Shoppers are overwhelmed by choice, and generic marketing gets ignored. But personalized experiences keep them engaged—and influence 93% of shoppers to stay loyal. The brands that act on this reality will gain a competitive edge.

Online shopping has brought a world of choice and convenience to consumers’ fingertips. But it hasn’t made shopping simpler. When there are too many options, shoppers can get stuck—taking longer to decide what to purchase or giving up completely.

70% of shoppers say they feel overwhelmed, uncertain, or that it takes too long to find an option they like when shopping online.

When they feel this way:

• 62% keep browsing for more options
• 61% look for reviews or recommendations to help them decide
• 38% postpone purchases for later
• 21% give up on purchasing completely (and younger shoppers are even more likely to give up)

And research suggests as shopping journeys stretch out, fatigue sets in—leading consumers to delay purchases or not complete them at all.

Additionally, brands and shoppers alike are still feeling the impacts of tariffs. In the January 2026 Attentive Consumer Pulse, 89% of shoppers said they’re taking steps to manage costs in the next three months. Meanwhile, brands are balancing tighter margins while trying to stay competitive for more selective shoppers.

This is where personalization helps. Not as a buzzword, but as a way to reduce noise, build decision confidence, and help shoppers keep moving forward.

To understand what shoppers expect from personalization now, we asked 1,050 consumers across the US, UK, and Australia. The results reveal what “personalized” means to shoppers, what drives action and loyalty, and where brands can focus to make personalization effective.

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Key takeaways

1. Personalization is a loyalty lever: 93% of shoppers say they’re likely to continue shopping with a brand when it provides personalized experiences.
2. Relevance drives action: 73% are more likely to purchase when they get product recommendations relevant to their needs and preferences. 
3. Generic messages get tuned out: 64% say brand messages are too generic—and 80% are likely to ignore brands that send irrelevant messages.
4. Triggered messages are high-impact: Among the highest performing behavioral flows, 85% are more likely to purchase after receiving sales/price drops on desired items, and 81% after back-in-stock notifications.
5. Cross-channel coordination works: 57% are more likely to purchase when they see the same promo across channels—and 73% prefer follow-ups that add something new.
6. Privacy-conscious consumers still want personalization: 71% are taking steps to protect their privacy, yet 69% of them still want brands to learn from their shopping habits over time (compared to 66% of consumers who aren’t privacy-conscious)
7. Shoppers want the experiences RCS provides: 92% of shoppers say at least one RCS feature would improve their shopping experience.

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64% of shoppers want marketing to be more personalized

With so many choices, shoppers ignore generic messages. But they pay attention when marketing reflects what they care about.

Shoppers tune out brands that send irrelevant messages

Personalization is how you earn attention now:

• 56% of shoppers often or very often receive irrelevant messages.
• 64% say messages are too generic and want them tailored to their needs, preferences, or style.
• 80% are more likely to ignore brands that send irrelevant messages.

Attentive platform data shows that 90%+ of text messages sent are batch-and-blast. So there’s room to use the signals shoppers are already giving you, like: engagement by message type and product category, purchase history and recency, browsing activity, and preferences gathered in campaigns or at sign-up.

Consumers reward brands that personalize their experience

Shoppers want brands to adapt to them over time:

• 68% want brands to learn from their shopping habits over time (73% of Gen Z; 81% of Millennials).‍
• 73% are more likely to purchase when given product suggestions that feel relevant to their needs and preferences (83% for shoppers subscribed to emails, texts, and push notifications).‍
• 65% are open to receiving messages more frequently if they’re relevant.‍
• 53% say remembering their preferences is a top factor that leads them to continue shopping with a brand.‍
• 47% name remembering their past interactions as a top factor to continue shopping with a brand.

And there’s a significant opportunity with multi-channel subscribers (across SMS, email, and push).

Those who sign up for two or three channels are more likely to purchase when receiving relevant product suggestions than one-channel subscribers. And they’re open to higher message frequency if it’s relevant to their needs, preferences, and style.

The opportunity: remove friction and help shoppers decide faster

When we asked what would improve shopping the most, the answers pointed to the same idea: make it easier and reduce the noise.

The top three improvements shoppers want:

1. Remember their preferences so it’s easier to shop
2. Give them product recommendations that match what they like
3. Help them pick up where they left off (e.g., saved products, recently viewed items, what’s in their cart)

Take action

• Capture high-value preferences at sign-up (or in two-way text conversations) so you can personalize from the start.
• Segment using first-party and zero-party data (engagement, lifecycle stage, category interest, etc.)
• If you use a solution like AI Pro, use Audiences AI to sharpen segmentation (and boost email and SMS campaign revenue by 15%).

Use on-site personalization and abandonment flows to help shoppers pick up where they left off.

