Contemporary Challenges in Customized Communication

Dr. Maurits Kapteinm.kaptein@donders.ru.nl

CustomizationPersonalization, Tailoring, …

Sender ReceiverMessage

Sender

ReceiverMessage

Receiver’Message’

Sender

Receiver {Personality=Introvert}

Message{Authority=No}

Receiver’ {Personality=Extravert}Message’{Authority=Yes}

Sender

Receiver {Personality=Introvert}

Message{Authority=No}

Receiver’ {Personality=Extravert}Message’{Authority=Yes}

1. Message Features 2. Receiver properties

Introverts respond differently to authority arguments then extraverts….

Introverts are more inclined to buy a book recommended by the New York Times then extraverts

effe

ct

authority

Introverts

Extraverts

no yes

Introverts are more inclined to buy a book recommended by the New York Times then extraverts

effe

ct

authority

Introverts

Extraverts

no yes

effe

ct

authority

Extraverts

no yes

Introverts

Introverts are more inclined to buy a book recommended by the New York Times then extraverts

1. Properties of the person: Personality, preferences, behavior, etc.

2. Features of the message: Authority arguments, font-size, channel, etc.

3. A goal of the communication attempt: (e.g.,) Selling more books

4. Model of relations between features and properties: (e.g.,) Introverts more susceptible to authority arguments

5. Personalization mapping: (e.g.) Introverts => Authority, Extraverts => No authority

http://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007%2F978-3-319-20306-5_3

Challenge 1: Feature selectionHow do we find the features of the message and of the properties of the receiver that we should focus on?

Opportunity: Peoples previous responses as properties.

Repeated exposure to persuasive messages….

Predicting the response to the next message: Previous response outperforms personality measures

Challenge 2: Sequential decisionsWe can only learn the model gradually

Sender ReceiverMessage A

Sender ReceiverMessage B

t=1

t=2

Sender ReceiverMessage B

t=3

0

1

0

t=4 ???

Exploration vs. Exploitation:Learn new knowledge, or use what we know.

Challenge 3: Large-scale customizationHow do we customizes for millions of people at the same time?

Interacting with millions of receivers….

Possible solution: Streaming analysis

Challenge 4: Ethics & PrivacyHow much customization do we really want?

Possible solution: Privacy by design

• Need for structure

• Challenge 1: Feature selection• Challenge 2: Sequential interaction• Challenge 3: (Extremely) large scale• Challenge 4: Ethics & Privacy

• Huge potential!

Enjoy the afternoon!