Have you ever casually browsed a product online, only to suddenly see ads and promotions for similar items popping up all over your social media feed? No, it’s not Big Brother watching your every move – it’s a clever marketing technique many brands use.
There’s a reason so many companies are incorporating retargeting into their marketing campaigns. It can be one of the most effective ways of turning passive interest into red-hot, ready-to-convert prospects.
Generating new leads is often one of the most expensive and resource-intensive areas of a sales and marketing strategy. Instead of sourcing and nurturing cold leads all the time, retargeting lets you tap into an audience of prospects who have already shown an interest in your brand and products.
Not only does this present you with a group of potential customers who are more likely to convert, but it also makes sure that you can capture those moments of fleeting interest and stay on their radar, making sure no leads slip through the cracks.
Let’s look at how it works and learn some key strategies for using retargeting to generate more leads for your business.
Why B2B retargeting matters
Unlike B2C, where purchases might be impulsive or relatively straightforward, B2B transactions are often more considered and rarely occur on a prospect’s first interaction with a business. The purchasing process can take longer, involve more stakeholders, and require more information before buyers feel confident making a decision.
The challenge? If you’re not staying top of their mind throughout this decision-making process, you could quickly fall off their radar.
Let’s consider the example of a prospect looking for a new CRM platform for their organization. They might come across your website, have a look around, read a few blog posts, and download a whitepaper on a subject that interests them, such as customer data platform vs CRM – but then they leave without making a purchase or contacting your sales team.
Does that mean they’re not interested? Absolutely not! Studies show that most B2B buyers need multiple touchpoints before making a decision. This is where you can use B2B retargeting to keep nurturing those interested prospects along the buying journey.
What is B2B retargeting?
B2B retargeting is all about strategically putting your business in front of prospects that have previously shown an interest. Instead of putting all of your marketing efforts into trying to bring in brand-new leads, you can use retargeting to focus on those who have already demonstrated some intent, perhaps by seeking out your product or looking for more information.
Interested prospects are also known as ‘warm’ leads, as they’ve already had at least some interaction with your brand. That means they’re further along in the purchasing journey than ‘cold’ prospects who haven’t previously shown interest in your brand.
Some of the main retargeting techniques include:
- Display ads: Banner ads that follow visitors across other websites after they leave your site.
- Social media ads: These are the ads displayed on social platforms (such as LinkedIn, Facebook, or Instagram) to re-target users who have already interacted with your website or content.
- Email retargeting: Sending emails to prospects who have visited your website but didn’t take the next step to becoming a customer.
- Search engine retargeting: Displaying targeted ads to people who have visited your website when they search for related terms on search engines.
How does B2B retargeting work?
We’re all familiar with the little pop-up we’re often greeted with when visiting a website for the first time, asking us to accept or decline cookies. Let’s be honest – most of us probably quickly dismiss it with a brief click, not giving it too much thought other than finding it a bit annoying.
When it comes to B2B marketing, those clever cookies could be your new best friend. When someone lands on your website or content and they give their consent, a small piece of code (a tracking pixel or cookie) is added to their browser. You can use this to effectively ‘follow’ their activity across other websites or platforms, like social media, and place your ads right in front of them.
Retargeting usually shows up on platforms such as:
- Google Display Network
Retargeting is helpful because you focus on people who have already interacted with your brand. That means you’re putting your efforts (and ad spend) into prospects that are much more likely to convert than a brand-new audience of cold leads.
Types of B2B retargeting campaigns
You can use retargeting to help your lead generation strategy in several ways. Let’s take a closer look at some of the most common ones:
1. Website retargeting
Website retargeting is perhaps one of the most popular and widely known forms of retargeting. With this approach, you target customers who have visited your website but left before they’ve taken the action you want them to take (like requesting a demo or filling out an inquiry form). Rather than letting them slip through your fingers, you can use display ads or social media ads to retarget those visitors and drive them back to your site.
Let’s say a potential customer visits your pricing page but leaves without asking for a quote. You can retarget them with ads that show testimonials from other satisfied customers, further product info, or even a limited-time offer – all of which can help entice them to the next step of their journey.
2. CRM-based retargeting
We’re all familiar with that frustrating pot of leads that almost convert but then go cold or postpone their purchase. Despite your best efforts to reach out, eventually, you have to admit defeat and refocus your efforts elsewhere. You might be tempted to write them off completely, but you could be missing out on sales if you do.
With CRM-based retargeting, you can upload your customer or prospect list straight from your CRM system and then create a campaign to retarget those leads specifically. This approach is effective for various industries, including online ticketing platforms, where you might need a gentle nudge to move prospects forward in their purchasing decision.
