Remarketing

Remarketing (also called retargeting) is advertising shown to people who have already visited a website but not converted. They left without buying, booking or filling in a form. Remarketing gives you a second chance to reach them.

The people on a remarketing list already know the brand and have shown interest. Often all they need is a reminder or a good reason to come back.

The advertising can feel intrusive if it is handled badly (“why are these ads following me everywhere?”). Handled well, it feels like a helpful reminder at the right moment.

Why remarketing works so well

They already know the brand

The first time someone sees a brand, trust is low. Who is this company? Can it be trusted?

With remarketing: The audience has already visited the website. They have seen products, read about the company, perhaps even looked at prices. Trust has started to build.

The threshold for converting is then lower.

They have already shown interest

They just have not converted yet. Perhaps they needed to think and compare, or they got distracted.

Remarketing reminds them when they are ready.

Remarketing builds on several touchpoints

A purchase is often preceded by several contacts with the brand.

Remarketing is touchpoints 3 and 5, and potentially more. The ads keep the brand in mind throughout the decision process.

Why is the threshold lower than for new audiences?

Reason: It takes less to persuade someone who is already interested than someone who has never heard of the brand.

How remarketing works technically

How the pixel or tag is installed on the website

For remarketing to work, a tracking code (pixel or tag) must be installed on the website.

Implementation: The code is placed in the page head on every page or added through Google Tag Manager.

How remarketing lists (audiences) are built

Once the pixel is installed, lists are built automatically.

Basic list: “Everyone who has visited the website in the last 30 days”

The more specific the list, the more relevant the ad you can create.

How cookie-based tracking works

Remarketing relies on cookies stored in the visitor’s browser.

The lists only include visitors who have given consent and whose browsers allow the tracking. Your own customer lists reduce the dependence on cookies.

There are several types of remarketing

Standard remarketing shows display ads

Show display ads to previous visitors as they browse the web.

Example: An online shopper visits a product page for shoes and leaves without buying. Later, the shopper sees a display ad with the same shoes and the text “10 per cent off this week”.

Dynamic remarketing shows what the visitor looked at

Show ads featuring exactly the products or services the visitor looked at.

How it works

The pixel sends product information to the ad platform. Ads featuring those products are generated automatically.

Example

A visitor looks at three specific products on an e-commerce site. The remarketing ad shows exactly those three products with images, prices and a “Buy now” button.

Advantage

Extremely relevant. Higher CTR and conversion rate than standard remarketing.

Requirement

A product feed must be connected to the ad platform.

Search remarketing (RLSA) adapts search ads

RLSA stands for Remarketing Lists for Search Ads.

Show search ads with adjusted bids or messages to people who have previously visited the website.

Use

Scenario 1, higher bids

Someone visited the site last week but did not convert. When they now search for relevant queries, ads are shown with higher bids (more aggressive bidding) because they already know the brand.

Scenario 2, special message

Ad for previous visitors: “Welcome back. 15 per cent off is waiting for you.”
Ad for new visitors: the standard offer.

Advantage

Combines search (high purchase intent) with remarketing (brand awareness).

Video remarketing reaches visitors on YouTube

Show video ads on YouTube to previous website visitors.

Advantage

Video is more engaging than static banners.

Disadvantage

Video material is more expensive to produce.

Email remarketing (Customer Match) starts from customer lists

Upload customer lists (email addresses) and show ads to those specific people.

Requirement: Processing the email addresses must have a legal basis under the GDPR, and Google requires consent where the law or Google’s policy demands it.

Social media remarketing appears in social feeds

Show ads in social feeds (Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn) to previous visitors.

Advantage: Native ads (they feel less like ads in the feed).

How segmentation reaches the right person with the right message

Why should you segment?

Visitors differ. Someone who visited the home page for 10 seconds behaves differently from someone who stayed for 15 minutes and added products to the basket.

Segmentation lets you show different messages based on behaviour.

These segments are common

Message: General awareness, why choose the company, social proof.

Message: Show exactly the products they looked at. Include reviews or a discount.

Message: “You left something in your basket”, possibly with a discount (5 to 10 per cent) as an extra nudge.

Message: Aggressive remarketing. “Complete your purchase now. We will hold your basket for 24 hours.” Only use the promise if it is true.

Message: Upselling (related products), cross-selling, loyalty programmes.

Message: A personal offer, book a consultation, a special offer.

Exclude people who have converted

Critical

Stop showing ads to people who have already converted (if the goal was the first purchase).

Why

It wastes budget and irritates customers (“I’ve already bought it, why am I still seeing the ad?”).

Exception

If the goal is upselling or cross-selling, the ads can continue, but with a different message.

How to create creative material for remarketing

Remind them of what they looked at

For e-commerce: Show the product images they saw.

Example: “You looked at these shoes. Still interested?”

Address why they did not convert

Use social proof

People who have already visited the site but not converted need trust.

Create urgency and scarcity in the ad

Give the visitor a reason to act now, not later.

