Search Engine Marketing: Remarketing to Convert Lost Traffic

Search Engine Marketing can help increase sales

Search engine marketing (SEM) is a powerful tool for driving traffic to your website, but not every visitor is ready to convert on their first visit. In fact, studies show that most website visitors don’t take immediate action when they first land on a site. This is where remarketing comes into play. Remarketing allows you to target those visitors who showed interest but didn’t convert, giving your business another chance to turn lost traffic into paying customers. In this guide, we’ll explore how you can use remarketing in SEM to convert that lost traffic.

What Is Remarketing in Search Engine Marketing?

Remarketing is a strategy where businesses target ads specifically at people who have visited their website before but didn’t complete the desired action, such as making a purchase or filling out a contact form. With SEM, remarketing works by displaying ads to these users as they browse other websites or search on Google, keeping your brand front and center in their minds.

By focusing on these previously engaged users, you increase the likelihood of conversion since they’re already familiar with your brand. This targeted approach can lead to better ROI on your SEM efforts.

Why Remarketing Works

Remarketing is effective because it takes advantage of the fact that most customers go through a journey before making a purchase. Here’s why it works:

1. Multiple Touchpoints: Most buyers don’t convert on their first visit to a website. Remarketing gives businesses multiple opportunities to engage with potential customers at different stages of their decision-making process.
2. Brand Recall: By consistently showing up in front of your audience, you increase brand recall. When they’re ready to purchase, they’re more likely to think of your business.
3. Targeted Approach: With remarketing, you can target people who have already shown interest in your products or services, making them more likely to convert compared to cold traffic.

Setting Up Remarketing in SEM

To get started with remarketing in SEM, follow these steps:

1. Install a Tracking Pixel or Code

The first step in any remarketing campaign is setting up a tracking code (also known as a pixel). This piece of code tracks who visits your website and allows you to follow them around the web with targeted ads.

• Google Ads: Google offers a simple tracking pixel that you can install on your website to build your remarketing lists. Once installed, Google will start tracking visitors to your site.
• Custom Audiences: You can create lists of users based on specific pages they visited or actions they took, such as adding a product to their cart but not completing the purchase.

2. Segment Your Audience

Not all visitors are the same, so segmenting your audience based on behavior allows you to deliver more personalized and effective ads. Some key segments you might want to target include:

• Homepage Visitors: These users visited your homepage but didn’t explore further. They may need a general reminder of what your business offers.
• Product Page Viewers: These users looked at specific products but didn’t buy. You can show them ads highlighting the products they viewed or similar ones.
• Abandoned Carts: These users added items to their cart but didn’t check out. Show them ads with a gentle nudge to complete their purchase or offer a discount to sweeten the deal.

3. Create Compelling Ads

Your remarketing ads should be tailored to your audience and their place in the buying journey. Here are some tips for creating effective remarketing ads:

• Tailored Messaging: Speak directly to your segmented audience. For example, offer a reminder to someone who abandoned their cart or show a special promotion to someone who viewed a specific product.
• Eye-Catching Visuals: Use strong visuals that capture attention and clearly represent your brand and the product or service you’re promoting.
• Clear Call to Action (CTA): Make sure your ads have a clear and direct CTA. Whether it’s “Shop Now” or “Get 20% Off,” guide your audience toward the action you want them to take.

Best Practices for Remarketing in Search Engine Marketing

To get the most out of your SEM remarketing efforts, follow these best practices:

1. Use Frequency Capping

Showing your ads too often can annoy potential customers. With frequency capping, you limit how many times a user sees your ads within a given time frame, helping avoid overexposure.

2. Exclude Converted Users

Once someone has completed the desired action (e.g., purchased a product), exclude them from your remarketing campaign. There’s no need to continue showing them ads for a product they already bought. Instead, you can retarget them with cross-sell or upsell ads for complementary products or services.

3. Rotate Ad Variations

People can quickly become blind to ads they’ve seen too often. Regularly rotate your ads to keep things fresh and engaging. You can test different messaging, visuals, and CTAs to see what resonates best with your audience.

4. Leverage Dynamic Remarketing

Dynamic remarketing allows you to show ads featuring specific products or services that your visitors looked at on your website. For example, if someone viewed a particular pair of shoes but didn’t purchase, you can display an ad with that exact product. This hyper-personalized approach can greatly improve conversion rates.

5. Analyze and Optimize

Like any marketing strategy, you’ll want to continuously monitor and optimize your remarketing campaigns. Track key metrics like click-through rates (CTR), conversion rates, and cost per conversion to see what’s working and what isn’t. Don’t be afraid to tweak your ads or adjust your audience segments based on performance.

How Remarketing Fits into a Broader SEM Strategy

Remarketing should be a key part of your overall Search Engine Marketing strategy. It complements other SEM tactics, such as search ads and display ads, by giving you another touchpoint with your audience. By integrating remarketing with your other SEM efforts, you create a cohesive, full-funnel marketing strategy that guides users from awareness to conversion.

Remarketing can also be combined with search ads for even greater impact. For example, you can set up remarketing lists for search ads (RLSA), which allows you to target people who have visited your website with tailored search ads when they search for related keywords. This helps you reach users who are already familiar with your brand but are still in the research phase.

Work with the best Search Engine Marketing experts

Contact SCD Consulting Services today, your Charlotte concierge online marketing team for top SEO results.