Remarketing & Retargeting
Your website might be great at attracting visitors but only about two percent of traffic converts to a sale on the first visit. This means that even if your site has a heavy supply of visitors, you can (and probably do) lose out on a bunch of sales. The whole thought process behind "retargeting" is to find a way to reach the other 98% again...and again if need be. While "remarketing" and "retargeting" are used synonymously, there's a few key differences that are important to keep in mind.
Retargeting works by following your audience as they navigate the web. When a person visits your website, a browser cookie is dropped. (A browser cookie is a small piece of data that embeds itself in a user’s browser, making it possible to see what websites this specific user is visiting). After the cookie is dropped, it will follow the user as they travel to other sites on the web. Then, the cookie will implement retargeting strategy by putting out an ad for your business, encouraging the user to return to your site. The ads are only dropped, or targeted, for users who have already shown interest in your site, but haven’t yet made a purchase.
Here’s the basic idea of how it works:
1) a potential customer visits your website
2) the customer leaves your site without making a purchase
3) they continue surfing the web
4) your ad is displayed on a different webpage
5) the ad draws the potential customer back to your site, where they then make a purchase.
The biggest difference between retargeting and remarketing is the strategy that’s used to reach potential customers who have left your website without making a purchase. While retargeting typically relies on cookies dropping ads, remarketing usually uses email. So, remarketing collects a user’s information, and then uses it later to send them an email.
Both retargeting and remarketing can be effective, and a combination of both might be an effective strategy for improving your overall profits.