Pages ≠ Stages: Why Website Personalization Is Stuck in the Wrong Mindset, w. David Mannheim CEO and Founder of MadeWithIntent.ai

In the latest episode of the Hello $Firstname podcast, I’m joined (Again! Congrats on being the first 2nd-time guest, David) by David Mannheim — author of The Person in Personalisation, founder of MadeWithIntent.ai, avid Disney fan and all-around provocateur of personalization norms.

David and I go way back — he even wrote the foreword for Hello $Firstname — but this episode isn’t just a nostalgic reunion. It’s a bold look at how website personalization has lagged behind other parts of the customer experience, and how understanding customer intent is the key to finally catching up.

📊 What’s the Intent Gap?
David’s team recently released a report that shows just how off the mark many ecommerce websites are. Despite having tons of data, 63% of online shoppers say digital experiences feel “inappropriate” or even “manipulative.” That’s not just a CX issue — it’s a trust issue.

💥 The Big Idea:
Most web personalization doesn’t match buying stages, it matches page templates. But just because I’m on a product page doesn’t mean I’m ready to buy. (Maybe I’m still browsing, maybe I’m stuck, maybe I’m about to bounce.) David argues — convincingly — that we should personalize for intent, not location.

🔁 Context Is King
What’s powerful here is how MadeWithIntent generates real-time data signals based on digital body language — scroll depth, mouse movements, time between clicks — and turns that into insights about a user’s mindset. The aim? To surface the right message at the right time, both onsite and in outbound comms.

And this connects beautifully to the CX Layers framework. MadeWithIntent enriches the Data Layer with real-time context, enabling the Personalization Layer to act meaningfully — not just generically.

🧠 We also dive into:

• Why discounting might feel like the only optimization lever (but is often a race to the bottom)
  
• The difference between existing content and new nudges
  
• How outbound marketing can learn from onsite signals
  
• Why most retargeting emails are just… bad
  
• The long-term promise (and current limits) of GenAI in website personalization
  

🎧 This one’s packed with sharp insights, useful provocations, and some delightfully David-style perspectives on what real personalization should look like in 2025 and beyond.

1. Check out 'The Intent Gap Report' here or

2. 'Made with Intent' here or

3. Connect with David here

As always the episode is based on Rasmus Houlind's book ’Hello $FirstName - Profiting from Personalization’ and in turn the Content Crisis Manifesto.

The Content Crisis Manifesto can be downloaded here.

The full book is available in print and kindle and can be bought here (or your local amazon in case it doesn't work...)

An written abstract of the book can be downloaded here.

The full audiobook can be downloaded here (courtesy of Agillic).

All models and illustrations from the book can be downloaded here.

Book me for a presentation, meeting or talk here!