Retargeting is an online marketing tactic that helps to re-engage with both potential purchasers and customers, based on their behaviour.
In fact, you’ve likely experienced it before.
Have you visited a website, and browsed a specific product, only to have an email land in your inbox promoting the same item? Or maybe you started noticing advertisements later in the day, following you around the internet?
That’s retargeting.
But retargeting can come in many forms, especially when within email marketing. Meaning that it is a tactic that can be used to engage with customers and potential purchasers in a variety of situations.
We’ll cover why you should care about retargeting shortly. But to give you some insight, research has found that by leveraging retargeting alongside your other marketing channels, you can sell 50% more.
Impressive, right?
What does retargeting look like?
There are two primary channels to conduct retargeting on: email and online advertising.
Both are highly successful marketing tactics in their own right. But when used together can produce fantastic results.
Online ads
Let’s begin with online ads.
The types of retargeting ads that brands can use are fairly standard. Utilising striking images and short and snappy copy to pique the potential purchaser’s interest, and entice them back to the website once again.
These ads are usually focused around winning back bounced traffic, with the goal of encouraging the potential purchaser to complete a sale.
They can be promoted on most online advertising platforms, however the three main ones are Google Adwords, Facebook, and Twitter.
Here are some examples below:
Email marketing
Email marketing, on the other hand, offers a much wider variety of retargeting options.
Due to the amount of data that email marketing can utilise, this method of retargeting doesn’t just focus on bounced traffic. Email retargeting can also be used to engage with regular customers, inactive customers, and those who have engaged but never purchased.
Here are some examples of successful retargeting email campaigns:
Basket abandonment
Based on a similar concept to retargeting ads, basket abandonment emails are triggered when a potential purchaser adds an item to their online basket. But fails to check out.
These emails are ideal for reminding the recipient what they’re missing out on. And offering an additional nudge or incentive to purchase.
Replenishment campaigns
Products such as food, cosmetics, and pharmaceuticals all have a shelf life, and are bought on a regular basis.
For customers who regularly buy these products, email can offer a friendly reminder to re-purchase their goods. Before they run out.
https://www.pure360.com/guide-to-replenishment-email-campaigns/
Renewal reminders
For subscription businesses, renewal time is incredibly important. Getting the marketing correct at this stage can ensure that their already engaged and warmed-up customer continues to subscribe to their offering, long-term.
Subscription businesses can get in front of these customers before they begin looking elsewhere with renewal reminder emails. For long term customers, this could also include a discount for early renewal.
Re-engagement campaigns
Re-engagement campaigns offer marketers a way to get back in touch with subscribers who they are close to losing.
By analysing behavioural data, marketers can identify recipients who haven’t engaged in a long time, and try to win them back.
This could be by offering them a discount or promotion, providing a preference centre so they have control over the emails they receive, or simply telling them they are missed.
Why should you care?
That all sounds great. But why should you care?
Because retargeting brings about a whole host of benefits to a business.
Let’s dive into them a little more.
Cost effective
Let’s begin with one of the most enticing benefits of retargeting for brands.
It saves them money.
By targeting people who have already shown interest in a brand, marketers already have an engaged audience to advertise to. Meaning the effort and resource that is put into brand awareness and initial engagement has already been completed.
Instead, retargeting will be focused on the most likely to convert. Wasting less time, resource, and budget.
Not convinced?
Email retargeting conversion rates can be as high as 41%. Compared to the regular eCommerce conversion rate of between 2% and 4%.
That seems like a sensible use of budget to us.
Move leads through the funnel
The goal of a marketing funnel is to move potential purchasers through the various stages to conversion, as quickly and smoothly as possible.
So, if research tells you that potential purchasers only convert after 6 touches with your brand. The goal should be to try to cut this down to reduce the time, costs, and resource involved.
Retargeting doesn’t rely on the potential purchaser seeking out your brand’s touchpoints. Instead, it places your brand in front of them automatically. Reducing the amount of touchpoints required for conversion.
Brand awareness
When researching a purchase, shoppers will be exploring numerous different options and websites. It’s easy for these to all blur into one.
With retargeting, brands can offer a regular, subtle reminder to keep their brand at the forefront of their potential customers’ minds.
The more frequently (within reason) a potential purchaser sees a brand in their inbox, or views their online ads, the more familiar they will become with them.
This tactic also works well with customers who have already purchased. By being reminded of your brand and your excellent service, they will be more likely to return to purchase from you again.
A second chance
The majority of website visitors don’t convert on their first visit.
Some may not have been ready to make the purchase. Some may have been distracted. And some may not have found the information they required.
Retargeting offers brands a second chance to make a good impression, remind the potential purchaser of their offering, and provide useful, personalised information.
The goal is to make the potential purchaser reconsider buying from you. So ensure you use your copy and imagery wisely. Offering key information that is most likely to convert them. Using the most eye-catching, irresistible images possible. And personalising your communications based on their past behavioural and purchasing data.
Cross-selling opportunities
Another reason why your potential purchaser may be disengaged is because they can’t find the right product for them.
Maybe it’s the cost, or the features, or even the colour.
Retargeting offers the perfect opportunity to showcase potential purchasers’ alternative products which may be more suitable for them.
For instance, brands can promote their most purchased or highest rated products in the same range as the website visitor was browsing. Opening up options they may not have found or considered.
Alternatively, brands can re-target previous customers with products they have purchased previously, but need replenishing.
Looking to explore the benefits of retargeting in your marketing mix?
Then our team of experts can help.
We are experienced in all areas of marketing, and have worked with a wide variety of brands to improve their marketing results.