Everyone has had that moment where an ad has popped up on their screen and thought “How did they know I was interested in that?” The answer is simple: market retargeting, also known as behavioral marketing. This is a process in which the advertising provider (Google, Bing, Facebook, Twitter, etc.) uses your browsing history and preferences to place targeted ads on your screen.
How does it work?
Market retargeting uses a cookie installed on your visitor’s computer to flag your advertising provider that this user has visited your site before. Cookies have gotten a bad rap in the past, but they’re harmless and essential to internet advertising. Marketing 101: it’s easier to convert someone who has already visited your site than someone who has never heard of you before. With this in mind, market retargeting’s focus isn’t so much to advertise as it is to remind the visitor of your site and your services.
What does it mean for you?
The use of targeted advertising is proven effective in driving return traffic to your website. You can check on the effectiveness of your ads in your platform’s dashboard. If a visitor spends time on your website but doesn’t convert, a well-placed retargeting ad can make conversion all that more probable. Retargeting can also be used in conjunction with tracking numbers to find which ads and ad placements are the most effective.
Google AdWords is the most common market retargeting platform. Google has the Google Display Network; this is a group of sites on which your ads will appear while your visitor is browsing. Google also offers many different options for retargeting ads – dynamic remarketing, remarketing for social apps, video remarketing, and email remarketing.
If you are considering a digital marketing strategy, it’s important to understand the process behind how all of this works so that you can make the most informed and effective business decisions.