Using email tools like Mailchimp alternatives, you can segment and automate these retargeting campaigns, giving you more control over how and when to re-engage cold leads. For example, you could retarget a list of cold leads with an exclusive webinar invitation or product update.
3. Lead magnet retargeting
Content marketing and offering useful resources can be a great way of driving people to your website – but how do you turn those passing visitors into paying customers?
Lead magnet retargeting specifically targets individuals who have interacted with your content in some way but haven’t quite made it into the sales funnel yet. For example, they might have visited your site, downloaded a whitepaper, sales strategy template, or eBook, or attended a webinar you’ve hosted. You can follow up with these leads by retargeting them with further useful and personalized content that might be of interest to them, keeping them engaged with your brand.
4. Search retargeting
When B2B prospects start thinking about making a purchase, they’ll often spend some time checking out different options first. And where’s the first place most people turn when they’re looking for a product or service? That’s right – our trusty search engine.
Rather than relying on your SEO efforts alone to get your product or service in front of these prospects, you can use search retargeting to show them ads when they search for a specific related keyword. This form of retargeting can be especially effective in reaching prospects who are in the research phase when they might not have come into contact with your brand yet.
For example, if a prospect searches for the phrase ‘best software for lead generation’, you can retarget them across other platforms and websites they go on the visit with display ads for your software solution.
Four ways B2B retargeting can generate more leads
Now that you’ve got a good idea of how B2B retargeting works and the different types of campaigns you can use, let’s get to the good stuff – how it can directly contribute to generating more leads for your business.
1. Higher conversion rates from warm leads
One of the main reasons retargeting works so well is that it focuses on warm leads – people who have already shown some interest in your product or service. Targeting them again gives you a much higher chance of conversion than simply doing a cold outreach to a completely new audience. It keeps your brand front and center and helps prospects move through the sales funnel at their own pace.
2. Extending the buyer’s journey
B2B purchases are rarely quick and simple affairs. They can be long and complex, often involving multiple stakeholders and several stages of validation. Retargeted ads allow you to stay connected with your prospects throughout the process, giving them a gentle nudge in the right direction at every step of their journey.
This could be a relevant blog post at the awareness stage, case studies showing off your solution when they are considering a solution, or testimonials from happy customers when they are evaluating different vendors.
3. Personalized and targeted messaging
Personalized marketing is no longer a ‘nice to have’. It’s becoming an expectation amongst consumers and B2B buyers alike. In this day and age, firing out generic ads to a wide audience often simply doesn’t cut it. When you use retargeting, you have the perfect opportunity to personalize your ads and campaigns based on the behaviors and interests of your prospects.
For example, if someone visits your website and reads a blog post about a specific product, you can retarget them with ads about the other features of that product. This not only makes your ads more likely to lead to conversions but can improve the ROI of your overall ad spend as you’ll avoid wasted impressions on irrelevant audiences.
4. Re-engaging abandoned leads
While it would be great if every visitor to your website immediately converted, it’s not uncommon for prospects to land on your site, have a look around, and then leave. It doesn’t necessarily imply a lack of interest or that they don’t have the potential to become a paying customer. Retargeting helps you follow up on these lost leads and herd them back into your lead generation funnel.
By offering valuable content, such as case studies or special offers, you can remind these prospects of the value your solution provides and encourage them to turn their interest into action.
Key metrics to track in B2B retargeting
To make sure your B2B retargeting campaign is having the right effect, you’ll want to track some key performance metrics.
Here are the most important ones:
- Click-through rate (CTR): The percentage of people who clicked on your retargeting ad after seeing it.
- Conversion rate: The rate at which users who clicked your ad took the desired action, e.g., filling out a form or requesting a demo.
- Cost per lead (CPL): The total cost of your retargeting campaign divided by the number of leads generated.
- Return on ad spend (ROAS): The revenue generated from your retargeting campaign compared to the total cost of the campaign.
Tracking these metrics allows you to see how well your retargeting campaigns are working, if you need to tweak any areas, and make sure you’re generating leads cost-effectively.
How B2B retargeting can drive lead generation
New customers are the lifeblood of growing any business, but if you ever feel like you’re constantly toiling away to find new leads, you might be overlooking a whole group of prospects who are already primed to convert.
These leads have already shown an interest in your products or services, making them much easier to engage than starting from scratch with cold leads. So, what’s stopping you? Get retargeting!
Key takeaways:
- B2B retargeting re-engages warm leads who have previously interacted with your brand, leading to higher conversion rates.
- Personalizing your retargeting campaigns is key to connecting with prospects at every stage of their buying journey and making your efforts more effective.
- Monitor your performance indicators, especially CTR, conversion rate, and CPL, to optimize your retargeting efforts.
- Dynamic and content-based retargeting can help nurture prospects by delivering relevant content and product-specific ads that align with their interests and behaviors.