5 Effective Remarketing Strategies to Optimize eCommerce Campaigns
Remarketing is a powerful tool to turn potential customers into loyal ones. Discover how to re-engage past visitors and increase sales by creating compelling eCommerce campaigns!
Published September 10, 2024.
With an average shopping cart abandonment rate of 70.19%, caused by factors like hidden fees, complicated checkouts, and security worries, remarketing is a game-changer! By strategically re-engaging past visitors, you can turn near-misses into sales.
Remarketing ads boast 10 times higher click-through rates than standard display ads, and Google remarketing campaigns have seen a 44% reduction in cost per acquisition compared to regular search campaigns.
Below, we assess 5 of the best remarketing strategies for eCommerce and tackle their common concerns.
Meet the Expert
Arjel Vajvoda is a product and customer success expert with a decade of experience in the SaaS industry. She currently leads the product team at Motomtech.
» Turn abandoned carts into conversions with our technologies
Remarketing vs. Retargeting
Before you start implementing remarketing strategies, it's essential to understand the differences between remarketing and retargeting. Remarketing is a strategy that's focused primarily on re-engaging past customers or website visitors by sending them targeted emails or ads, often based on previous interactions.
It differs from retargeting in a few ways:
| | Remarketing | Retargeting |
|---|---|---|
| Primary Objective | Bringing back people who know your brand or have interacted with it before | Reaching out to those who showed interest in your brand but didn't take the next step |
| Target Audience | Those who have engaged with your brand before | Potential customers who haven't directly interacted with your brand but who may have discovered it |
| Messaging | More personal and familiar | More general with broader ads |
| Channels | Primarily email | Display ads across different sites and platforms |
» Still confused? Read our guide to remarketing vs. retargeting to learn more
1. Dynamic Product Remarketing
Dynamic product remarketing targets users who viewed products but didn't buy. It displays personalized ads for those products, increasing the potential for conversions.
By focusing on pre-qualified customers, you can optimize their ad spend and achieve higher returns on investment (ROI). This can increase conversion rates through:
- Increased relevance and engagement: Dynamic ads display the exact products users viewed, leading to higher click-through rates and conversions.
- Enhanced efficiency: Dynamic remarketing allows businesses to maximize their ad spend by focusing on users who are more likely to convert.
» Here are some techniques to improve engagement through visual merchandising
How to Implement Dynamic Product Remarketing
For optimal effectiveness, implement this strategy within 24-48 hours after a user leaves the site. This timing capitalizes on the user’s recent interest while it’s still fresh in their mind, increasing the likelihood of a return visit and conversion.
Pro Tips for Dynamic Product Remarketing
Key Metrics
- Conversion rate: The percentage of users who click on an ad and complete a purchase.
- Click-through rate (CTR): The percentage of users who click on an ad. Aim for a CTR of 0.5-1%
- Return on ad spend (ROAS): The revenue generated for every dollar spent on advertising. Aim for a ROAS of at least 4:1.
Challenges and Solutions
Integrating product feeds with ad platforms can be technically challenging. Additionally, showing the same ad repeatedly can lead to user fatigue, potentially causing annoyance and damaging your brand’s reputation.
To overcome these issues:
- Set frequency caps to limit ad repetition.
- Create multiple ad variations to keep content fresh.
- Utilize AI-powered tools like Fast Simon for personalized, dynamic product recommendations.
» Master your campaign metrics with effective eCommerce strategies—explore our merchandising guide
Steve Madden: AI-Driven Dynamic Product Remarketing
Steve Madden significantly increased conversion rates by using Fast Simon’s AI-driven dynamic product remarketing. By showcasing the most relevant products tailored to customers’ browsing history, Steve Madden leveraged personalization to enhance the shopping experience. This approach boosted sales and ensured that the offerings matched customer preferences.
» Here's how to transform your eCommerce merchandising with AI
2. Cart Abandonment Remarketing
This is an eCommerce remarketing strategy that targets customers who have added items to their shopping cart but left the site without completing the purchase.
By reminding these users of their abandoned items and offering incentives, you can effectively reduce cart abandonment rates and increase revenue.
How to Implement Cart Abandonment Remarketing
Be sure to send timely abandoned cart reminders. Send the first remarketing ad or email within 1 hour of abandonment, followed by additional messages over the next 48 hours.
Pro Tips for Cart Abandonment Remarketing
Key Metrics
To monitor the effectiveness of your Cart Abandonment campaigns, concentrate on these metrics:
- Cart abandonment rate
- Conversion rate
- Revenue recovered
Aim for a conversion rate of 20-25% for abandoned cart emails.
