Marketing to a new breed of consumer wielding the power of personalisation in their favour. Not yours.
For decades, personalisation has been something brands did to consumers. AI has flipped that. Instead of brands constantly telling consumers who to become, consumers now use AI to help them fi
For years, personalisation has been us guessing what the customer wants. Scott Brinker, the "Godfather of Martech" and founder of chiefmartec.com, joins Rasmus Houlind and Frans Riemersma and closes on a different idea: instead of guessing, let the customer tell us what they want, and then deliver it. Along the way we trace the show's origin back to a phrase Scott and Frans coined together, "agents of customers". We get into the three types of AI agents now reshaping marketing, why buyers already hold more power than most sellers have noticed, why raw software capability stopped being a…
In the chapters leading up to this point, we've explored how to create meaningful, personalised experiences across channels, campaigns, and touchpoints. We've talked about data, content, and the orchestration that brings it all together. We've introduced the Bowtie of Personalisation, the CX Layers, and the Pyramid of Personalisation to help structure that work. But what happens when the customer never shows up? What happens when they send an agent instead? When this book first went to print, that question was still mostly hypothetical. It no longer is. Every major LLM now ships some form of…
In Chapter 22 of Hello $Firstname, Arild Horsberg reads ‘Achieving Organisational Maturity for Personalisation’. Arild Horsberg is general manager of Forte Optimize in Oslo, Norway. In this chapter, he reads the final chapter of Part Four, where the book brings people and skills, technology, and governance together and turns the maturity model into action. Knowing the levels of the back end of the Pyramid of Personalisation does not by itself help you move from one level to the next. This short chapter focuses on the actions needed to break through the otherwise invisible glass ceilings…
In Chapter 21 of Hello $Firstname, Yogita Wadhwa reads ‘Governance and Processes’. Yogita Wadhwa works in what she calls the messy middle, where strategy, technology, data, and execution have to come together for things to actually work. She has spent more than 25 years working with large enterprises across the US, Australia, and the Middle East. In this chapter, she reads the third deep dive into the back end of the Pyramid of Personalisation. The chapter opens at Matas, the Danish beauty and health retailer, where a customer club of two million members has become the foundation for a…
In Chapter 20 of Hello $Firstname, Matthew Niederberger reads ‘Marketing Technology’. Matthew Niederberger is a fractional head of martech at Martech Therapy, which mostly means he gets called in when a stack is not doing what the slide deck promised. He spends most of his working life inside other people’s martech stacks, so this is the chapter he would have picked himself. The chapter opens with John at Diligent Corporation, preparing a major product launch. A content marketing platform trained on the company’s tone of voice, product terminology, and target personas returns working drafts…
In Chapter 19 of Hello $Firstname, Michel Stevens reads ‘People and Skills for Personalisation’. Michel Stevens is course director at CXM Academy and has spent his professional life on exactly what this chapter is about: the people and skills behind customer experience. In this chapter, he reads the first of three deep dives into the back end of the Pyramid of Personalisation. The chapter opens with Pernille at the Royal Danish Theatre. Her team has spent years building a website, an app, and a marketing automation platform. Now it is time to stop building more cars and start driving the…
In Chapter 18 of Hello $Firstname, Fiona Ngaruro reads ‘Models of Organisational Maturity in Personalisation’. Fiona Ngaruro is a digital growth and marketing technology strategist based in Nairobi, Kenya, and the creator and host of the Martech Unraveled podcast, which explores how marketing and technology are shaping business growth across Africa. In this chapter, she opens Part Four of the book, where the focus moves from what to build to how an organisation matures so it can keep building personalisation profitably. The chapter introduces the back end of the Pyramid of Personalisation.…
