What is our primary use case?
I have used Adobe Target for different purposes. The most basic use case is A/B testing. We run random tests on the website. Additionally, I use Adobe Target to run various campaigns. For example, on an e-commerce site, I help the client run a flash sale. Suppose the client wants the flash sale to be visible only to users accessing the website from Europe. I build and develop the campaign to ensure that only users from Europe see the banner for the sale. If users from the rest of the world access the site, they won't see the banner. This is one of the normal use cases I handle for different customers.
Another use case is running recommendations. Similar to what you see on Amazon, where it shows "people who bought this also bought that," Adobe Target can implement these recommendations. I worked on this for a client. When a user visits their website and views or buys products, they start seeing related products at the bottom, like "you might also like these products." For example, if you visit a mobile phone product, you will see similar electronic products. This is another use case I handle with Adobe Target for different clients.
A/B Testing and Navigation Optimization
In terms of A/B testing, we handle basic use cases and complex ones. For instance, I recently worked on a complex use case for a client named Helly Hansen. They wanted to test a new navigation method on mobile devices. Instead of opening different screens, they wanted customers to see all sub-navigation links on the same screen using an accordion. Clicking a link would show all related sub-navigation links within the same pop-up, without navigating to different screens. We just went live with this test. This is an example of the complex A/B tests I handle using Adobe Target.
Additional Tools and Personalization
While Adobe Target is a primary tool I use, I also work with other personalization tools like Dynamic Yield and Optimizely. These tools complement Adobe Target in delivering personalized experiences to users.
What is most valuable?
There’s nothing specific I like best because recently, I’ve started using Optimizely, and I prefer it. Optimizely is also a tool in the same realm, where you run different tests for customers. I like Optimizely better than Adobe Target because Adobe Target was one of the first tools on the market for A/B testing, but now I don't think Adobe is making many changes to the tool.
When I look at other tools in the market for personalization, they are bringing new features. For example, on a single-page application (SPA), where the page doesn't refresh when you click a link, recent websites handle this well. However, Adobe Target, being an older tool, hasn't done much to address this. Other tools, like Optimizely, have special functionalities for handling SPAs effectively.
Handling Single-Page Applications:
Adobe Target handles SPAs, but not in a very efficient way. They require users or website owners to develop something on their end to trigger a call for every view they want to run an experiment or test on. This approach is not very user-friendly. Tools like Optimizely have better solutions for this issue.
Personal Experience and Usage:
So, there isn’t a particular feature in Adobe Target that stands out to me. It was the first personalization tool I used extensively, but now I find other tools more advanced and user-friendly.
Ease of Use:
In terms of the tool itself, Adobe Target is easy to use. Everything is readily available and intuitive, making it easy to understand how to use it for basic tests and other functions.
What needs improvement?
There is room for improvement in the way Adobe Target handles single-page applications.
Single Page Applications Handling
If they want to handle single-page applications, they should not require website owners or their developers to implement additional functionalities for it to work. There should be a built-in solution within the tool itself.
Currently, they ask for changes like sending trigger views for each page (e.g., product landing page and product details page) to make single-page applications work.
This approach creates double effort—one on their end and one on the website owner’s end. Adobe Target should provide more comprehensive options within the tool to handle these situations efficiently.
Documentation and Recommendations
Regarding recommendations, the way they are configured in Adobe Target is not very well-explained. Only developers can create recommendations effectively. Business users won't be able to do so efficiently just by reading the documentation.
The documentation is very general and superficial; it doesn't go in-depth. Improving the documentation to make it more detailed and accessible for all users would be beneficial.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using it for five years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
There are some stability issues. Sometimes, their servers go under maintenance, and the website becomes unavailable for one to two hours. This can be disruptive when I try to make changes or deploy updates in a production environment.
On a scale of one to ten, I would rate Adobe Target's stability a six.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
Adobe Target is not very scalable. In the five years I have been working with the product, I haven't seen significant improvements in its scalability. While other tools in the market have become much better, Adobe Target hasn't scaled to the same level. I would rate its scalability a four or five out of ten.
Number of Users
In my organization, only five to six people use Adobe Target. We are a central team that utilizes the tool, while other teams do not.
How are customer service and support?
While Adobe's support team generally addresses critical issues quickly, I've found their support to be not very active overall. They tend to rely heavily on email communication, even for high-priority tickets (P1, P0), which can be frustrating. They should be more proactive and available for calls to resolve issues promptly. The proactiveness is not there.
I've experienced this lack of proactiveness multiple times (more than 20 or 30 times) and believe their support system could be improved.
I would rate their support a three out of ten. The problem is that their support staff is not very knowledgeable. Every time I raise a ticket for my bug-related issue, they have to consult their engineering team, causing delays for both them and me. Their knowledge is not vast enough, so I often end up waiting for their engineering team's response.
How would you rate customer service and support?
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup of Adobe Target is relatively easy. It can be integrated with various tools or deployed separately. Adobe recommends using its tool, Adobe Launch, for integration, claiming it makes the process easier. However, deployment is not difficult, even without Adobe Launch.
Deployment Time
Deployment is not difficult or time-consuming. We no longer deploy code directly on the website; instead, you create and test something, then simply press a button to deploy the code. I have not had any challenges during deployment.
What was our ROI?
At this point, it is not worth the money because there are different tools on the market that are much cheaper than Adobe Target.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
Adobe Target is expensive.
What other advice do I have?
If you are willing to spend the money, then okay. But if not, there are other tools in the market. If comparing Adobe Target and Optimizely, both of which are expensive, I would always suggest Optimizely to the client and not Adobe Target.
I would give Adobe Target an overall rating of five.