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48% of shoppers say personalization starts with the preferences they’ve shared

“Personalized” and “relevant” can start to sound empty unless you define what they mean.

According to shoppers, personalization is based on their interactions with brands

Shoppers say marketing feels personalized when it:

• 48%: Uses preferences they’ve shared (e.g., size, style, interests)
• 47%: Keeps them updated on things they care about (e.g., back-in-stock alerts, sales on items they’re interested in)
• 41%: Features products that complement what they’ve browsed or bought
• 38%: Reflects what they’ve recently done with the brand (e.g., products viewed, added to cart, or purchased)
• 35%: Anticipates their needs (e.g., refills, seasonal items)

In other words, personalization is grounded in what shoppers do and share with brands.

Personalization also has a loyalty effect

93% of shoppers say they’re likely to continue shopping with a brand when it provides personalized experiences like:

• 53%: Remembering their preferences
• 53%: Making relevant product suggestions
• 47%: Remembering past interactions (purchases, browsing, etc.)
• 39%: Anticipating needs (50% for Gen Z)
• 32%: Sending messages at times that work well for them

Proof point: Attentive data shows that brands with product recommendations in their triggered email touchpoints see a 30% median increase in CTR and a 37% increase in CVR compared to brands that don’t include product recommendations.

Take action

• Collect high-impact preferences for personalization (the inputs specific to your brand that will inform your message content and recommendations—gender, skin concerns, fitness goals, etc.).
• Use browsing behavior to gather implied preferences (e.g., size, gender of clothing, category interest, price range).
• Add product suggestions into standard campaigns (e.g., a sales email featuring products in their style).
• Upgrade welcome and post-purchase journeys with preference- and behavior-based recommendations.
• Launch additional journeys that respond to behavior (back-in-stock alerts, price drops, replenishment flows).
• Use location data to anticipate seasonal needs.

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Accurate subscriber recognition is the foundation of personalization

To deliver the personalized experiences shoppers want, brands need to recognize who’s browsing and connect that activity back to a subscriber profile. But when shoppers switch devices or return over multiple sessions, the same customer can look like multiple visitors if the signal gets interrupted.

Shorter cookie windows and multiple identifiers (phone numbers, email addresses, IP addresses, etc.) add to the challenge.

These factors make it harder to connect on-site behavior to an existing subscriber profile—and when profiles are incomplete or duplicated, personalization becomes less accurate.

This can show up in a few ways:

• You might miss chances to trigger journeys when someone shows interest in your products—reducing the total possible revenue that abandonment flows provide.
• You might send abandonment messages after a purchase already happened on a different device—which can frustrate shoppers and increase opt-outs.

That’s why identity resolution (recognizing the same shopper across sessions/devices and tying their behavior back to an email address or phone number) is becoming increasingly important.

Brands can lose signal as shoppers switch devices or take their time

In the past three months:

• The average consumer has shopped in 4 different ways across various platforms, devices, and in-store.
• 53% are aware that they’ve switched devices or taken multiple online sessions before making a purchase.

Customer expectations are high—and brands benefit by meeting them

Shoppers say:

• 67% are more likely to unsubscribe if they keep receiving reminders about a product after they’ve purchased it.
• 71% expect brands to remember what they viewed or added to their cart if they switch devices or return later.
• 74% are more likely to purchase when a brand helps them pick up where they left off (saved items, recently viewed, what’s in their cart).

And when brands resolve identity challenges with a solution like Attentive Signal, they see 20% higher conversion rates and 95% more triggered email revenue.

Phone numbers are the most stable form of identification

Shoppers use multiple identifiers while they shop, which can fragment profiles:

• 75% of consumers have at least two active personal email addresses.
• 32% use a separate email address for marketing sign-ups or an email proxy to hide their email address.

Meanwhile, cell phone numbers prove stable:

• 75% of shoppers have just one active cell phone number.
• 68% have had their cell phone number for at least three years (and 49% for at least six years).

Take action

• Build an identity graph (a web that links all of a customer’s IDs to a single profile) with the phone number as the primary anchor.
• Extend your recognition window with server-side tracking (which lasts longer than browser-based cookies).

Adopt an identity infrastructure like Attentive Signal to improve recognition and revenue.

Learn more: Why Identity Resolution is Your Biggest Revenue Opportunity in a Privacy-First World

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Behavioral flows drive action

Triggered messages drive a large share of email and SMS revenue, and they’re one of the simplest ways to make marketing feel personal.

Shoppers say they’re more likely to purchase when they receive:

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You likely already have welcome, abandonment, and post-purchase flows. But this data points to an untapped opportunity to test other high-impact journeys like price drops, back-in-stock, replenishment, and loyalty.

Take action

• Add journeys for high-intent moments: price drops, back-in-stock, loyalty points, and refill reminders.
• Update your welcome journey to go beyond the discount code—build affinity by sharing about your values, what makes your brand unique, and what to shop first.
• Recommend shoppers’ next purchase in your post-purchase flows.