For two decades, personalisation has been something brands did to consumers. AI just flipped that. In this opening episode, Rasmus Houlind (Agillic, Hello $Firstname) and Frans Riemersma (MartechTribe, MartechMap.com) introduce Hello Me — an open, exploratory podcast about what happens to marketing once consumers start using AI to figure out who they want to be, instead of waiting for brands to tell them. We get into: why humans may have already solved for safety and survival without quite noticing; the three types of AI agents reshaping martech; whether wearables are making us healthier or…
In Chapter 17 of Hello $Firstname, Steen Rasmussen reads ‘Conversion Rate Optimisation and Personalisation’. Steen Rasmussen is co-founder of Brand Leadership Community and IIH Nordic, as well as an international keynote speaker and consultant specialising in the commercial use of web data, optimisation, and personalisation. In this chapter, he reads the final chapter of Part Three, where the book explores the relationship between CRO and personalisation. The chapter begins with a fundamental question: before you personalise every touchpoint, is the general customer experience already…
In Chapter 16 of Hello $Firstname, Keanu Taylor reads ‘The CX Layers: How Data and Content Fuel Personalisation’. Keanu Taylor is Global Head of Research at The MarTech Weekly, a global analyst firm helping enterprise brands turn the complexity of marketing technology into clarity. In this chapter, he reads about the CX Layers framework and how data and content work in parallel to fuel personalisation. The chapter explains why many personalisation projects have historically been too data-centric. Data is essential, but data alone does not create a personalised customer experience. It needs…
In Chapter 15 of Hello $Firstname, Ida Söderbäck reads ‘The Basic Foundations for Personalisation’. Ida Söderbäck is a customer loyalty and CRM marketing expert currently at the Swedish Red Cross. In this chapter, she reads the opening chapter of Part Three, where the book turns from what personalisation is and how it creates value to when personalisation is actually the right tactic to use. The chapter asks three important questions: Do you have the prerequisites to do personalisation? Is it the right thing for your organisation to do? And is it the right thing to do now? It argues that…
In Chapter 14 of Hello $Firstname, Rasmus Houlind reads ‘Tying It All Up in the Bowtie of Personalization’. Rasmus Houlind is the author of Hello $Firstname and narrates this chapter himself because it brings Part Two together. The chapter revisits all four corners of the Bowtie of Personalization and shows how they come together across campaigns, marketing automation, and inbound platforms. The chapter explains what good looks like from the customer’s point of view. A realistic personalized customer experience is not hyper-personalized at every touchpoint. It is a mix of highly personalized…
In Chapter 13 of Hello $Firstname, Mark Robertson reads ‘Personalization on Inbound Platforms’. Mark Robertson is Partnerships Director at Mastercard Dynamic Yield and has spent around 25 years working across marketing, technology, sales, partnerships, and tools for both outbound and inbound marketing. In this chapter, he reads about personalization on websites, apps, and other inbound platforms. The chapter explains that visitors arrive on inbound platforms with some kind of intention. If campaigns and marketing automation have done their job, the brand may even have helped spark that…
In Chapter 12 of Hello $Firstname, Maria Moreau reads ‘Content, Part 2: Content Feeds’. Maria Moreau is CRM Director at Boozt.com, where she works with CRM for millions of users. In this chapter, she reads about the second content corner of the Bowtie of Personalization: content feeds. The chapter opens with HBO Max and the challenge of personalizing which movies, series, and episodes are shown to each user. It explains how content feeds differ from messages: they are often fed from existing sources such as product information systems, article databases, application databases, or ecommerce…
In Chapter 11 of Hello $Firstname, Jordie van Rijn reads ‘Personalization in Marketing Automation’. Jordie van Rijn is an email marketing and martech specialist who guides businesses in selecting marketing software through emailvendorselection.com. In this chapter, he reads about personalization in marketing automation and customer lifecycle communication. The chapter explains why marketing automation is different from campaigns. Instead of deciding that it is Thursday and sending a newsletter, automation waits for customers to reach specific moments of truth and then responds with a…
