Retargeting vs. remarketing… These are both two powerful strategies often confused in digital marketing because they sound similar, but in reality they serve very different roles. Understanding the differences could help you as a CMO optimize your brand’s engagement and Return On Investment… In this guide, we’ll break down retargeting vs. remarketing, explaining how each works and when to use them effectively, as well as providing some retargeting ads examples from our agency.
What is Retargeting and how does it work?
Retargeting is a form of online advertising that allows advertisers to target people who have already interacted with their brand or visited their website. It works by tracking user behavior and pushing out relevant ads to target audiences as they browse the internet, encouraging them to return to the advertiser’s website and take further action. Since the process targets users based on their previous behavior across the internet, it’s sometimes referred to as “behavioral retargeting”.
So how does it work? Retargeting works by using tracking technology, typically achieved with the help of cookies, which are small text files stored on a user’s computer that allow advertisers to track user behavior. When a user visits an advertiser’s website, a cookie is stored on their computer, allowing the advertiser to track the user’s subsequent browsing behavior and display relevant ads.
Here’s a more in-depth overview of how retargeting works:
- A user visits a brand’s website or interacts with the brand’s online content, such as viewing a video or clicking on an ad.
- The brand drops a retargeting cookie onto the user’s device, which allows the brand to track the user’s behavior across the internet.
- The user leaves the brand’s website and continues browsing other websites or social media platforms.
- The brand uses the data collected from the retargeting cookie to serve the user with relevant ads on other websites or social media platforms. For example, if a user viewed a product on the brand’s website, the brand might serve them with ads for that product or related products on other websites they visit.
- The user clicks on the retargeted ad and returns to the brand’s website to make a purchase or take another desired action.
Additionally, there are a few different types of retargeting:
- Site Retargeting: Site retargeting targets users who have visited an advertiser’s website, displaying relevant ads to these users as they browse the internet.
- Search Retargeting: Search retargeting targets users who have searched for specific keywords related to an advertiser’s product or service, displaying relevant ads to these users as they browse the internet.
- Email Retargeting: Email retargeting targets users who have opened or clicked on an advertiser’s email, displaying relevant ads to these users as they browse the internet.
- Social Media Retargeting: Social media retargeting targets users who have engaged with an advertiser’s social media content, displaying relevant ads to these users as they browse social media platforms.
What is Remarketing and how does it work?
Remarketing, on the other hand, refers to using email marketing to re-engage existing customers. It focuses on sending targeted messages like cart abandonment emails or product updates, to people who have already interacted with your brand. Approaches to remarketing include:
- Direct Email Campaigns: Personalized offers sent to your customer list.
- Cross-channel Engagement: Connecting with customers via multiple platforms for a consistent experience.
Remarketing is ideal for nurturing relationships with current customers and driving repeat business. By default, remarketing audiences can be defined based on a variety of user interactions. This could be anything from website visits to app activity to email engagement. However, there are certain audiences that cannot be defined by default:
- Lookalike audiences: Lookalike audiences are created based on the characteristics of your existing customers or website visitors. However, these audiences cannot be defined by default, as they require additional data analysis and modeling to create.
- Custom audiences: Custom audiences are created based on specific criteria that you define, such as people who have made a purchase within the past 30 days or people who have abandoned their shopping cart. These audiences cannot be defined by default, as they require you to set up the necessary tracking and targeting parameters.
- Engagement audiences: Engagement audiences are created based on specific interactions that users have had with your brand, such as watching a video or filling out a form. These audiences cannot be defined by default, as they require you to set up the necessary tracking and targeting parameters.
As a general rule of thumb, any remarketing audience that requires additional data analysis, tracking, or targeting criteria cannot be defined by default. However, with the right tools and expertise, it is possible to create highly targeted and effective remarketing audiences based on a wide range of user interactions and behaviors. In order to build a remarketing list, you need to have some way of identifying the people who have interacted with your brand or visited your website. There are several assets that can be used to build a remarketing list, including:
- Website traffic: One of the most common ways to build a remarketing list is to track website visitors using a tracking code or cookie. This allows you to target ads to people who have already visited your site, with the goal of bringing them back for a repeat visit or conversion.
- Customer lists: If you have a list of existing customers, you can use this to build a remarketing list. This could include email addresses or phone numbers, which can be uploaded to an advertising platform and matched to user profiles.
- App activity: If you have a mobile app, you can track user activity within the app to build a remarketing list. This allows you to target ads to people who have already installed your app or taken certain actions within it.
- Social media engagement: If you have a social media presence, you can build a remarketing list based on people who have engaged with your posts or visited your profile.
The key to building a successful remarketing list is to identify the assets that are most relevant to your business and your audience, and to use them in a way that provides value to both you and your customers.
Retargeting vs Remarketing: What’s the difference?
Retargeting vs. remarketing: two terms that are used interchangeably in digital marketing. However, they do have slightly different meanings. In essence, retargeting is a specific form of remarketing that focuses on delivering targeted ads, while remarketing is a more general term that can refer to a variety of tactics for engaging with people who have already shown an interest in your brand.