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57% are more likely to purchase from multi-channel campaigns

Shoppers don’t engage with brands in just one place. Additional data from our January 2026 Consumer Pulse survey shows that 69% of email subscribers also get text messages.

And Attentive platform data indicates that subscribers who receive both SMS and email are 2x more likely to buy than those who just receive SMS.

Multi-channel communications are more effective when brands coordinate across channels:

• 57% of shoppers are more likely to make a purchase from a brand when they see the same promotion in multiple places (67% for shoppers subscribed to emails, texts, and push notifications).

• 73% prefer when follow-up messages add something new instead of repeating the same thing (83% for shoppers subscribed to emails, texts, and push).

The strongest programs keep the core message consistent, while each touchpoint adds a little more value—helping shoppers move from interest to purchase.

Take action

• Adapt your messages to suit each channel’s strengths: SMS for immediate action; push notifications for in-app behavior; email for detailed storytelling.
• Segment by channel affinity so you can deliver the main message where they’ll read it.
• Make follow-ups additive across campaigns and journeys: social proof, FAQs, warranty information, shipping policy, etc.

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Timing is part of relevance—but right-timing varies by customer

Personalizing what you send matters, but so does when you send it. Most shoppers don’t think about message timing, but it’s growing in importance—and it’s a quiet driver of engagement and conversions.

32% of shoppers say message timing is a top-three reason they’ll continue shopping with a brand—up from 25% last year.

Ideal timing varies widely

Shoppers say they’re most likely to click a link or shop after receiving a marketing message:

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Even the most popular times only capture a portion of your audience. So a single “best send time” won’t reach everyone. Tailoring send time to each shopper can help you reach customers based on their unique engagement patterns.

When brands personalize send time with a solution like Send Time AI, email CVR lifts by 15% on average.

Shopping timing also shifts throughout the year

When asked when they shop online the most, shoppers pointed to:

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There’s meaningful shopping activity across many moments on the calendar, but it’s not universal.

Gen Z insight: Payday is a standout moment—44% of Gen Z say they shop the most when they receive their paycheck (1.9x as high as other generations). So if you have a younger consumer base, consider leaning into end-of-the-month paycheck timing.

Take action

• Use AI-powered send-time optimization, like Attentive’s Send Time AI, to send campaigns when shoppers are likely to engage.
• Identify habitual patterns in your customers so you can align with shopping context: abandonment flows, replenishment reminders, payday promos, holiday messaging, and special occasions.

If you use a solution like Attentive’s AI Journeys (available in the US), it can personalize timing and content based on each customer’s journey with your brand.

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71% of shoppers protect their privacy—but they still want personalized experiences

Privacy behavior is on the rise. 71% of shoppers are taking action to protect their privacy (up from 64% last year).

They’re doing things like:

• Opting out of cookies
• Limiting app access to phone data
• Shopping in incognito
• Opting out of personalized ads on social media
• Using separate email addresses for marketing
• Using an email proxy

Yet shoppers expect brands to tailor their experience

Privacy-conscious behavior doesn’t mean shoppers want brands to stop personalizing. In fact, 69% of privacy-conscious consumers still want brands to learn from their shopping habits over time (vs. 66% of those who aren’t privacy-conscious).

Privacy-conscious consumers are also more likely to say marketing is too generic and should be more tailored (66% compared to 59%).

Why shoppers protect their privacy

Shoppers point to concerns that brands can directly address:

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Shoppers still want relevance—just on terms they understand and can control. That means it’s within brands’ power to personalize in a way that honors customer privacy and improves their experience.

Take action

• Be clear about what data you collect, how you’ll use it, and how it benefits the subscriber, including whether data is shared or sold.
• Give customers control over their data and communication preferences.
• Explain what subscribers can expect from your emails, texts, and push notifications.
• Only contact opted-in subscribers, and avoid services that scrape email addresses from third-party sources.

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Personalization can cross a line—but most of it is fair game

Shoppers are clear that they want more personalized experiences. But there’s a difference between what feels helpful and what feels uncomfortable or invasive.

Personalization feels invasive when it implies something shoppers didn’t share

Shoppers say it feels uncomfortable or invasive when:

• 42%: A brand personalizes in a way that implies it knows something the shopper never shared
• 36%: Personalization is based on sensitive topics the brand seems to infer (e.g., health concerns, weight, fertility status)
• 34%: Personal information comes from another website/app (e.g., name, location)
• 31%: A brand uses data from other websites/apps to personalize messages

The most common reasons these experiences feel uncomfortable:

• 61% aren’t sure how the brand got the information
• 58% feel like they don’t have control over how their data is used
• 38% say it’s uncomfortable when incorrect assumptions are made

Shoppers are comfortable with personalization based on what they do or share with your brand

The good news: shoppers are comfortable with most personalization scenarios. The common thread is relying on first-party data, while avoiding sensitive inferences.

