Sephora Leads the Retail Personalization Index

The brand needs to be emulated when it comes to personalizing the user interface.

For the third year in a row, Sephora has been at the top of the retail personalization rating, according to a rating compiled by Sailthru. The score surveyed 1,500 consumers in the United States and the United Kingdom, who were asked to evaluate 250 retailers for how well they use the data to personalize their interactions with consumers via email, website, and mobile channels.

With 79 points on all criteria, Sephora was ranked number one. Nordstrom’s department store chain was ranked number two, with a significant improvement over last year’s number 8. 3rd place went to Rent the Runway clothing service.

Interestingly, such a player as Amazon managed to get only 56th place (47 points), with excellent performance at the website, but with low scores for mobile and postal channels. And this low rating is particularly surprising, given that the company has been a pioneer in the use of consumer personal information to offer them the most appropriate products.

Walmart, which was ranked 25th (55 points), has a similar situation – excellent site performance, but average on other channels.

Sailthru’s retailer rating confirms some of the recent findings of Forrester Research, which rated Sephora very highly. The company’s mobile app was praised for its convenience and functionality.