From the perspective of marketing technology, Arnold Moeken talks about the ANWB’s award-winning omni-channel personalisation programme.

“Thanks to data and analytics, we can offer the right propositions, at the right time, through the right channels and in the right way.”

With approximately 5 million members, 7 channels, more than 5000 products and more than 30 apps, the ANWB has an enormous source of customer data and there are plenty of options for personalisation. “Previously we only had a number of individual initiatives; in 2016 we started an omni-channel personalisation programme to optimise use of customer contacts across all channels,” manager of the Customer Analytics Department at the ANWB explains. On 1 July 2021, he presented the 'Organising technology to monetise on customer experience' webinar for Visser & Van Baars, along with Jan Hendrik Fleury from Crystalloids and Rokesh Jankie from Google Cloud.

Offer that fits preferences and interests

A challenge when setting up the personalisation programme was that the ANWB is a complex bricks-and-clicks organisation with many online and offline touchpoints. That aspect can complicate visitor identification and lead to poor omni-channel customer experiences.

The personalisation programme must therefore have a strong data foundation. “This way we can achieve our goal of offering the right propositions, at the right time, through the right channels and in the right way,” says Moeken. Members can be served from seven centrally personalised channels, such as the website, Mijn ANWB, apps, social media and e-mails by making them an offer that precisely matches their preferences and interests at that moment.

Data as an unshakable foundation

Combining customer data from all channels creates an increasingly complete picture of the customer. For example, anonymous behavioral information is combined with data from My ANWB. Intelligence is then added to this data foundation. In combination with the right content and thanks to the marketing proposition engine and dashboards, ANWB can offer the best propositions to members and customers.

Constant monitoring

Moeken explains that there is a continuous loop. “We constantly monitor and optimise our propositions via our dashboard.” The models are also continuously improved through a model factory with more than 200 algorithms, which predict how likely it is that customers will buy certain services or products.

Ambition is everything

According to the customer analytics manager, ambition is everything when you start a personalisation programme. “You have to arrive at a single vision and have the ambition to make the programme a success. Previously, all initiatives were silos with us, but by collectively tuning in to the ambition, we were able to connect and optimise all channels.”

Thoughtful architecture model

The ANWB won the DDMA Customer Data Award in 2020 with the programme. The jury wrote: “With great 'channel awareness' (seven different channels are linked), the ANWB has decided to undergo a culture change aimed at approaching the members on as personal level as possible. This programme will enable the ANWB to continue building in the coming years, using a well thought out architectural model. While the business line used to be the starting point for marketing, it is now the individual members and the available data on these members.”

This clever architecture model has five principles: centralised data, analytics, campaign management, CDP/identity management and content management. Those principles were then translated into a seven-layer personalisation model: touchpoints, content delivery, content management, CDP, campaign management, analytics and data. In turn, this model is subdivided into an analytical and an operational CRM approach.

The marketing technology

The ANWB uses various tools for its analytical CRM approach, explains Moeken. “AWS is our central data platform. We use KNIME for analytics and Unica Campaign as a campaign management platform. In the meantime, we have increasingly centralised all marketing technology.”

Far-reaching personalisation

Thanks to the omni-channel programme, the ANWB can personalise to a large extent. For example, if someone has Wegenwacht Europe Service, then no more advertisements are shown. And young families who like to camp will not receive tips for long journeys in the Holiday Newsletter, but for camping sites.

That is bearing fruit. For example, both the share of impressions and share of clicks on the website and the CTR within the app have increased by more than 200 percent.

Lessons for organisations that want to personalise

What should organisations take into account that want to start their own personalisation programme? Everything starts with a hallowed belief in personalisation, says Moeken: “That goes beyond a business case. In addition, make sure that you have the right knowledge and expertise. And don't be afraid to outsource it, as we have done."

He also recommends seeing architecture as a basic ingredient and carefully considering where you want to go in advance. Moeken: “That prevents a vendor lock-in. Finally, collaboration is crucial. Our programme unites marketing, IT and business line departments. Partly because of this, we no longer work in silos, but as one company.”