Imagine you go shop for a new car. You wander the dealer’s lot and a certain red convertible catches your eye. You kick the tires, open the trunk and even sit in the driver’s seat. But you’re not quite ready to buy, so you leave.
Later that day, you see that same red convertible in the parking lot at work. Then it’s driving in the lane next to you on the way home. Then it’s parked along your street.
What in the world is going on? Is this creepy or is it cool?
Either way, it is the real world version of the digital tool called retargeting. You expressed interest in that car, and so the dealer is making sure you see it again and again to encourage you to return and buy.
Retargeting is a powerful tool for real estate agents. Studies show there is about a two week window when consumers are researching, be it for homes, movers or school districts. And in that time, they visit your site. But only 2 percent will actually “convert,” or contact you. You need to encourage the other 98 percent to come back.
Retargeted consumers are nearly 70 percent more likely to complete a purchase as compared to non-retargeted consumers.
How retargeting works
Retargeting works by showing your online ads to those viewers who have visited your website. As your potential customers continue to search the web, long after they’ve left your website, they will find your advertisement following them.
Adwerx retargeting uses a tiny bit of code, called a pixel. The pixel is unobtrusive—your site visitors won’t notice it and it won’t affect your site’s performance. Every time a new visitor comes to your website, the code drops an anonymous browser cookie. Later, when your ‘cookied’ visitors are on other websites like The New York Times or Facebook, the cookie will let Adwerx know when to serve your ads.
Seeing your ad as they browse the web is just like seeing that red convertible…it keeps your real estate listing or brand top of mind as that buyer or seller gets closer to the moment of decision. Even encouraging the consumer to learn more about you. One comScore study found that brands saw up to a 1,046 percent increase in branded search, or users searching directly for the brand name, during retargeting campaigns.
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Retargeting is effective because of this familiarity: the dealer already knew you liked that red convertible. You “self-identified” as a potential buyer, so the appearance of the car made sense and continued a conversation. Some folks fear that retargeting abuses user privacy. But know this: retargeting pixels do not collect any personally identifiable information such as names, addresses or even IP addresses. All targeting is completely anonymous. Retargeting uses cookies, which are small text files that store information. This cookie stores anonymous data about whether or not a user has visited a certain site. That’s all.
Your customers have already told you what they want. By retargeting them, you are reminding them to come back.
For more information, visit www.adwerx.com.