Challenges and Solutions
When dealing with cart abandonment strategies, you want to discover why users abandoned their carts while respecting their privacy and shopping experience.
You don't want to bombard users with ads across multiple platforms in a way that might feel overwhelming.
To overcome these challenges:
- Personalize incentives: Offer discounts or free shipping tailored to the specific items abandoned.
- Include a clear call-to-action: Make it easy for users to complete their purchase with a clear and straightforward call-to-action.
- Utilize targeted tools: Platforms like Fast Simon and Klaviyo can help you create highly personalized and effective cart abandonment campaigns.
Princess Polly: Cart Comeback
Princess Polly used Fast Simon’s cart abandonment tools to recover lost sales by sending targeted reminders and offers to users who left items in their carts. This approach significantly converted potential losses into completed transactions, boosting revenue and enhancing customer satisfaction.
» Enhance your cart abandonment strategies with intelligent site search and expert insights
3. Cross-Channel Media Remarketing
Cross-channel media remarketing is a digital marketing strategy that uses various online channels—like websites, social media, and email—to re-engage potential customers who have previously interacted with a brand but haven't completed a purchase. This involves tracking user behavior and delivering targeted ads based on their past actions.
» Did you know that most users make purchases on mobile? Here are some mobile eCommerce strategies
Cross-channel media remarketing reaches users across multiple platforms, ensuring your brand remains visible throughout the user's online journey and increasing the likelihood of conversion.
This will boost your sales through:
- Increased brand visibility: By consistently appearing across multiple platforms, your brand becomes more memorable and trustworthy.
- Improved brand recall: Repeated exposure reinforces your brand, making it more likely to be remembered when users are ready to make a purchase.
» Measure and improve performance with omnichannel merchandising to drive better results
How to Implement Cross-Channel Media Remarketing
Begin your eCommerce remarketing strategy within a few days of initial engagement to keep your messaging relevant. Maintain a consistent brand message across all platforms to strengthen your identity, and tailor your content to each platform's unique features for greater impact.
Pro Tips for Cross-Channel Media Remarketing
Key Metrics
- Cross-channel attribution
- Engagement rates
- Overall conversion rates: Aim for 10-15% increase
Challenges and Solutions
Maintaining consistent messaging and branding across different platforms can be difficult to achieve, especially when dealing with multiple teams or agencies.
Additionally, measuring the effectiveness of cross-channel campaigns can be complex, requiring robust tracking and analysis.
To overcome these challenges:
- Centralize messaging: Create a centralized repository for brand guidelines and messaging to ensure consistency across teams.
- Utilize marketing technology: Leverage tools that can help automate and streamline cross-channel campaigns.
- Implement robust tracking: Use analytics tools to track user behavior across different platforms and measure the impact of your campaigns.
- Leverage platforms: Platforms like Fast Simon can help streamline cross-channel strategies by providing seamless integration with various platforms.
- Utilize Facebook Ads Manager: This tool allows you to manage and optimize ads across Facebook and Instagram, providing detailed insights and retargeting options.
» Explore the best tools and platforms to use for your social commerce strategy
Hillberg & Berk: Sparkling with Cross-Channel Remarketing
Hillberg & Berk, a luxury jewelry brand, used Fast Simon's cross-channel remarketing to engage customers consistently across multiple platforms. This personalized approach boosted brand visibility and sales by delivering relevant content to customers wherever they interacted with the brand.
» Enhance your social commerce strategy with omnichannel personalization and the best tools
4. Sequential Remarketing
Sequential remarketing involves delivering a series of targeted ads to potential customers based on their previous interactions with your brand. The ads follow a specific sequence of messages designed to guide users through the sales funnel.
For example, a sequential remarketing campaign might start with a general awareness ad, followed by a product-focused ad, and finally a promotional offer. This approach aims to nurture potential customers toward purchasing high-value products.
This can increase conversion rates through:
- Improved customer engagement: Sequential ads create a narrative, keeping customers interested and involved.
- Increased brand trust: By addressing customer concerns and providing valuable information, sequential remarketing builds trust.
- Improved customer lifetime value: Satisfied customers are more likely to make repeat purchases and become brand advocates.
» Understand the difference between behavioral targeting and retargeting
How to Implement Sequential Remarketing
All takes is a few simple steps to get your sequential remarketing strategy started:
- Define your target audience
- Create a detailed ad sequence
- Choose the right platforms
- Monitor and optimize performance
Pro Tips for Sequential Remarketing
Key Metrics
- Funnel progression
- Conversion rate
- Customer lifetime value (CLV)
A good benchmark is to see a 15-20% increase in conversion rates from sequential campaigns.