The main goal of retargeting is customer acquisition, while remarketing focuses on customer re-engagement. Retargeting uses cookies to track anonymous site visitors, whereas remarketing relies on email lists to contact existing customers. Retargeting is great for bringing back new visitors, while remarketing shines when reconnecting with those who already know your brand. Use retargeting when you want to convert potential customers who haven’t yet purchased or increase engagement with your website by showing ads across different platforms. Use remarketing when you want to re-engage existing customers, such as sending promotional emails or reminding users of abandoned carts. Both strategies work well at different stages of the customer journey.
Generally, deciding between retargeting vs. remarketing depends on your business type, sales cycle, and customer engagement levels. For longer sales cycles, retargeting might help push potential customers down the funnel, while remarketing can work for shorter cycles by nurturing repeat buyers. Evaluate performance metrics to see which strategy drives better results.
Retargeting vs. Remarketing: Retargeting Ads Examples
Gorillas’ US Launch Advertising
Gorillas, an ultrafast grocery delivery app, achieved rapid growth by becoming a unicorn with a $1B valuation within just nine months. Their success in launching in competitive markets like New York was driven by a unique retargeting strategy employed by Criterion Global that combined both digital and traditional media. Gorillas used hyperlocal ad targeting to engage New Yorkers through programmatic ads and real-world placements such as subway posters, branded coffee sleeves, and guerilla projections near grocery stores. This campaign retargeted potential customers within geo-fenced delivery areas, promoting top-selling items based on in-app data. Gorillas’ innovative approach helped outperform better-funded competitors by using a combination of geo-precise digital ads and unconventional offline tactics, ultimately driving 13,733 banana sales and more than 122 orders from one user alone!
Read more about our work with Gorillas and how we leveraged innovative retargeting strategies to drive customer acquisition and engagement in highly competitive markets like New York in our Gorillas case study.
Hallmark’s Holiday Retargeting Success
Hallmark, a leading global brand in the holiday market, faced the challenge of balancing digital growth with in-store sales during high-stakes holiday seasons like Christmas, Mother’s Day, and Valentine’s Day. Working with Criterion Global, Hallmark implemented a retargeting strategy that prioritized long-term brand building alongside immediate digital conversions. This approach utilized online-to-offline measurement techniques, allowing Hallmark to retarget potential customers who engaged with digital ads and drive them to visit physical stores.
The strategy flipped the traditional “Awareness, Consideration, Conversion” model by placing a heavier focus on brand awareness campaigns to stimulate offline foot traffic, while still using performance media for digital sales growth. For example, Hallmark used retargeting ads across digital platforms to capture interest and then followed up with location-specific campaigns that encouraged in-store visits. Although this increased digital revenue by 18%, the most significant result was a 15.61% lift in in-store visits, proving the importance of combining retargeting with both online and offline channels to maximize campaign impact.
Read more about our work with Hallmark and how we transformed their holiday marketing strategy by balancing brand awareness with performance media, driving both digital growth and in-store foot traffic to maximize total campaign revenue.
Belmond’s Luxury Travel Retargeting Strategy
Belmond, formerly known as Orient-Express, redefined luxury travel marketing through a meticulously crafted digital strategy that combined retargeting ads with data-driven audience segmentation. Working with Criterion Global, Belmond developed consumer personas representing its ideal high-net-worth travelers. They launched a campaign centered around a fictional luxury family, the ‘Astorbilts’, which captured the attention of affluent audiences through short film vignettes and glamorous photo galleries, showcased across premium digital platforms like The New York Times and Net-A-Porter.
The strategy wouldn’t have had nearly as much of an impact if it weren’t for Criterion Global’s strategic decision to retarget audiences based on age, income, and travel interests, which effectively drove nearly half a billion impressions. By leveraging first-party data and tracking ad exposure frequency, the campaign maximized brand awareness and cross-property visitation, leading to increased loyalty among high-end travelers. The campaign’s success culminated in Belmond’s acquisition by LVMH at a 42% premium above its market cap, showcasing how retargeting ads can play a pivotal role in long-term brand growth and market expansion.
Read more about our work with Belmond and how we transformed their luxury travel marketing strategy through advanced retargeting techniques, audience segmentation, and cross-property engagement, ultimately leading to increased brand awareness and a successful acquisition by LVMH.
Explore more of Criterion Global’s case studies to see how our innovative marketing strategies drive success for brands worldwide.
In summary, both retargeting vs. remarketing have unique advantages. Choosing the right one depends on your specific goals and customer behavior. For a comprehensive strategy, consider incorporating both. Contact Criterion Global for personalized guidance on how to maximize your digital marketing efforts.
FAQs
Can I use both retargeting and remarketing?
Yes, combining both strategies can increase conversions and customer retention.
How can I measure the success of my retargeting/remarketing campaigns?
Track metrics like conversion rate, click-through rate (CTR), and return on ad spend (ROAS).
What tools are best for managing retargeting/remarketing?
Platforms like Google Ads and Facebook Ads are popular for retargeting, while email marketing tools like Mailchimp work well for remarketing.