Retargeting marketing is a digital advertising strategy that shows personalized ads to people who previously visited your website or interacted with your content but didn’t complete a desired action like signing up for a demo or starting a trial. It uses tracking technology to re-engage these warm prospects across platforms like Google, LinkedIn, and Facebook.
Why Retargeting Marketing Matters in B2B SaaS
In B2B SaaS, where sales cycles stretch months and involve multiple decision-makers, retargeting bridges the gap between initial interest and conversion. Website visitors who are retargeted are 8x more likely to convert[1], making this strategy essential for nurturing prospects through complex buying journeys. With 68% of B2B marketers already using site retargeting[2], companies without retargeting systems risk losing qualified prospects to competitors who maintain consistent brand visibility.
Who Uses Retargeting Marketing
Performance Marketers create and optimize retargeting campaigns to maximize ROI from advertising spend. Demand Generation Teams integrate retargeting into lead nurturing workflows to accelerate pipeline velocity. Product Marketing Managers use retargeting to promote specific features or use cases to prospects who showed interest in particular solutions.
How Retargeting Marketing Drives Growth
Retargeting directly impacts revenue by converting warm leads who already demonstrated buying intent. It can increase conversion rates by up to 147% compared to standard display campaigns[3], while reducing customer acquisition costs by focusing spend on high-intent prospects. For SaaS companies, retargeting can improve trial-to-paid conversion rates by up to 30% when combined with behavioral segmentation[4].
Core Components
Tracking Infrastructure: Pixels and tags collect visitor behavior data across websites and email interactions. Audience Segmentation: Lists built around specific actions like pricing page visits, demo abandonment, or trial signups. Creative Assets: Personalized ad copy and visuals tailored to each audience segment’s intent and stage in the buyer journey. Delivery Networks: Platforms like Google Ads, LinkedIn, and programmatic channels that serve ads to segmented audiences.
How Retargeting Marketing Works
Data Collection: When prospects visit your website, tracking pixels capture their behavior and add them to custom audience lists in advertising platforms. Audience Segmentation: Visitors are grouped based on actions taken—pricing page viewers, demo abandoners, or feature page browsers. Campaign Activation: Targeted ads are served across digital channels, delivering relevant messaging based on each segment’s demonstrated interests. Conversion Tracking: Performance is measured through attribution models that connect ad interactions to pipeline and revenue outcomes.
Key Benefits
- Enhanced Pipeline Efficiency: Re-engages prospects with demonstrated buying intent, improving funnel conversion rates
- Reduced Customer Acquisition Costs: Focuses advertising spend on warm leads rather than cold prospects
- Accelerated Sales Velocity: Maintains brand visibility during long B2B sales cycles, preventing prospects from going cold
- Improved Marketing Attribution: Creates measurable touchpoints that connect advertising spend to revenue outcomes
- Scalable Personalization: Delivers relevant messaging at scale based on behavioral data and buying stage
Sources
1. AdRoll, 2023
2. eMarketer, 2023
3. Criteo, 2023
4. Gartner, 2024