In Chapter 10 of Hello $Firstname, Morten Suhr Hansen reads ‘Insights, Part 2: Moments of Truth’. Morten Suhr Hansen is founder and senior partner at Subscrybe, where he works extensively with subscription businesses. In this chapter, he reads about the second insight corner of the Bowtie of Personalization: moments of truth. The chapter opens with FT.com and a usage digest designed to reduce churn before subscription renewal. It explains how the timing of a message can make the difference between relevance and irrelevance, especially when customers are close to making a decision that…
In Chapter 9 of Hello $Firstname, Peter Anders Franch reads ‘Personalization in Campaigns’. Peter Anders Franch is Head of CRM, CLV, and Customer Insight at Matas in Denmark, where he works with Club Matas, one of Scandinavia’s largest loyalty programs. In this chapter, he reads about how personalization creates value in campaigns. The chapter defines what a campaign is and distinguishes campaign communication from customer lifecycle communication. It explains how personalization in campaigns can increase sales, improve efficiency, reduce unnecessary media spend, avoid customer…
In Chapter 8 of Hello $Firstname, Ana Mourão reads ‘Content, Part 1: Messages’. Ana Mourão is a global martech and customer data leader, originally from Brazil and now based in the Miami area. In this chapter, she reads about the first content corner of the Bowtie of Personalization: messages. The chapter opens with FC Copenhagen and its season pass renewal campaign. It shows how a brand can use customer segments, first-party data, paid media, owned media, and message variants to make outbound communication feel more relevant to different types of fans. The chapter explains what a message…
In Chapter 7 of Hello $Firstname, Jens Hård reads ‘Insights, Part 1: Segments’. Jens Hård has around 20 years of experience in data-driven marketing and is CEO of Root Digital Group. In this chapter, he reads about the first insight corner of the Bowtie of Personalization: customer segments. The chapter uses the Canadian bank Groupe Desjardins as its opening case and explores how segments can help an organization understand the different needs, desires, behaviours, and life situations of its customers. It explains how segments are built, how they can be turned into personas, and why…
In Chapter 6 of Hello $Firstname, Tom Peace reads ‘The Bowtie of Personalization’. Tom Peace is CEO and founder of Sway Outcomes, a global customer strategy consultancy focused on loyalty and CRM. In this chapter, he introduces the central model of Part Two: the Bowtie of Personalization. The chapter explains how meaningful personalization is created by combining two kinds of customer insight, segments and moments of truth, with two kinds of content, messages and content feeds. Through the Viva Gym case, the chapter shows how a fitness brand can use onboarding, inactivity signals, customer…
In Chapter 5 of Hello $Firstname, Kim Jong Andersen reads ‘Marketing Without Personalisation’. Kim Jong Andersen is Managing Partner at the Danish agency WDP. In this chapter, he reads a deliberately difficult exploration of what marketing would look like if we removed personalisation from the equation. The answer helps clarify what personalisation can and cannot do. Personalisation is a powerful communication tactic, but it cannot compensate for a weak value proposition, boring creative work, poor reach, or a badly designed customer experience. The chapter introduces the…
In Chapter 4 of Hello $Firstname, Dr Matt Johnson reads ‘Why Does Personalisation Work?’ Matt is the author of Blindsight and Branding That Means Business, and he hosts the blog neuroscienceof.com. In this chapter, he brings the listener into the psychology behind personalisation. Why do people respond better to messages and content that feel relevant to them? The answer is connected to evolutionary psychology and the fundamental motives framework, including motives such as avoiding harm, avoiding disease, making friends, attaining status, acquiring a mate, and caring for family. The chapter…
In Chapter 3 of Hello $Firstname, Mhari Coxon reads ‘Defining Personalisation’. Mhari is a marketer from the United Kingdom, and in this chapter she takes the listener into one of the book’s central missions: creating a practical definition of personalisation that marketers can actually use. The chapter distinguishes personalisation from customisation, actual personalisation from perceived personalisation, and explicit personalisation from implicit personalisation. It also explores the blurry boundary between segmentation, targeting, and personalisation, arguing that personalisation is not a…
