Raise your hand if you feel personally victimized by your Google search bar…

Ever log onto Facebook and get the feeling that those sneaky ads on the margins of the page are trying to tell you something? (How does Facebook know that I LOVE shoes, dresses, and beaches in Mexico?!) Well my friends, they are.

Using paid advertising to reach target audiences

At one point or another, we’ve all been victims of retargeting. Here’s how it works:

  1. Bob visits Website A
  2. Bob leaves Website A, but continues to surf the web on popular sites such as Yahoo, ESPN, etc.
  3. Bob is shown a shiny, sparkly banner ad for Website A
  4. Bob clicks on banner ad, directing him back to Website A
  5. Voila, Bob has just been RETARGETED

In case you are not up with the search engine & social media times, there are many firms out there that companies partner with for similar retargeting services. Basically, a cookie is dropped on user’s computers while they are surfing. This cookie then determines what ad the user is shown on future websites they visit. There are many types of retargeting based on the consumer’s behavior; these include: search, site, email, contextual, engagement, etc. Have you ever been retargeted?