Consider that we recently hit the seven billion population mark globally (and it’s still growing) and you’ll understand why defining personal identity is such an important issue today. That’s why we work with governments, banks and card merchants worldwide to help ensure that every individual has their own proof of identity so they can be recognized and accepted when they need to be.

In addition, we are increasingly seeing more personalization thanks to the rapid evolution of technology. From personalized greetings cards to personalized Twitter pages and avatars, people are seeking to put their personal stamp on their identity. Consumers, social media networks, online retailers and more are helping to create a more tailored experience for themselves and their customers.

But it doesn’t stop there: it’s also happening in the business and banking worlds. You may have seen one of our earlier blogs about how banks can harness creativity by personalizing banking cards, and we’ve now carried out some research into the types of personalization that customers like, with some truly interesting results.

• Would you have a photo of your pet or your child on your bank card? Apparently Brits are most likely to feature their pet dog over all other countries.
• Also, did you know that Australians are the most likely to have a picture of their car, boat or bike on their bank cards compared to other regions?
• In India and South America, family and children are more frequently used on cards than elsewhere in the world.

But this is just an example of one area where banks can now really tap into their customer base within social media. Banking has traditionally been a difficult topic to engage with via social media due to a lack of engaging material for people to comment on or share with peers. Card customization, however, is different as it allows them to do just that. People will happily share their customized bank card and others will like, comment and share these images.

Personalization can not only increase likes, comments and shares that can be seen on card customization posts versus any other bank posts, but that every time someone posts their card to Facebook, it drives 3.5 more people to click through to the bank’s link! How about that for customer engagement?