In Chapter 2 of Hello $Firstname, Dr Jason Pallant reads ‘What Is the Problem with Personalisation?’ Jason is Director of the Marketing Technology Lab at RMIT University in Melbourne, Australia. He has also used some of the frameworks from Hello $Firstname in the marketing technology curriculum at RMIT. This chapter explores why personalisation is such a difficult topic to align around. Marketers often use the same word while meaning very different things. UX and website teams may think about dynamic content and recommendations. Media and advertising teams may think about targeting and…
In Chapter 1 of Hello $Firstname, Kim Motroen reads ‘The Hype of Personalisation’. Kim is one of the founders of Publicis Foundry and has spent more than 20 years working with marketing, technology, and customer experience. This chapter traces the roots of personalisation hype back to The One to One Future by Don Peppers and Martha Rogers, and explores why the idea of individualised communication has remained so powerful for marketers, brands, and technology vendors. The chapter looks at the commercial promise of personalisation, from higher customer lifetime value to better omnichannel…
Welcome to the audiobook edition of Hello $Firstname, the AI edition. In this opening episode, Rasmus Houlind reads the introduction to the updated edition of the book and explains why personalisation has changed so dramatically since the first edition. Generative AI has made the content challenge easier to solve, but it has also made the need for clear frameworks, shared language, and practical execution even more urgent. At the end of the introduction, Rasmus adds a short reflection on how agentic commerce, agentic personalisation, and agentic workflows are already changing how…
What has actually changed in personalization now that generative AI is everywhere? In this digital launch recording for the AI Edition of Hello $Firstname, Rasmus Houlind is joined by co-author Frans Riemersma and Maria Moreau from Boozt. Together, they explore how AI affects personalization, why the Content Layer has become increasingly important, how the Bowtie of Personalization still helps marketers create shared language, and what Boozt’s practical CRM approach can teach us about making personalization work in the real world. Consider watching the video-edition of this episode on…
In this episode of Hello $Firstname, I’m joined by Nikolaj Skarbye from Scratcher.io for a deep dive into what might be the most overlooked shortcut to personalization: asking people directly - while making it fun. At the heart of our conversation is zero-party data: the kind of willingly shared data that can include preferences, intentions, interests - even motivations. And instead of waiting for transactional behaviour to build up, gamification offers a way to collect this data early in the journey, at scale, and in ways that engage rather than interrupt. The twist?If done well,…
What happens when the Content Crisis meets AI creativity? In this episode of the Hello $Firstname podcast, I sat down with Villads Leth, CEO and Founder at Alvas.ai, to explore what fully individualised, AI-written email content looks like in practice. And why it’s forcing marketers to rethink what content is, how it’s created, and what it means to personalise at scale. 🎯 Here’s what makes this conversation so relevant: Villads and his team are enabling brands to go far beyond segmentation. They’re generating email content that’s 100% unique—based not just on the products in a customer’s…
In the latest episode of the Hello $Firstname podcast, I had the pleasure of talking with Chris Kjær Sørensen, CTO and co-founder of Landfolk — the curated holiday rental platform that’s redefining what it means to rent a holiday home with character. What struck me most in this conversation is just how naturally Landfolk operates in alignment with the Content Layer of the CX Layers framework. Not because they set out to do so—but because their approach to content is rooted in human stories, structure, and AI-powered scalability. ✨ So, what makes their content work so special? 📥 Collection,…
About ’Hello Me’ - AI has flipped Personalisation
Marketing to a new breed of consumer wielding the power of personalisation in their favour. Not yours.
For decades, personalisation has been something brands did to consumers. AI has flipped that. Instead of brands constantly telling consumers who to become, consumers now use AI to help them fi
’Hello Me’ - AI has flipped Personalisation is a English business podcast from Rasmus Houlind. Melo plays each episode straight from the publisher's own feed — no ads added, no account needed — and remembers where you stopped, in this browser only.
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