When you have an online business, drawing customers back to your site is more crucial than ever. Two of the ways to do that are remarketing and retargeting.
Our guide for remarketing and retargeting dives into what each term means, the best times to use them and why they benefit your business. If you’re struggling with attracting new customers or retaining existing ones, this guide has everything you need to know to attract new customers and entice existing ones to make another purchase.
Remarketing Vs Retargeting: What’s The Difference?
Although the terms remarketing and retargeting can often mistakenly be used interchangeably, there are some differences between the two. Before we can dive into the specifics of how to use retargeting and remarketing to benefit your business, what do the two terms mean?
What is Remarketing?
Remarketing is the concept of marketing to people who have already engaged with your business by purchasing a product or utilising your services. When that happens, you already have a lot of data on that person, making it easier to create specific ad sets for that user. One of the most common ways businesses remarket to existing customers is by emailing them to renew a service or to upsell a product.
What is Retargeting?
Retargeting is the concept of reaching people who have visited specific pages or products on your website but haven’t purchased anything. When a user visits your website, clicks on a certain product or creates a certain action that you want them to take, a cookie is set in their browser. From there, you can use that information to retarget them with ads based on their interactions after they leave your site. This happens through third parties, such as Google Display Network or Facebook. These ads aim to bring the user back to your website to complete the purchase.
While remarketing and retargeting sound like similar concepts, there are differences between the two. The biggest difference is that remarketing is about re-engaging existing customers through email or paid ads. In contrast, retargeting is about moving potential customers through the purchasing funnel.
When To Use Remarketing or Retargeting
Because retargeting and remarketing target customers at different stages of the purchasing funnel, when is the best time to use each of them?
Retargeting
As mentioned above, retargeting is about reaching not-yet customers who have interacted with your site but haven’t completed a purchase or interacted with your brand.
The best time to use retargeting in your marketing strategy is if:
- Your goal is to attract new customers
- Your business has a product or service that is typically a one-time purchase
- You already spend a lot of money on paid ads to build brand awareness
The two most common types of retargeting include general website retargeting and search network retargeting.
Have you ever looked at a product on a website, added it to your cart, decided not to buy it, and seen it as an ad on another website? That’s general website retargeting. This strategy aims to remind users to return to your site and purchase the product they were looking at.
On the other hand, search network retargeting ads are shown to users based on specific keywords they’ve searched for. These ads then show up on social media, other websites and search engine results pages (SERPs).
Remarketing
Remarketing is all about drawing existing customers who have already made a purchase back to your site.
The best time to create a remarketing campaign is if:
- Your business has a product or service that is typically a repeat purchase
- You want to upsell customers with products that may fit their needs or are a great addition to products they already have
- You don’t have a lot of money to spend on ads
Two of the most popular ways to remarket to customers is through email marketing or SMS.
Through emails and SMS, you can easily and freely introduce existing customers to other products they may be interested in or remind them to repurchase products they love.
How To Benefit From Remarketing or Retargeting
So, what are the ways your business can benefit from remarketing or retargeting?
Benefits of Remarketing
Keeps you at the front of customer’s minds
Repeatedly exposing your existing customers to your brand through remarketing ads, such as email and SMS, keeps your business at the front of their minds. This continuous exposure helps ensure that your brand remains top-of-mind when consumers are ready to make a purchase.
Increased conversion rates
Remarketing targets users who have already shown an interest in your products or services, making them more likely to convert compared to first-time visitors. By keeping your brand visible through remarketing ads, you increase the chances of them returning to your website to make a purchase.
Cost-effective
Remarketing is one of the more cost-effective forms of marketing as it doesn’t cost a lot of money, if any, as it targets individuals who have already expressed an interest in your product or business.
Benefits of Retargeting
Improves your ROI
Retargeting ads usually generate better returns than ads that don’t leverage retargeting (known as cold leads). Retargeting helps you spend money on warm leads that have already shown interest in your product or business.
For example, if you own a supplement store and post an ad on Instagram with a discount, people who have already looked at your website for that particular supplement will be more inclined to purchase the product due to the sale.
Improves brand recall
Retargeting ads help increase brand recall, as the more often potential customers see your brand after their initial visit, the more likely they are to remember your products or services when they’re ready to make a purchase.
Boosts engagement
Retargeting ads can boost engagement by reminding visitors of what they viewed on your site or expressed interest in. This can be particularly effective for long sales cycles or high-value products where customers may take longer to make a decision.
Effective Remarketing and Retargeting Campaigns with Anchor
Retargeting and remarketing are pivotal strategies within the digital marketing landscape, offering businesses a unique opportunity to re-engage with existing customers and potential customers who have shown interest in their products or services. By leveraging the power of data analytics and understanding user behaviour, markets can tailor their campaigns to address the specific needs and interests of their target audience, ensuring their messages are relevant and compelling.
If you’re interested in using retargeting and remarketing to increase brand awareness, conversions and sales but don’t know where to start, look no further than Anchor. Our digital marketing experts are experienced in creating solid retargeting and remarketing campaigns that convert.
Want to learn more? Drop us a line today to get the conversation started!
