Digital Advertising
Retargeting Advertising: How It Works & Why It Converts
Re-engage past visitors and turn lost traffic into conversions.
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What We Do
Most Visitors Don't
Convert the First Time
Most people who visit your website leave without taking action — but that doesn’t mean they’re gone for good. Retargeting advertising brings them back by serving targeted ads to people who’ve already shown interest in your brand, keeping you top of mind until they’re ready to act. DASH TWO runs retargeting campaigns across display, social, and search for brands that want to close the gap between interest and conversion.
WHAT WE OFFER
What Is Retargeting?
Retargeting is a form of digital advertising that targets people who have previously interacted with your brand — visited your website, engaged with your social media, watched your video, or opened your emails — but didn’t convert.
It works by placing a small piece of code called a pixel on your website. When someone visits, the pixel fires and adds them to a retargeting audience. From that point on, you can serve ads to that person across display networks, social platforms, and search engines — reminding them of what they left behind and giving them a reason to come back.
The result is advertising that reaches people who already know who you are, making it significantly more efficient than cold outreach.
Wild Posting® — Janelle Monae
THE PROCESS
How Retargeting Works
Pixel fires. A visitor lands on your website. Your retargeting pixel fires and drops a cookie in their browser, adding them to your retargeting audience.
Audience builds. As more people visit your site, your audience grows. You can segment by page visited, time on site, actions taken, or how far they got in the purchase funnel.
Ads serve. Your retargeting ads follow them across the web — on other websites, in their social feeds, and in search results — keeping your brand visible while they’re still in the decision-making window.
Visitor returns. A well-timed, well-targeted ad brings them back to your site and converts a lost visit into a sale, a lead, or a sign-up.
AD FORMATS
Types of Retargeting Ads
Retargeting isn’t one format — it runs across multiple channels, each reaching your audience in a different context.
Display Retargeting
Banner and display ads served across thousands of websites and apps via programmatic networks. Display retargeting keeps your brand visible to past visitors as they browse the web, with creative that reinforces your message and drives return visits.
Social Media Retargeting
Serve ads to past visitors directly in their social feeds on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, Snapchat, LinkedIn, and more. Social retargeting is especially effective for consumer brands because it reaches people in a high-engagement environment where they’re already primed to discover and purchase.
Search Retargeting
Also known as RLSA (Remarketing Lists for Search Ads), search retargeting adjusts your Google and Bing bids for people who’ve previously visited your site. When a past visitor searches for your product or a competitor, you can bid more aggressively to recapture them at the exact moment of intent.
Email Retargeting
Reach known contacts — past customers, newsletter subscribers, or CRM leads — with targeted ads based on their behavior. If someone opened your email but didn’t click, or visited a product page but didn’t buy, email retargeting closes the loop.
Mobile Retargeting
Re-engage past visitors across mobile apps and mobile web placements. Mobile retargeting is increasingly important as more purchases begin and end on smartphones — especially for e-commerce, entertainment, and local businesses.
Wild Posting® — Janelle Monae
KNOW THE DIFFERENCE
Retargeting vs. Remarketing
The terms are often used interchangeably, but there’s a distinction worth knowing.
Retargeting typically refers to paid ad campaigns that use pixel data to re-engage past website visitors across display, social, and search. Remarketing more often refers to email-based re-engagement — reaching past customers or contacts through email campaigns based on their behavior.
In practice, Google uses “remarketing” to describe what most platforms call retargeting. Either way, the goal is the same: re-engage people who already know your brand and bring them back when they’re ready to act.
WHY IT WORKS
Benefits of Retargeting
Higher conversion rates. People who’ve already visited your site are far more likely to convert than cold audiences. Retargeting focuses your budget on the highest-intent segment of your potential customers.
Better ROI. Because you’re targeting warm audiences, retargeting campaigns typically deliver a lower cost per acquisition than prospecting campaigns. You’re not starting from zero — you’re closing a conversation that already started.
Improved brand recall. Consistent exposure keeps your brand top of mind during the consideration phase. Even if someone doesn’t click immediately, repeated impressions build familiarity and trust that pay off when they’re ready to buy.
Personalized messaging. Retargeting lets you tailor creative based on what a visitor actually did on your site — showing someone the exact product they viewed, the category they browsed, or the offer they didn’t take. Personalized ads outperform generic ones.
Reduced cart abandonment. For e-commerce brands, retargeting is one of the most effective tools for recovering abandoned carts — reaching shoppers who got close but didn’t complete the purchase.
DASH TWO
COMMON QUESTIONS
Retargeting FAQ
What is retargeting in digital advertising?
Retargeting is a paid advertising strategy that targets people who have previously visited your website or engaged with your brand. It uses pixel tracking to build audiences and serve ads across display, social, and search platforms to bring past visitors back and drive conversions.
What's the difference between retargeting and remarketing?
Retargeting typically refers to pixel-based paid ad campaigns that re-engage past website visitors. Remarketing more often refers to email-based re-engagement campaigns. Google uses “remarketing” to describe its retargeting features, which is why the terms are often used interchangeably.
How long should a retargeting campaign run?
Most retargeting campaigns run on a 30, 60, or 90-day window — meaning you serve ads to people who visited within that time frame. The right window depends on your sales cycle. Short purchase cycles like e-commerce typically use 30 days. Longer consideration periods like B2B or real estate benefit from 60–90 day windows.
Does retargeting work without third-party cookies?
The industry is shifting away from third-party cookies, but retargeting is adapting. First-party data — your own CRM lists, email subscribers, and customer data — is becoming the foundation of effective retargeting. Platforms like Meta and Google also offer their own audience matching tools that don’t rely on third-party cookies.
How do I get started with retargeting?
Start by installing your pixel — Google Tag, Meta Pixel, or your DSP’s tracking tag — on your website. Once your audience starts building, you can launch your first campaign. DASH TWO handles the full setup, from pixel implementation to campaign launch and ongoing optimization. Contact us to get started.
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(310) 439-2356 · 214 S. Locust St. #200, Inglewood CA 90301
Digital and Outdoor Advertising Agency. Expertise in the science of digital and the art of the outdoor.
214 S. Locust St. #200
Inglewood, CA 90301
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