Challenges and Solutions
Sequential remarketing can be challenging due to managing multiple ad sequences, audience segmentation, and performance tracking. These obstacles can hinder its effectiveness.
To overcome these challenges:
- Use a dedicated tool or platform: Many tools are available to help you manage and optimize your sequential remarketing campaigns.
- Start small and gradually expand: Begin with a simple sequence of ads and gradually add more complexity as you gain experience.
- Test and iterate: Experiment with different ad sequences and messaging to find what works best for your audience.
- Focus on key metrics: Track metrics such as funnel progression, conversion rate, and customer lifetime value to measure the success of your sequential remarketing campaign.
Spiceology: Sequential Remarketing Spices Up Sales
Spiceology leveraged Fast Simon’s sequential remarketing to guide customers through their buying journey. By using a series of ads that progressively introduced the brand, highlighted product benefits, and offered time-limited deals, they boosted user engagement and conversions while building a loyal customer base.
» Increase your sales and conversions rate with a tailored visual merchandising plan
5. Email Remarketing
Sending targeted emails to your subscribers and cart abandoners can boost conversions and revenue. With effective email remarketing, you can build relationships, drive sales, and get the most out of your investment.
This is a cost-effective strategy for reconnecting with potential customers who have shown interest in your brand but have yet to complete a purchase.
This can increase conversion rates through:
- Personalized communication: Tailored product recommendations and incentives to encourage repeat purchases.
- Low cost, high ROI: Email remarketing is a cost-effective strategy with a high return on investment.
» Here's how personalized product recommendations boost AOV
How to Implement Email Remarketing Strategy
Timing is important when addressing cart abandonment. Aim to send your first email within an hour of the abandonment, followed by a series of reminder emails over the next few days to keep your brand top-of-mind.
Track the performance of these emails by monitoring open rates, click-through rates (CTR), and conversion rates. Ideally, you should aim for a CTR between 2-5% and a conversion rate of 10-15%.
» Need more help? Here are some email remarketing campaigns to consider
To enhance engagement and improve results, continuously test different subject lines and calls-to-action (CTAs) to find what resonates best with your audience.
Key aspects to focus on:
- Timing your emails effectively
- Tracking key performance metrics
- Optimizing content continuously
Pro Tips for Email Remarketing
Key Metrics
- Open rate
- Click-through rate (CTR)
- Conversion rate
For your email remarketing campaigns, aim for a CTR of 2-5% and a conversion rate of 10-15%. Additionally, monitor unsubscribe rates to ensure your content remains engaging and relevant to your audience.
Challenges and Solutions
Creating engaging and relevant email content that resonates with different audience segments can be challenging. Managing unsubscribes and maintaining a healthy email list while keeping the campaign effective is another common hurdle.
To overcome these challenges:
- Segment your email list: Send personalized content that matches the recipient's interests.
- Use email marketing tools: Platforms like Fast Simon and Klaviyo can help you create personalized product recommendations and automate your email campaigns.
- Monitor unsubscribe rates: Continuously analyze your unsubscribe rates to ensure your content remains relevant and engaging.
» Optimize direct marketing with email and SMS marketing strategies
FrangranceBuy: Personalized Email Outreach
FragranceBuy used Fast Simon’s email marketing integration to send personalized remarketing emails, reminding customers of abandoned carts and suggesting complementary products. This strategy led to a 35% increase in email-driven conversions, boosting sales and enhancing customer loyalty with tailored shopping experiences.
Balancing the Frequency and Relevancy of Remarketing Ads
Extremely invasive and frequent remarketing campaigns risk pushing users away and potentially hurting your brand and customer base. To make sure you find the sweet spot, follow these key tips:
- Set frequency caps: Limit the number of times your ads are shown to the same user within a specific time frame. This helps avoid ad fatigue, where potential customers feel overwhelmed and annoyed by seeing the same ad too often. A good practice is to set a cap of around 3-5 impressions per user per week.
- Implement burn pixels: A burn pixel allows you to untag a visitor who has either converted or seen your ads a certain number of times. Add burn pixels to remove users from your remarketing lists once they’ve converted or completed a desired action. This prevents ads from being shown to customers who have already made a purchase, ensuring that your campaigns remain targeted and efficient.
Start Smart for Successful Remarketing
To run effective remarketing campaigns, begin with one or two key strategies, such as cart abandonment or dynamic remarketing. Set frequency caps to prevent overwhelming users and segment your audience for better targeting. Regularly review and adjust your campaigns based on performance data to enhance their relevance and efficiency.
With effective remarketing strategies in place, you’ll increase your conversion rates, paving the way for happier customers and greater success!
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