With over a decade in CRM and loyalty across top global brands, Martina Guizzardi, Global Senior CRM & Loyalty Lead at Oner Active, shares key career lessons, consumer insights, and strategies for building lasting customer relationships.

Martina's Career and Advice

Tell us about your career so far and the essential turning points that got you where you are today.

With 10+ years of international experience in CRM, loyalty, and customer engagement, I’ve had the opportunity to work across fashion, cosmetics, and activewear. My journey has taken me through some of the world’s most iconic cities, such as Paris, London, and Milan, as well as some of the most iconic brands, from Ray-Ban to Chanel, where I’ve built and executed CRM strategies that drive both customer retention and brand advocacy.

My career has been marked by three pivotal moments (with many more to come):

People: I’ve been incredibly lucky to find mentors at every stage of my journey—guiding figures who have shaped my path and continue to inspire me.

Global Mindset: Joining EssilorLuxottica, the world's leading manufacturer of ophthalmic lenses and eyewear, was a defining moment. It provided me with the opportunity to grow rapidly while collaborating with teams across Europe, North & South America, South Africa, and Australia. This experience broadened my perspective and fundamentally shaped how I approach international business.

Making an Impact: Becoming part of Oner Active just as the startup was scaling gave me the chance to drive real change. I led the development of a comprehensive CRM and loyalty strategy, built the CRM team from the ground up, and contributed to triple-digit YoY growth—demonstrating the power of a customer-centric approach in a fast-growing brand.

Looking back at your career, what advice would you give your 20-years-old self?

Take every opportunity to gain experience and participate in as many projects as possible to accelerate your learning curve.

Don’t rush the process; every step will help you build a strong foundation for your future roles. And remember, learning never stops—there will always be someone in the room you can learn from.

Be brave—don’t be afraid to step out of your comfort zone. The best experiences come from new challenges, and the best lessons come from failures.

Lessons in eCommerce & Customer Experience (CX)

You’ve worked across both European and North American markets. What key differences have you noticed in consumer behaviour when it comes to loyalty and engagement?

Throughout my career, I’ve had the opportunity to work mainly across European and North American markets but also at a global level. One key difference I’ve observed is that NA consumers tend to be highly responsive to loyalty programs with strong transactional benefits—discounts, cashback, and points-based systems drive engagement. Additionally, communication in this market is very direct, focusing on product benefits and key features.

In contrast, European consumers place greater importance on exclusivity and personalised experiences rather than purely financial incentives. They are more sensitive to the emotional connection with a brand and seek deeper value beyond the product itself.

In South America, brand loyalty is even more emotionally driven than in Europe, with strong community engagement and social media playing a crucial role in building trust. Meanwhile, in Australia, customers expect seamless omnichannel experiences and place a high value on sustainability and brand authenticity in their purchasing decisions.

Understanding these nuances has been key in tailoring CRM and loyalty strategies to effectively engage customers in each market.

As someone who has built CRM strategies from the ground up, what are the most important elements brands should prioritise when developing a customer engagement strategy?

Based on my experience, when developing a customer engagement strategy, brands should prioritise three key elements:

• Customer Data & Segmentation – The foundation of any successful CRM strategy is a deep understanding of the customer. Brands must invest in data collection and segmentation to tailor communications, offers, and experiences to different audience groups. A data-driven approach ensures that messaging is relevant, timely, and aligned with customer needs, ultimately driving higher engagement and conversion rates.
• Loyalty & Exceptional Customer Service – Retention is just as important as acquisition, both in the short and long term. A well-structured loyalty program rewards and incentivises repeat customers, increasing lifetime value. At the same time, exceptional customer service is non-negotiable—addressing friction points and resolving issues efficiently builds trust and strengthens brand affinity. When these two elements work hand in hand, they create a seamless and positive customer experience that fosters long-term loyalty.
• Emotional Connection & Brand Storytelling – Beyond transactions, brands must focus on building a deeper relationship with their audience. A strong brand narrative and value-driven marketing create an emotional connection that keeps customers engaged over time. Whether through community-building, exclusive content, or authentic storytelling, fostering an emotional bond ensures customers feel aligned with the brand’s mission, leading to long-term advocacy and retention.

Your session at eCommerce Expo explored how to advance personalisation strategies. What’s one common mistake brands make when implementing personalisation, and how can they avoid it?

