Clienteling 2.0: Building Digital Intimacy at Scale
Gen Z and Alpha consumers crave personal attention in a way that older generations never have
The art of clienteling has evolved far beyond the birthday wishes, remembering anniversaries and graduations or any other excuse to say "Thinking of you!"
If you’ve been in the sales game a while, you may well remember, or bemoan, those days of the little black book that kept safe all that information to reel old clients back in. But the practice was sloppy in execution, time consuming and did not yield the return we all pretended it could.
That’s why today's leading retailers are artfully combining sophisticated data capabilities with personalized service to create what I would like to coin as "digital intimacy at scale."
This modern approach harnesses customer data across all touch-points (web, in-store, SMS and email) to craft emotionally meaningful experiences that feel genuinely personal. The modern clienteling technology stack captures everything from purchase history to browsing behavior and preference data, then transforms these into valuable insights and natural conversation starters for sales teams.
What makes this evolution truly powerful isn't just the technology itself, but how it enhances human connections. That is why I’d like not to keep using the tired buzzword, “omni-channel”. However, if “digital intimacy at scale”, gives you a little bit of the ick I’m open to any suggestions in the comments.
To help you gin up suggests, I’ll share my recent [insert new buzzword here] experience when shopping with SUITSUPPLY. My first touchpoint with the brand was browsing their collections on Pinterest. Clicking one of the pins, their mobile app was downloaded directly to my phone. It prompted me to book a styling appointment, since it recognized that I did not yet have a customer profile. During the appointment at one of their nearby stores, I was greeted by name and “checked in” with a QR code, which married my measurements and style preferences to the profile I already created online. After my first purchase there was continuity across every interaction, through SMS updates and reminders about the production and fulfillment of my tailored garment. As a bonus, I was sent the name and photo of the stylist who assisted me, requesting a review of their service. I never once felt like I was in a deli line waiting for my number to be called!
This harmonious integration of digital efficiency and old-world craftsmanship demonstrated to me how luxury retail can embrace technology without sacrificing the personal touch that discerning customers value.
So if we agree that clienteling in the modern age, requires metrics of engagement and tracking relationship development over time, does your company have a CRM or similar tool that keeps up? Hope so, because products can be quickly commoditized, but the emotional connections we create, as Salespeople, represent the only truly sustainable competitive advantage.
Key Takeaway
In a world of endless transactions, the brands that master the art of digital intimacy don't just sell products – they create relationships that transcend the marketplace, foster fierce loyalty and are determinant of repeat and referral business!
As a practice of honing my own skills, the best clienteling I’ve ever done was born from a reflection on my own shopping experiences. So, with your consumer hat on, I invite you to take a minute to do the same.
How has a personalized interaction with a salesperson influenced your loyalty to that brand? How could you translate your experience of that salesperson to the way you clientele with your customers? Shares, as always, are welcome in the comments!