How Can Retailers Create Trusted Personalization Without Being Seen As 'Creepy'?

In a recent review of the current state of personalization efforts in terms of retail sales, CX Dive contributor Michael Brady outlined both the necessity of the practice as well as the pitfalls attached in the process.

"The challenge for CX leaders is no longer whether to personalize, but how to do so without breaking consumers’ trust, as personalization can feel invasive, unfair or simply incompetent," Brady wrote, also citing Jeannie Walters of Experience Investigators on the subject.

“When we first started seeing personalization, people often described it as creepy — like, how do you know this much about me?” Walters said. "But now that's completely flipped."

Qualtrics data provided by its 2026 Global Consumer Experience Trends report reinforces this divide between effective and ineffective personalization push from retailers, with customers making it very clear that they value transparency and control over their data in exchange for the building of trust.

Qualtrics report authors suggested that consumers are increasingly demanding customized experiences, but on the other hand are increasingly choosy about the level -- and type -- of data they're comfortable sharing as part of the exchange.

Some Shoppers Remain Adamant Against Data Collection for Retail Personalization, But a Majority Just Want it to Be Better

While nearly one-third (32%) of respondents to a Qualtrics survey suggested that they're uncomfortable with all forms of data gathering to form personalized offers, 30% are comfortable with companies learning of their shopping habits, 29% with merchants remembering previous interactions with websites, the same cohort (29%) with retailers pulling together their shopping data points from various places, and more than one-quarter (27%) were okay with algorithms guessing what they might need next. However, only a slim proportion of respondents (16%) were fine with being listened to, or watched, through their devices to form a consumer profile.

"Companies have the privacy equation backward. They stockpile data about who customers are while missing what customers actually need at any given moment. Successful companies will focus on customer context over customer profiles, making personalization feel helpful rather than invasive," said Isabelle Zdatny, head of thought leadership for Qualtrics.

"But this shift requires transparency. Show customers what you collect, give them control and deletion rights, and, critically, demonstrate how their data improved their specific experience," she added.

Other data points pulled from the Qualtrics report:

• An overwhelming majority (86%) of shoppers indicated that they would be willing to share their data, provided organizations were "more transparent and clear about its usage."
• Fewer than half (39%) of today's shoppers currently believe that the benefits of personalization are worth the costs in terms of privacy.
• Of those surveyed, 46% said more transparency around the data collection process would increase their willingness to share, and 45% said that better control over how it's used, including the ability to delete information, would do the same. Similar cohorts (43% and 37%, respectively) said that communication about how the security of their data, and clearer detailing of the benefits one would receive in exchange, would enhance a willingness to participate.