What are retargeting ads?

Theyareadsfromothersitesyou'vevisitedthatfollowyouaroundtheweb.Theyprobablyfeatureadsforspecificproductsyou'repreviouslysearchedfor.

What purpose do they serve?

According to some estimates, only about 2 percent of first-time visitors to a website will convert into customers by making a purchase or contacting the business. As a local business owner, you don’t want to give up on that other 98 percent of potential shoppers. Retargeting gives you the opportunity to bring them back.1 Retargeting is also valuable from a branding standpoint by exposing people to your website who have searched for products or services you offer but may have never actually visited your site.

What do they look like?

These are some examples of retargeting ads that a consumer might see across the internet.

Where do retargeting display ads appear?

Depending on the provider you use, retargeting ads can appear on any number of websites, search engines and social media networks. They allow you to target whichever websites your ideal clients browse on a regular basis.

Why should I be concerned with targeting customers who already left my site?

Today’s consumers spend a lot of time window shopping on the web. Some studies suggest that approximately half of all millennials browse for items they have no intention of purchasing at that exact moment — but that doesn’t mean they have no interest in ever purchasing that item. By keeping your products and brand at the forefront of their mind, you increase the chance that when they do have the disposable capital or inclination to purchase, you’ll be there to take advantage.2

What are the different kinds of retargeting?

Therearetwoprimarytypesofretargetingads:searchretargeting andsiteretargeting.

Searchretargeting isbasedonsomeone’spastsearchesanddoesn’trequirethetargetedindividualtohavevisitedyoursite.

Siteretargeting targetspeoplewhohavevisitedyoursiteinthepast.

Search retargeting – how can you target people who have never visited your site?

There are several sources for search retargeting information. Some sites are actually compensated for capturing and sharing data from people who have searched and landed on their site. There are also toolbar gathering methods, meaning the toolbar you search in may share your search history with companies that provide search retargeting data.3

How does site retargeting work?

When a shopper visits a site that uses retargeting, a small piece of java script puts a cookie on the shopper’s computer. Whenever that shopper visits a search engine or website, the cookie is communicated back and forth between that person’s browser and the sites they visit. This cookie lets sites know which ads to display to that particular shopper based on their past browsing history.

But what about the people that “opt out” of cookies?

Network Advertising, a non-profit focused on ethical and responsible data collection, performed a study that found only about 10 percent of the people who visited their site were opting out of “online behavioral advertising.”4

How do consumers feel about retargeting ads?

Searchers don’t seem to have much of a problem with being retargeted based on their past search history. One study suggests that approximately 30 percent of shoppers have a positive reaction to being retargeted with only 11 percent viewing them negatively. The other 59 percent don’t appear to have strong feelings one way or the other.6

Want to learn more? If you’d like to learn more about what digital marketing professionals think of retargeting we encourage you to browse some of G/O Digital’s other resources. You can also contact G/O Digital today for a FREE digital analysis and learn how we can work with you to develop an effective retargeting campaign that takes into account your business, customers and their online habits.

Sources.1https://www.adroll.com/getting-started/retargeting2http://www.forbes.com/sites/robinlewis/2014/04/30/millennials-double-trouble-for-retail/#d8e1dd9472453http://searchengineland.com/the-most-frequently-asked-questions-in-search-retargeting-1374574http://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/167879/nai-behavioral-targeting-opt-outs-nearly-double-i.html5http://www.cmo.com/features/articles/2013/11/20/15_Stats_Retargeting.html