5 Content Ideas for Retargeting Ads for B2B Digital Marketing

Retargeting ads are used to achieve just that and much more. But first things first…

If you’re confused about these terms, take it easy - you’re one of many. Typically, retargeting involves paid video and display advertising - you show ads to people that engaged with your website.  These ads are shown across numerous digital marketing channels, including the Google Display Network, YouTube, Facebook and even on LinkedIn. Unsure what the different marketing channels are? Read up on what are digital marketing channels here. Remarketing, on the other hand, refers to email marketing that is used to re-engage your database.

Today, you can use your email lists to build ‘audiences’ for display advertising. This could mean displaying google ads to people on that exact list, creating similar audiences and the like, further blurring the line between the two.

Our take? It doesn’t matter what you call it. Remarketing or retargeting, both terms ultimately serve the same goals in your marketing strategy.

• Helps maintain brand awareness within your most qualified digital audience
• Engages your target audience and drives them back to your website
• Increases the chances of conversions on your site with higher trust and loyalty

Demonstrating tangible results and client stories with retargeting ads is a fantastic way to build authority with your prospects.

When it comes to case studies, avoid linking your ad to a PDF document. Instead, lead your audience to a page that gives a summary of how you solved your client’s problem. Keep the page short and include pictures and videos to increase engagement.

As for the ad itself, consider leading with a stat and include your client’s name within the headline. It’s more powerful to present an ad on the lines of:

“How [YourCompany] helped [Client] Reduce Costs by 35% in 6 months”

instead of:

“[YourCompany] X [Client]: ROI Case Study”

You can take this further and develop a range of case studies that cater to different personas and industries within your target market. If your prospect hits a specific industry page on your site, set up your retargeting ads to show them the relevant case studies.

Your clients can sometimes do a better job at selling your products and services than your own team. They’ve experienced what it’s like working with you, pay you for your services and present an unbiased opinion to the wider industry.

It’s not uncommon to get a mixed bag of testimonials - some of them may be strong and some just meh. It’s important to first work with your team to request and collect testimonials from your clients, get approval to use them in your marketing and then pick and choose what you use.

Using snippets of a longer testimonial works best. Ideally, you would include the name, title, picture and company of your client to your ad creative. This increases the authority and reliability of your company.

Leverage this social proof by creating an eye-catching static, gif or video ads and add these to your retargeting mix.

Using highly relevant educational content is a no-brainer for retargeting ads. These are most effective when the title of the ebook or the downloadable address the pain-point and your buyer persona directly. For example, ads that lead with:
“5 Strategies to Increase Bookings for Australian Hotel Owners” is better than “How to Increase Bookings”.

Needless to say, the ad itself is not going to help convert prospects to customers. The content itself needs to be timely and relevant. Ideally, downloads should be followed by compelling email nurturing as well.

Like you would for case studies, it’s best to develop 2-3 relevant and topical lead magnets that address your target personas/ prospects in different industries. Depending on which web pages prospects engage with, you can present the most relevant ebooks via retargeting ads to increase the chances of a conversion.

Short bottom-of-funnel explainer videos that talk about your specific B2B services, features, results and the like make for fantastic retargeting content.

These videos could also feature your front-line sales team, increasing familiarity and authority.

While you don’t need an entire production team to film these videos, make sure they are professional and include a clear call to action.

Being recognised and recommended by an unbiased third-party authority is yet another content angle you could take with retargeting ads.

These ads can lead to a press release or a blog article on your website sharing more details of the award win or accreditation you have received. The creative itself can be static and include the faces of team members and the ad itself can give an impression of a news article.

These ads will help increase your authority in a B2B marketing strategies, specially when the buying journey involves multiple stakeholders that need to be convinced of your expertise.