The Sitecore Cortex with its advanced set of tools for marketing leverages artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) to become a game changer for organizations and marketers alike.
Cortex aids in deriving contextual intelligence from several gigabytes of digital footprints that is key to delivering a smooth and personalized experience for its customers. Its features use the ML algorithms to gather real-time data insights across all devices to deliver meaningful content across all the channels.
Sitecore Cortex essentially ties together the three integral facets of handling Big Data and predictive analysis- Collect, Connect and Process.
The Power of xDB- Collection
xDB has been a part of Sitecore’s features since version 7.5, so it isn’t entirely a new concept for those familiar with Sitecore. For organizations working with Big Data, xDB is a powerful feature that enables a complete omnichannel view of their interaction with the brand profile for each of its customers. The data is collected in real-time across all platforms and channels – websites, in-store visits, beacons, IoT devices, call centers, third-party sources. The experience profile, that also captures demographics and needs, is gleaned from the campaigns the customer has responded to, the number of visits, and the kind of content viewed.
Teamed with Cortex’s machine learning, this expansive customer data can be used to garner real-time insights. Marketers can optimize this data to their advantage to personalize customer experiences.
The real value of xConnect
Consumers could be decisive or impulsive but they are all tech-savvy and use all their resources to survey and review before making their purchases. Hence, their digital footprints could be tougher to track. Also, they could load their shopping cart today via mobile Apps, review and edit in on their home laptops, and ultimately check-out (often not on the same day) through a tablet.
With so much data coming in, it’s difficult to connect all the dots to form a coherent route-map to consumer satisfaction. Sitecore Cortex 9.0 brings with it xConnect that pieces together information pouring in from any device in any format.
The out-of-box services enable data integration and data exchange. xConnect is capable of extracting data from a wide range of devices that are connected like the mobile Apps, beacon-enabled stores, AR/VR systems, and so on. Using the oData industry standards, xConnect can stream this to intelligent systems like the Microsoft BI.
For a marketer, this is an incredible tool to build a long-lasting brand-customer relationship. xConnect allows for easy indexing (through the automatic indexing feature) of any contact, event, or interaction. Marketers can mine this data to create personalized campaigns to attract new customers as well as retain old ones. xConnect enables abstraction using databases like Microsoft Azure SQL, SQL Server 2016, and MongoDB – a boon for IT teams.
Machine Learning and its many advantages- Process
Machine learning (ML) helps organizations substitute human judgment with predictive analysis. It crunches huge volumes of data and automates the task of finding patterns in complex datasets to make smart predictions. Not just that, discovering newer segments, and segmenting and grouping behavioural trends can be achieved through ML.
The Sitecore Cortex comes powered with a dedicated engine for processing the machine learning algorithms. It combines the advanced algorithms with innovate machine learning to provide marketers with real-time insights. Cortex marries the analytical and logical tools with unique behavioural purchasing patterns of customers. This powerful combination makes it simpler for a marketer to garner relevant insights for each customer and build a unique, personalized and smooth experience for customers not only during purchase but also before and after the purchase.
Machine learning optimizes key engagements, highlights the most effective customer paths, processes large quantities of data and enhances the customer experience by segmentation and personalization. Based on the content clicked, Cortex can build customer profiles, prepare automatic content tagging, smart attribution models, drive self-learning engagement, and even provide intelligent suggestions in real-time.
Sitecore Cortex as a game changer for organizations
Up until now, Sitecore users were required to define the rules for engagement, facets, segmentation; basically, everything that was needed to get a holistic view of the customer-brand relationship. Cortex changes all that with its ability to automate this task, process enormous volumes of data in real-time and leverage machine learning outcomes to deliver a consistent and relevant purchase experience for every customer.
Even the smallest of marketing teams can benefit by using Sitecore Cortex because it blends the most advanced machine learning algorithms to collect, connect and process big data in real-time and deliver relevant consumer insights for the marketer. It’s your in-house intelligent data scientist!
GDPR compliant
With large amounts of data at hand, there’s an increased risk to security. Sitecore Cortex’s xConnect encrypts data for security reasons and supports the right to “data portability” and “right to be forgotten”.
Wish to know more about Sitecore Cortex and how it can benefit your organization? Do connect with our expert team at Suyati.
