Most people do not buy or request a quote on their first visit. They look at the site, compare, leave, and perhaps come back later. Remarketing (also called retargeting) is built on this period, because it shows ads to people who have already come across you, so they do not forget you while they decide.
It works simply. A pixel or tracking code installed on your site records who viewed which pages, and the ad platform builds audiences from this. Such an audience could be the people who reached the basket but did not pay, or those who read a service page but did not fill in the form. The ad systems of Meta and Google both offer this, and the principle of the setup is similar in both.
What makes it work well
- The ad responds to what the person has already seen, and does not restart the introduction
- The message answers the question or doubt that stopped someone from moving on
- The frequency is capped, so the ad reminds without being a nuisance
- Anyone who has already bought or requested a quote is removed from the audience
It is worth splitting the audiences by how recent the visit was as well. Someone who looked at a product yesterday needs a different message from someone who visited a month ago, and for older visitors it is often something new that brings back their interest.
Remarketing creatives therefore differ from ads meant for a first encounter. Here there is no need to explain who you are, so the ad can focus on a specific product or on the next step, and its text can be shorter.
For services with a longer decision time, remarketing can keep your brand present for several weeks. In that case the ads build on each other, the first shows a case study and the next answers a common question. We set up the audiences before the campaign launches, so visitors start collecting in them from day one.
The size of a remarketing audience depends on your traffic. On a low-traffic site it fills slowly, so it usually runs alongside broader targeting, while with more traffic it is worth running as a campaign of its own.
