The rise of generative AI and influx of consumer data sources promise an exciting future for marketers around personalization, but they also leave them rushing to gather, analyze and act upon consumer information with enough speed to make interactions relevant in near real-time moments.
For personalization strategies to succeed, they need 360 degrees of contextual relevance at all times—emotionally, physically, psychologically and environmentally—without intruding on privacy.
The solution to consider: weather. Every day weather patterns present an opportunity to personalize messages to meet shifting consumer moods and behaviors, driving deeper engagement, greater brand loyalty, and ultimately more revenue.
While weather is certainly the original influencer—shaping decisions and behaviors since the beginning of humankind—it also presents a new and exciting solution to modern marketing challenges.
Its impact is undeniable. In 2023, weather is projected to have a bigger effect on ecommerce spend than Cyber Monday, generating an extra $13.5 billion in spending. That powerful market influence can be harnessed with the right strategy to enable deeper, more personal brand-audience connections.
Based on new consumer behavior research and summer weather long range forecasts from The Weather Company, here are three key reasons why a personalization strategy rooted in weather can make your messages hotter than ever this summer.
Predictive data
One of weather’s superpowers is its unique ability to predict consumer behavior and spending thanks to the powerful combination of the data and AI. Take America’s sweetheart generation, Gen Z, as an example. During the summer, they are more likely to act impulsively, whether rain or shine. According to the research, 75% of Gen Z consumers say good summer weather makes them more spontaneous. And when thunderstorms are in the forecast, 43% of Gen Z says they are more likely to crave a snack.
To truly optimize campaigns, these consumer predictions need pinpoint accuracy. Most brands might expect rainy weather to increase online spending. But the impact of a drizzle is far different than that of a downpour.
According to a recent report from Adobe and The Weather Company, ecommerce spending spikes at +4.5% when rainfall is between 0.8 inches and 1 inch in a 24-hour period. This level of precision can help you identify the best moments to engage audiences by understanding at a micro level how and when consumers will respond to specific conditions, maximizing effectiveness and reducing wasted media spend.
Relevant messaging
Personalization gives marketers and brands a chance to directly demonstrate empathy with audiences. But true empathy—that which drives relevance—requires an understanding of the cognitive, behavioral and emotional states of consumers.
With 82% of people indicating that their mood is influenced by the weather, it’s not a stretch to say that weather is undeniably relevant to our daily lives, impacting our thoughts, actions and emotions.
Like empathy, connecting with relevant experiences between weather and consumers can boost purchase intent. For instance, 53% of people say they are more likely to choose a food or beverage when it’s promoted in relation to their current weather, such as an iced beverage when it’s hot outside. With repeated usage over an extended period, these personalized, relevant weather strategies can improve brand loyalty and lead to the acquisition of new customers.
Privacy-friendly signals
With the loss of cookies, third-party audience data is rapidly diminishing, meaning marketers have to rethink how to effectively achieve personalization at scale, both now and in the future. Weather offers a powerful means of reaching consumers while also supporting their privacy.
Weather-based personalization strategies start with accurate forecast data at a ZIP code level often combined with other privacy-forward signals like first-party data, ecommerce data and campaign data. Thanks to AI, marketers can identify the past, present and projected future influence of weather to increase audience engagement and improve outcomes.
Put summer weather to work
This summer, use weather to redefine what it means to be relevant to your audience with empathetic messages that speak to their specific thoughts and needs in the moment.
Personalizing your messages through the lens of weather can help your brand exceed customer expectations while respecting their privacy and improving your return on investment.
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Lauren Lee is focused on driving awareness and adoption of The Weather Company’s industry-leading AI and weather based advertising solutions, including The Weather Channel’s innovative solution suite, which reaches 400 million global users every month.