A common mistake brands make when implementing personalisation is focusing solely on short-term conversion rather than long-term customer value. Many brands rely on basic personalisation tactics—like first-name email greetings or generic product recommendations—without truly leveraging data to create meaningful, relevant experiences across the entire customer journey. In order to avoid this, I would suggest:

• Going beyond surface-level personalisation - Instead of broad segmentation, brands should implement lifecycle-based personalisation that adapts to customer needs over time. Drawing from my experience in cosmetics at Marionnaud, I mapped the customer journey based on purchase history, skin type, and preferences: a new customer who buys a hydrating serum could receive an educational email on building a skincare routine tailored to their needs, including a video tutorial. A loyal customer purchasing anti-aging products might receive exclusive offers on complementary treatments, such as a beauty treatment at Marionnaud clinics. If a customer hasn't purchased in a while, they could be re-engaged with a personalised skincare quiz recommending products based on their evolving skin needs or with a gift-with-purchase incentive to encourage reactivation.
• Ensuring consistency across channels - Customers engage with brands across multiple touchpoints, and fragmented personalisation can create disconnects. If a customer browses a moisturiser online but doesn't purchase, they should receive a relevant follow-up email, see a targeted ad, or be reminded of it in-store through beauty advisors who have access to their preferences. Creating a seamless, omnichannel experience ensures that personalisation feels natural and valuable rather than intrusive.

By shifting the focus from transactional personalisation to building long-term relationships, brands can enhance customer engagement, retention, and lifetime value.

With AI playing a bigger role in personalisation, what are the key considerations brands should keep in mind when using AI-driven customer engagement strategies?

With AI playing a bigger role in personalisation, brands need to ensure they are using it effectively and ethically. The key considerations when implementing AI-driven customer engagement strategies include:

• Balancing automation with human touch – AI can streamline recommendations and automate messaging, but high-value customers still expect a personalised, human-centric experience. For example, at Oner Active, while AI can suggest product recommendations based on past purchases, we complement this with community-driven interactions, such as founder Krissy Cela’s personal messages, behind-the-scenes content, and one-on-one engagement in VIP communities. This approach ensures AI enhances, rather than replaces, authentic brand relationships.
• Avoiding over-reliance on AI-driven segmentation – While AI excels at identifying patterns, context matters. If a customer buys a gift, AI may assume it reflects their personal preferences. Brands should refine AI models by incorporating explicit customer inputs (e.g., preference centers, surveys) to avoid irrelevant recommendations.

By keeping these factors in mind, brands can use AI to enhance customer engagement without losing the human connection that builds long-term loyalty.

Many businesses struggle with measuring the impact of their personalisation efforts. What key metrics should they focus on to track success?

Measuring the impact of personalisation requires going beyond standard open and click rates to truly understand how well tailored experiences drive engagement and conversions. I recommend focusing on 3 key metrics:

Purchase Rate on Clicks – This metric (number of purchases / number of clicks) indicates how well personalisation aligns with customer intent. A high rate suggests that the content, recommendations, and timing were relevant, while a lower rate signals areas for optimisation in messaging, product selection, or audience segmentation.

Cost per Contact – Particularly important for high-cost, direct communication channels like SMS, WhatsApp, and DMs, as well as newsletters when scaled. Tracking this ensures that personalisation efforts remain efficient and drive positive ROI, preventing overspending on hyper-targeted campaigns with minimal returns.

Engagement Metrics (Dwell Time & Scroll Depth) – For content-driven personalisation, it’s critical to measure how long customers engage with personalised content, whether on product pages, editorial content, or email campaigns. A longer dwell time or deeper scroll depth indicates that the content is capturing interest and delivering value, reinforcing the brand’s relevance in the customer’s journey.

With consumer expectations constantly evolving, how can brands future-proof their loyalty programs to keep customers engaged over time?

Traditional points-based programs are no longer enough—customers today expect personalisation, flexibility, and emotional connection from the brands they engage with.

To future-proof their loyalty programs, brands should prioritise emotional loyalty—it’s not just about discounts; it’s about building meaningful connections. This means integrating experiences, exclusivity, and community-driven rewards. Offering VIP access to events, early access to collections, exclusive product drops, or behind-the-scenes content fosters a deeper bond than just earning points.

A great example of this is Oner Active and the community built around Krissy Cela. The brand doesn’t just reward purchases; it nurtures a sense of belonging by engaging customers through exclusive fitness challenges, meet-ups, and direct interactions with Krissy and the athlete community. This approach strengthens loyalty by making customers feel part of something bigger than just a transaction.

Future-proofing loyalty programs means shifting from a transactional mindset to a relationship-driven approach—one that evolves with customer expectations and continuously adds value beyond just discounts.

Quick-fire questions

• What is your favourite social media platform, and why?

Instagram—My feed is all about Hyrox and running tips, wine, and the best travel destinations.

• What is an unexpected perk that comes with your job?

Fitness classes and healthy snacks are a nice bonus!

• Is there a recent marketing campaign from any brand that really caught your attention, and why?

The North Face for Skims—The powerful visual identity mix really stood out.

• How many unopened emails do you currently have in your inbox?

28,332 in my benchmarking email, subscribed to every loyalty program and database to stay inspired, and 0 in my professional account (classified by topic and deadline).

• What is one of your proudest moments in your career?

Delivering my first speech in front of 500 people—in French—less than a year after learning the language, to present a CRM strategy for Holidays.

• What is something you’re still looking forward to achieving in your career?

Driving change in diversity and inclusion by hiring based on skills rather than degrees, giving opportunities to talent beyond top business schools.