My husband is not an impulse shopper. His purchases are weighed out carefully and deliberately, usually weeks or even months before he dusts off his rarely-used credit card. So when he went to Macy’s last month to pick out a new tie for an upcoming wedding, I was more surprised than anyone when he came home with not just the tie, but also a $500 Ralph Lauren suit. When explaining the spontaneous spending, he didn’t point out the suit’s impeccable fit or fine wool fabric. Instead, he said the sales guy was the same one who’d helped him pick out my birthday present last month, announcing “He remembered my name!”

The power of recognition has been influencing the direction of shopping dollars for hundreds of years, so it’s no surprise it’s one of the top initiatives of today’s successful eCommerce sites. Just as you’re more likely to get your lunch from the hot-dog vendor who asks after your family and remembers how much mustard you like, the website that goes above and beyond to personalize your browsing experience enjoys longer and more profitable shopping sessions. E-tailers who have jumped on the “welcome wagon” have reported such benefits as increase in average order size, lower cart abandonment rates, positive feedback from satisfied customers, and greater levels of customer retention over time.