Personalization is considered table stakes for marketers who want to engage loyal consumers. But personalization means more than the tone and content of a message customers receive; it refers to the complete package, including what channel they are receiving these messages on, when, how often, etc.

Many elements go into creating personalized experiences that marketers may be overlooking. My company has conducted significant research around Americans' expectations and preferences for brand engagement over the past year—specifically on how and when they want brands to message them and the ways they use social media apps to interact.

What we've found is that personalization starts before a brand even begins drafting the content to be sent. For example, 87% of respondents say they now use social media apps to message with brands and it's driving their purchasing decisions. Accordingly, marketers should prioritize deploying an omnichannel messaging approach that includes channels such as chat apps and social media rather than the email blasts they may have relied on in the past. Personalized messages won't matter if no one ever reads them.

Here are three steps modern brand marketers can take to enhance personalization in their customer engagement campaigns.

1. Figure out where to send your messages

One of the first steps to making sure that the overall experience delivered by a brand is personalized is to determine which channel(s) your customers are most engaged on and prioritize those channels.

More customers are using social media as a way to get help and answers from brands over other communications channels: Most (77%) say they've used social media to contact a brand's customer support, and 79% report a positive experience doing so. In fact, more than half (58%) of consumers say they prefer that brands use social media to communicate versus other methods, such as email, call, or text.

Why do customers overwhelmingly enjoy connecting with brands on social media? They enjoy that social media messaging is convenient (72%), fast (61%), and personalized (50%).

Considering such data is critical when determining which channels are part of your omnichannel strategy and which to prioritize. Knowing where to send messages to consumers is one of the most important, if not the most important, step in personalizing an experience that will drive loyalty.

2. Consider when and how often recipients want to receive messages

Once you understand the channels and topics your customers are most interested in, determine when messages should be sent and how often you should be following up based on the personalized experiences recipients want.

This is especially important considering that when asked what might cause them to opt out of texts from a brand, Americans indicated that the top reason was receiving messages too frequently (72%).

Although customers appear frustrated at the volume of messages, they are also picky about timing. Some 42% say they do not want brands sending nonessential texts on weekend mornings. More specifically, the biggest no-no for those age 55+ is weekend evenings, which 52% agreed isn't appropriate for brand messages. The most universally preferred time is weekday afternoons, which 30% of all respondents agreed to.