Sitecore Customization: Everything You Need to Know

We can still see how many companies don't take advantage of the large amount of information and relevant behavioral data that users leave each time they navigate within a website. And this is a shame if you use Sitecore as CMS, since this functionality is already integrated into this web content management system, and with very little configuration you can transform your website into a personalized and, therefore, more profitable user experience.

In Sitecore, the information collected (geolocation, number of times a page has been visited, etc.) can be used to offer specific content, but this is just the tip of the iceberg. In Sitecore, it is possible to dynamically collect information about user behavior through the use of Sitecore profiles.

Precision in Personalization

Sitecore allows you to personalize user experiences in real time. This is one of the most powerful features of this CMS. Personalization is the method of showing specific and relevant content to users based on their characteristics and behavior.

With personalization, you can ensure that: the user receives the appropriate content for their profile, for example: showing, hiding or adjusting the content.

Creating profiles may seem complex, but it's actually quite easy to keep it simple, and still make a big impact on the visitor's experience of your website.

To create a simple yet powerful profile on your website, you need to work in these 5 areas:

• Profiles
• Profile key
• Profile sheet
• Pattern sheet
• Visitor profile

Profile

Profiles are the segment (s) in which you categorize your visitors, either through a product group or interest group. If it were a travel site, an example of a Profile could be “type of trip”.

Profile Key

Profile keys are the properties that you can associate with your profiles. For a complete profile, such as “Type of trip” they could be, for example: Experience, Relaxation, Action, Party and Safety.

Profile sheet

A profile sheet is defined by a set of properties that collectively describe a part of the content on your website. The properties are defined using the Profile Keys.

For example, for a travel site, Profile Cards could be: Group Travel, Adventure, and Beach Vacations.

When a visitor reads a page, these values are used to determine the type of use.

Pattern sheet

The patterns tab defines the different segments of your visitors.

A pattern sheet is defined by a set of properties that collectively describe a type of person, such as the example in Figure 1; which illustrates a travel customer who prefers the security of group travel.

Visitor profile

The visitor profile is where the magic happens. This is where all the interactions and behavioral data of the website visitor are stored. That way, the profile score is what represents your visitor's attributes when it comes to your content. Using these features, the visitor will be matched with the Pattern Sheet (Person) that best fits.

Personalization with people

Once a profile has been properly configured, you can start customizing the content of your website in real time based on the person (Pattern Sheet) that is your visitor. For example, by establishing rules so that your banner located on the front side reflects the interests of the visitor, on a travel site there could be several illustrations that fit your people, Active Vacations, Group Trips, Adventure, etc.

Many companies haven't started taking advantage of Sitecore's powerful customization engine yet, but as we've described in this article, it doesn't take much to get started and reap the rewards.

By creating profiles, you can begin to gain a better understanding of your visitors and, in this way, offer them a better user experience on your website.

The configuration can be done at 100% by the Content Marketing Department and the benefits will show up right away, and you're just getting started.

How can we help you?

If you need more information do not hesitate to contact us.