Warning: Only use such messages if they are true. False urgency damages trust.

Test the ad material

Create several variants and test them.

Optimise based on what converts.

How to control frequency and timing

Frequency capping stops overexposure

The problem without a cap

The same person sees the ad 50 times a day. This leads to irritation and damage to the brand.

Solution

Set a maximum number of impressions per person per day or week.

The platforms offer this through frequency cap settings.

Timing: how long should remarketing run?

Different products and services need different durations

Exclude after conversion: Once someone has converted, remove them from the remarketing list or move them to an upsell list.

How to avoid ad fatigue

Problem: The same ad material for three months can make people blind to it.

Which platforms suit remarketing?

Google Ads (Display and YouTube) gives wide reach

Reach: The Google Display Network reaches widely across websites and apps.

Advantage

Enormous reach, good tools for segmentation.

Cost

Relatively low.

Facebook and Instagram are particularly strong for B2C

Reach: Billions of users, particularly strong for B2C.

Advantage

Highly engaging formats, good for visual products.

Cost

Medium.

LinkedIn suits B2B

Reach: B2B focus, professional users.

Advantage

Perfect for B2B remarketing, with targeting based on job role.

Cost

High.

Programmatic platforms reach many sites

Reach

Broad, across many sites.

Advantage

Advanced automation, cross-platform remarketing.

Disadvantage

Requires a larger budget and technical expertise.

How to measure and optimise remarketing

How to track remarketing KPIs

CTR (Click-Through Rate)

The share of people who click the ad, compared with campaigns aimed at new audiences.

Conversion Rate

The share of clicks that lead to a conversion, compared with campaigns aimed at new audiences.

CPA (Cost Per Acquisition)

The cost per conversion, compared with campaigns aimed at new audiences.

ROAS (Return On Ad Spend)

Shows the revenue per krona of ad spend.

Analyse segment performance

Which segments convert best?

How to A/B test remarketing

Method: Run two variants at the same time and compare the conversion rate. Keep the winner and test a new variant against it.

How to handle the GDPR and privacy

Consent is required

The Swedish Electronic Communications Act (lagen om elektronisk kommunikation): Marketing cookies require consent under Chapter 9, Section 28. The Swedish Post and Telecom Authority (Post- och telestyrelsen, PTS) supervises the rules on cookies. The GDPR then governs how the personal data is processed, and the Swedish Authority for Privacy Protection (Integritetsskyddsmyndigheten, IMY) is the supervisory authority there.

Consequence

Visitors who decline cookies cannot be reached with remarketing.

Consent Mode

Google’s EU policy requires valid consent from visitors in the European Economic Area (EEA), the United Kingdom and Switzerland. Consent Mode sends the visitor’s choices to Google with the signals ad_storage, ad_user_data and ad_personalization. If the visitor declines ad_personalization, remarketing in Google Ads receives no data. Read more in Google’s documentation.

Be transparent about remarketing

Brand value: Companies that respect privacy build trust over the long term.

How to avoid common remarketing mistakes

Mistake 1: The frequency is too aggressive

Problem

The same ad is shown 50 times a day to the same person.

Result

Irritation, a negative effect on the brand.

Solution

Set a frequency cap of three to five impressions a day.

Mistake 2: People who have converted are not excluded

Problem

People who have already bought still see “Buy now” ads.

Result

Wasted budget, confused customers.

Solution

Exclude people who have converted from campaigns (or move them to an upsell campaign).

Mistake 3: Visitors are not segmented

Problem

The same ad for all visitors regardless of behaviour.

Result

Low relevance, a lower conversion rate.

Solution

Segment and create specific messages for each segment.

Mistake 4: The ad material is never tested

Problem

The same ad material for six months. Without testing, there is no way to know whether it is working optimally.

Result

Potentially lower performance, ad fatigue.

Solution

Test new variants every two to four weeks.

Mistake 5: The remarketing period is too short or too long

Problem

E-commerce with 90-day remarketing (too long, people have forgotten) or B2B with 7-day remarketing (too short, decisions take months).

Result

Wasted budget or missed opportunities.

Solution

Adapt the remarketing period to the decision process.

How remarketing fits into the bigger picture

How a full-funnel strategy works

Remarketing should not run in isolation. It is part of the funnel.

Remarketing keeps the brand in mind and moves people from consideration to conversion.

Combine remarketing with other channels

Email and remarketing

Someone subscribes to the newsletter but does not buy. Remarketing gives a visual reminder while the email campaigns work on the subscriber.

SEO and remarketing

People find the site organically, look around and leave. Remarketing brings them back.

Search ads and remarketing

People click a search ad, visit the site and leave without buying. Remarketing follows up.

Together they create several touchpoints that increase the conversion rate.

How we go from set-up to results

The process has six steps

Contact us about remarketing

Carnaby helps you set up and optimise remarketing campaigns that convert, from technical set-up to creative strategy.

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