What is Mobile Retargeting?

The advertising strategy of mobile retargeting is a lead-nurturing method to maximize business returns by showing ads to users who previously visited your site.

Mobile retargeting strategically boosts brand awareness and gets directly in front of the people who matter most to your business. But as most strategies go, there’s more to retargeting than meets the eye. Optimizing engagement using best practices can help you get the most from your mobile retargeting efforts—meaning better audience engagement and higher sales revenue. 

Research into mobile retargeting’s effectiveness makes it clear that there is clear value in reaching out to customers and prospects for a second chance. Whether you’re looking to improve awareness, loyalty, basket size, shopping frequency, marketing efficiency, conversions, or overall lifetime value, retargeting deserves a place in your marketing mix. 

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‍What Makes Mobile Retargeting a Unique Strategy?

Mobile retargeting involves contacting a person who has been previously exposed to your brand in some way. Very rarely does a consumer make an immediate purchase after receiving one offer for a new brand, product, or service. On average, it takes eight touchpoints to warm up a prospect and complete the sale. With so many shoppers glued to their phones, a majority of retargeting work takes place over mobile devices through text and in-app communications.  

Mobile Retargeting vs. Mobile Remarketing

“Mobile remarketing” is another term you may hear thrown around, but it’s different than mobile retargeting. While both retargeting and remarketing aim to nurture existing leads and customers, their differences lie in their tactics: 

• Retargeting nurtures with ads.
• Remarketing nurtures with emails.

What Are Examples of Mobile Retargeting?

Mobile retargeting might mean: 

• Serving up a social media ad to someone who visited your ecommerce website, but didn’t download your retail app
• Sending out a push notification coupon after a person downloads your retail app
• Running holiday text campaigns to reactivate people who purchased through your website only once 
• Advertising loyalty program reward opportunities to increase engagement

What’s Unique About Mobile Retargeting?

The unique aspect of retargeting is that it gives you the chance to reconnect with your customers and prospects. Retargeting strategies add value by rekindling and nurturing the relationships that matter most. As more consumers rely on mobile devices to enhance their purchasing journey, understanding the value of mobile retargeting is imperative to your bottom line and owning your customers. 

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Benefits of Mobile Retargeting

Consider the following advantages of mobile retargeting:

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To increase advertising efficiency and save money

We’re all looking for ways to maximize advertising efficiency, getting more bang for our buck. You’ve already caught their attention—so why focus on soliciting new customers when it’s five times cheaper to re-engage? 

Targeting those who have bought once—or who are most probable to buy based on their engagement and behavior—can sell more precisely and earn your business higher returns. Retargeting ad campaigns generally see 10x the clickthrough rate and half the cost-per-click when compared to standard display ads.

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To boost brand awareness and stay top of mind

If you have coupons or an upcoming seasonal sale, retargeting on mobile is an effective way to entice your customers back into your store. It’s a gentle nudge to help remind customers of your products and services. 

By retargeting these individuals, you can help keep your business top of mind, which creates a favorable image and increases the likelihood of a future sale when the customer is ready to buy.

Retargeting a consumer who has previously interacted with the brand on mobile is 10x more likely to result in a positive engagement or a sale compared to an initial communication. Same-day customer retargeting can drive a 100x lift in sales.

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To engage and build customer loyalty

The average mobile user has 100+ apps. Not surprisingly, 21% of mobile users abandon an app after just one use and 80% of users across all verticals abandon an app within three months. Running a retargeting ad campaign after a person installs your app makes it 30% more likely the shopper will return to the app without further encouragement. 

Generally speaking, retargeted display ads are 70% more likely to convert site visitors than regular display banners. Showing personalized ads drives meaningful connections between your store and shoppers, which can foster customer loyalty and higher engagement. 

Retargeting—when combined with an integrated loyalty program—helps build retention. In fact, 58% of customers belonging to a brand’s loyalty program buy from that brand at least monthly. Loyalty members are more likely to purchase, try new products, click on ads, and engage with the brand when prompted by a retargeting ad. This type of routine engagement, in turn, gets shoppers into the habit of using the app, browsing more often, spending more time on in-app activities, and ultimately filling their baskets up in-store. 

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‍To improve sales and reduce cart abandonment

Abandoned shopping carts result in lost potential revenue for retailers. Globally, over 77% of online shopping carts are abandoned—up from 61.59% in 2009—so it’s become increasingly important to re-engage these wayward shoppers. 

Overall, 27% of retailers use mobile retargeting as a strategy to reduce shopping cart abandonment (lost revenue) by an average of 6.5% and increase online sales by 20%. Other studies have found retargeting can help bring customers back, boosting conversion rates by 161%. 

Customers may inadvertently lose interest for a variety of reasons, but retargeting provides an often-appreciated second chance for a customer to re-engage and complete a purchase of something they may have forgotten they really wanted or needed.

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‍To drive in-app conversions with a personal, convenient experience 

Ultimately, sales are what keeps businesses alive. Mobile apps are one more potential avenue for these sales. It’s been estimated that 35% of total app conversions take place as a result of retargeting efforts. Further studies have shown 17.5% of apps using retargeted ads see a 25% conversion rate; mobile retargeting increases click-through rates by 48% and the number of paying customers by 50%. 

Retargeting also helps you go beyond awareness to deliver more specific messaging to those who have expressed real interest. One study found that 30% of consumers said they had a favorable impression of retargeted ads, compared to just 11% who did not care for this type of advertising. Generally, consumers are much more likely to purchase when they receive a directly relevant and compelling call-to-action combined with an incentivizing promo code or offer.

Given these numbers, it’s no wonder mobile retargeting is widely considered one of the most effective tools for driving in-app activity, while increasing the chances of retaining customers for their lifetimes. 

While retargeting is widely considered one of the most effective tools for re-engagement and long-term revenue growth, many retailers are at a loss for how to properly execute such a strategy. Finding the right retail platform to build retargeting campaigns is crucial to successful, seamless, and beautifully simple orchestration.  

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Influence Shoppers the Right Way with Swiftly

Mobile retargeting is easier when you’re working with a digital retail platform like Swiftly, which allows you to leverage customer data to provide shoppers with a personalized, engaging, and convenient experience. Retailers with Swiftly-powered apps enjoy a 40% lift in basket size and store visits.

By using first-party data to offer shoppers personalized digital ads and coupons reflecting their wants and needs, you offer an omnichannel experience that lines up with every stage across the buyer’s journey. Swiftly offers In-Store, Click & Collect, Delivery, and Endless Aisle features that allow you to take full ownership of your customer relationship and build customized experiences that cement lifetime loyalty.

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At Swiftly, we carry years of expertise and experience helping retailers and brands maximize their engagement, loyalty, and revenue. Our AI platform leans into data to create customized experiences for your customers. 

If you’d like to learn more about bolstering your return on ad spend via mobile retargeting, reach out to the Swiftly team.

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