Cross-device identification lets you collect customer browse and purchase data across multiple devices, and then use that data to personalize cross-channel campaigns. This is important because nearly half of all online shopping activities begin on one device only to finish it on another. Most online sales begin on mobile devices with 75% of customers using their phones or tablets to research products. However, mobile sales only make up 30% of all digital sales.

If you can't capture that data, you'll miss a huge opportunity to target customers. Marketers strive for a holistic, single view of their customers. Cross-device identification is no longer hypothetical. It is not only possible to identify shoppers when they're at home, work or on mobile devices, but you can also serve up messages that are personalized, targeted and consistent no matter where they are.

Cross Device Identification Video

How does cross-device targeting work?
Email bridges the gap between devices. Let's say someone browses your site on her tablet. She opts into your list but doesn't make a purchase. The next day, she opens the browse abandonment email on her desktop at work, returning to the site and placing an order. You can connect those two devices to that single shopper's account.

A few days later, she opens a post purchase email on her phone. That device is now tied to her account. She clicks through and makes another purchase.

That night, she opens the order confirmation email on her laptop at home. All of that shopper's devices is now tied to her single account. What used to look like four separate shoppers is now accurately identified as a single customer.

With the right technology in place you can bridge the gap between devices and merge all data points.

Why is this tactic an advantage?‍

Customers expect you to know them. They expect to be treated as individuals and they want a seamless and consistent experience with your brand every time they interact with you. To them, it doesn't matter if they're browsing your site on a tablet one evening, reading an email on their phone the following day or placing an order on their work computer at another time. The only thing that matters is that every experience is personalized to their needs.

Cross-device identification lets you focus on the shopper, not the device or channel. And it gives you more customer data – particularly browse data which indicates purchase intent – you can use to build targeted and contextually-relevant campaigns.

Enhancing your campaigns

Emails that include personal product recommendations have:

• Increased average order values
• Higher conversion rates
• Higher product discovery and customer loyalty

And when product recommendations are based on browse data, email clicks have increased an incredible 420%.