“Hi {First Name}” Isn’t Personalization. It’s a Mail Merge in a Costume.
Two emails land in Ben’s inbox on the same morning. He’s just an example.
Email one: “Hi Ben, we’ve got something special for you!”
Email two, from a company whose running shoes he looked at twice last week: “Still thinking about the trail shoes? Here’s how they fit if you have wider feet, from people who bought them.”
Both used his name or his data. Only one felt like it was written by someone who noticed him.
What’s the difference?
The first one used a field. The second one used a reason.
A name tells the sender who you are. Behavior tells the sender what you’re trying to do.
What does real personalization look like?
It answers questions about the reader.
What did they do? Looked at a pricing page. Read two articles about the same problem. Opened your last three emails but never clicked.
What did they say? In a reply, on a form, in a call. “We’re looking at this in Q3.” “Our team is just two people.”
Where are they in the decision? Just curious, comparing options, or ready to buy. The right message for each is different.
Generic versus relevant
Generic (SaaS onboarding): “Hi Ben, welcome! Here are 10 features to help you get started.”
Relevant: “Hi Ben. You set up your first project yesterday but haven’t invited anyone. Most people get stuck on who to add. Here’s a two-minute way to invite your team.”
Generic (cold email from a salesperson): “Hi Ben, I help companies like yours grow revenue.”
Relevant: “Hi Ben. You posted a role for a customer success manager last month. When a team hires its first CSM, the first problem is usually where customer notes live. That’s the thing I help with. Is it a problem you’re seeing?”
(All examples are illustrative.)
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