Shoppers say it feels acceptable or neutral when brands:

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The more channels a customer is subscribed to, the more likely they are to view all forms of personalization as acceptable.

Take action

• Use first-party data shoppers expect (on-site behavior, past purchases, preferences, etc.) as your default personalization inputs.
• Avoid personalization based on sensitive inferences or third-party data a shopper wouldn’t expect you to have.
• Make the “why” clear by tying messages to a source when relevant (items they viewed, saved, added to cart, or purchased) so shoppers aren’t left wondering how you got the info.

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87% of shoppers find AI-powered brand experiences valuable

Customers want brands to make shopping easier—and AI can help scale relevance that’s hard to do manually.

AI improves the shopping experience

Of shoppers who have been aware they’ve interacted with a brand that’s using AI, 87% of them say those experiences are valuable.

They say AI-powered brand experiences:

• Save time and effort
• Resolve issues faster (e.g., returns, shipping, order updates)
• Give relevant product recommendations
• Increase purchase confidence
• Make marketing messages feel more relevant

In a 2025 study, advanced AI was shown to directly improve the shopping experience by reducing decision fatigue and purchase postponement in luxury shoppers.

Shoppers are open to AI personalization—but they want it done responsibly

Here’s what shoppers told us:

• 58% of shoppers are comfortable with brands using their interactions to personalize with AI (only 20% are uncomfortable).
• 64% worry their data will be used in ways they don’t understand.
• 47% worry AI will push them to buy things they don’t need.
• 47% say they’d be more loyal to brands that use AI to make life easier, not just sell more.

Younger generations embrace AI: 71% of Gen Z and Millennials say they’re comfortable with brands using AI for personalization.

Brands can help shoppers feel more comfortable

Shoppers say they’d feel more comfortable with AI personalization if brands met these requirements:

• 51%: Strong security and privacy policies
• 45%: Clarity on what data is collected and how it’s used
• 45%: Commitment not to sell/share data
• 42%: Ability to request deletion of their data
• 36%: Clearer benefit to them

Take action

• Set trust as a baseline with strong security policies and an easy path to requesting data deletion.
• Prioritize AI uses that improve customer experience (faster support, easier product discovery, more relevant recommendations).
• Pair AI with the signals shoppers expect you to use (their on-site behavior and details they’ve shared).
• Make the value exchange clear: explain why a recommendation will suit them.

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92% say RCS improves the shopping experience

RCS (Rich Communication Services) Business Messaging is the next generation of mobile messaging, bringing more interactive experiences directly into text conversations between brands and consumers. And shoppers are ready for it: 92% say at least one RCS feature would improve their shopping experience.

The top RCS features they say would improve their experience:

• 72%: Messages verified by carriers to ensure it’s not a scam
• 70%: Check order status with visual tracking updates
• 65%: Receive promos based on store proximity
• 61%: Save items to their cart
• 59%: Connect with customer service through verified conversations
• 57%: Use quick-reply buttons to share preferences or get personalized offers
• 54%: Schedule appointments or services by text
• 52%: Product carousels
• 50%: Purchase featured products within the text conversation

Early adopters are already seeing impressive results from RCS:

• FragranceNet.com has increased CVR by 50%
• Spanx drives 201% more revenue/send from unengaged subscribers

Take action

• Map out how RCS capabilities can enhance your customer experience and start incorporating it into your long-term messaging strategy.
• Apply for an RCS Agent by contacting your Attentive CSM, or sign up for a demo if you’re new to Attentive. RCS approvals now take as little as 4–5 weeks once your application is submitted. Attentive is leading the RCS Business Messaging rollout in the United States and accelerating brand approvals through our strong partnerships with Google and all major phone carriers.

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The takeaway: Relevance wins when shoppers are more selective

With ongoing price pressure, shoppers are being more deliberate in 2026. Add in choice overload and it takes more to earn their attention. 

Shoppers have made it clear what keeps them engaged and gets them to pull out their wallets: Personalized experiences.

And they actively want brands to use their interactions to make shopping easier and make marketing more relevant.

When brands align with that, they earn attention and loyalty—which ultimately supports stronger conversion rates and ROI.

That’s exactly what Attentive helps marketers do—turning first-party signals into more relevant messages across SMS, email, push notifications, and RCS.

Want to see what this could look like for your brand? Learn more and get a demo.

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Methodology

Attentive surveyed 1,050 consumers across the US, UK, and Australia ages 18–79 to understand how shoppers define personalization today, what they expect from brands, and what experiences drive trust and action. Respondents have shopped online in the past three months and are currently opted into at least one of email or text message marketing from brands.