What are Remarketing Ads?
Does it ever feel like someone is following your moves on the internet? For example, you check out a pair of shoes on Zappos and the same shoes begin to appear on your Facebook, Instagram and Twitter feeds, in banner ads, and in Google search results. But is there really someone watching you? Well not exactly someone but something is following you. That thing is remarketing ads.
What are remarketing ads?
Remarketing, sometimes referred to as retargeting, is a process marketers use to anonymously monitor an individual’s internet activity and serve them ads based on said activity. The concept of remarketing is a modern version of an old sales approach which says it takes “six touches to make a sale.” In the old days, that meant a salesman would need to find six ways to contact a potential client before they’d make a purchase. With the use of modern technology, this process is now much easier. Rather than having to physically contact a potential client six times, a remarketing ad can now get those “touches” instead.
How do these ads work?
Remarketing triggers when a user visits a particular website (for example, Zappos.com) that has a special piece of code. This code tracks your activity on the site and catalogs the items viewed on a “cookie” file on your computer. The next time you visit a search engine, website, or social network, the cookie file will send a signal to show an ad for the product again. This process will repeat itself as long as you continue paying for retargeting ads.
How effective are remarketing ads?
Remarketing is a very effective method of advertising for three important reasons. First, remarketing ads will increase brand awareness for your business. Second, remarketing ads drive repeat traffic to your site. As we mentioned earlier, this is critical because it’s highly unlikely that a consumer will make a purchase after only one visit. Third, these ads are useful for improving your business’s ROI based on increasing the number of user touchpoints.
If you’re still not completely clear on exactly how these ads work, Google Ads’ help section has more explanation about the details of remarketing.
