audience-based search targeting: how google rlsa can work for your brand

A DATA DRIVEN APPROACH: HOW TO MAKE RLSA WORK FOR YOUR BRAND

Remarketing Lists for Search Ads

Ty Mar'n, Director of Digital Media, iCrossing San Francisco

A little about me

TOPIC: Remarketing Lists for Search Ads

A little about me Ty Martin | San Francisco Director of Digital Media Strategy

In the Year 2000


•  Search engines were fragmented •  Keyword targeting was unsophisticated •  Bid prices were low •  Huge opportunity for early adopters

In the Year 2000


1.  Started a new search engine for finding wav sound files

In the Year 2000


2.  Monetized it with paid links within the search results

per click revenue

$0.06 Sold Clicks

In the Year 2000


3.  Boosted visits to the site by bidding on keywords on GoTo.com, the original pay-per-click engine

Bought Clicks

per click cost

$0.01

* Ad click rate of 30%

In the Year 2000


3.  Boosted visits to the site by bidding on keywords on GoTo.com, the original pay-per-click engine


In the Year 2000


4.  Enjoyed couple months of arbitrage…

per click revenue

$0.06 per click profit

$0.008 = Bought Clicks

per click cost

$0.01

Sold Clicks


In the Year 2000


5.  …until the dot com bubble burst

Fast forward to 2014


•  Engines are consolidated •  Targeting is incredibly precise •  Prices are high…and it’s worth it •  Still opportunity for early adopters of search

engine features

Inside the AdWords interface


body


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Inside the AdWords interface: Location Targeting

Inside the AdWords interface: Bid Simulator


body


body

Inside the AdWords interface: Location Bidding


Remarketing Lists can be thought of as cookie pools of users who visited your web site They are the basis for RLSA

Inside the AdWords interface: Remarketing Lists

Our main topic today: A relatively new AdWords feature


Remarketing Lists for Search Ads (RLSA)

What is RLSA?


THE BORING VERSION:

RLSA is a feature of the AdWords search platform that enables advertisers to specify custom bids and ad copy for searchers who have previously visited their web site

What is RLSA?


THE HYPERBOLIC VERSION:

RLSA is a once-in-a-decade milestone in search.


By overlaying audience targeting and keyword targeting, advertisers can know the people behind the behavior

What is RLSA? THE HYPERBOLIC VERSION:


By overlaying audience targeting and keyword targeting, advertisers can know the people behind the behavior

What is RLSA? THE HYPERBOLIC VERSION:

* In a non-personally-identifiable way


It’s another way to slice and dice your campaign, and differentiate the experience for searchers

Geography

Search Campaign

Language

RLS

A


How does it work? Place Google Remarketing Tags on your site 1Define Remarketing Lists in AdWords interface (based on Remarketing Tags) 2Apply Remarketing Lists to campaigns 3Set bid adjustments or copy changes 4


RLSA will only account for a portion of your campaign impressions…

RLSA About 1%-30%


…because it only reaches people who have visited your site and searched your keywords

Site Visitors

RLSA

Keyword Searchers


Why should I care? By tailoring the experience for searchers that have demonstrated prior interest in my brand,

I can increase the likelihood they will convert.

easy money


How should I use it?

Here are our 7 favorite ways…


Bid higher on searchers that have visited your site because they’ve expressed intent

1 Client X Avg. Rank Cost-‐Per-‐Click Conversion Rate Cost-‐Per-‐Order ROAS

New 3.4 $0.70 1.1% $64.92 1.64

Returning 1.9 $0.87 2.1% $41.84 2.40

Like many advertisers, this travel client found that return visitors tend to have far stronger conversion rates than new site visitors

TRAVEL BRAND


Broaden your keyword list to reach past site visitors more often in daily life

2 Exis'ng Keywords

Addi'onal keywords targeted only to site

visitors “buy a car”

“auto insurance”

INSURANCE BRAND


Save media spend by blocking ads from showing to previous buyers

3 (If you’re a one-‐7me-‐purchase brand)

TELCO BRAND

TV Service Sign-Up

Exclude from future TV Service ads


Drive repeat purchases from previous buyers 4 (If you’re a repeat purchase brand)

JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP

RETAIL BRAND


Cross-sell other products & services to existing customers

5 Mortgage Sign-Up

Promote Checking Accounts product

FINANCIAL SERVICES BRAND


Design sequential messaging that guides customers through the shopping journey

6 One ad for searchers who haven’t been to your site

A different ad for a search aXer they’ve visited your site


Custom-tailor the search experience by audience personas or attributes

7 Age Gender Income Education Interests §  Health & Fitness

§  Computer Games Examples

(Requires a data management platform)


Where should I start when designing my RLSA campaign?

Site Visitors

Keyword Searchers

Gauge Volume Poten7al

Start Broad and Basic

All Site Visitors: +X% bid boost

Add Granularity Where it MaJers


Treatment Remarke'ng List

All Site Visitors Start with one treatment for all site visitors So

phis'

ca'o

n

+15% bid adj. Low hanging fruit

Innova've Tac'cs



All Site Visitors Add the next level of targeting granularity

Soph

is'ca'o

n

+15% bid adj.

+30% bid adj. Viewed Home & Garden Pages Viewed Furniture Pages

Shopping Cart Abandoners

+50% bid adj. +40% bid adj.

Low hanging fruit

Innova've Tac'cs

Look for high list size and anticipated difference in conversion rate



All Site Visitors Try modifying the ad copy with a “closer” offer

Soph

is'ca'o

n

+15% bid adj.

+30% bid adj.

All Site Visitors Acquisition Ad Copy

Viewed Home & Garden Pages Viewed Furniture Pages



Low hanging fruit

Innova've Tac'cs



All Site Visitors Do it by persona. (Requires a data management platform)

Soph

is'ca'o

n

+15% bid adj.

+30% bid adj.

All Site Visitors Acquisition Ad Copy

Viewed Home & Garden Pages Viewed Furniture Pages



“Young Families” Persona

Custom copy & bid adj.

Low hanging fruit

Innova've Tac'cs


By combining RLSA with a data management platform, the system can look up a user’s past behaviors in milliseconds and add the user to Remarketing Lists if they match your target persona

3rd Party Data Partners

Do it by persona

iCrossing’s 2nd Party Data Partners

Many more…


For example, you might choose to increase bids on personas that are known to have the highest lifetime value

+15% bid adj. Age: 30-35, HHI: $45K+ Lifestyle: Up & Comer Life Stage: Single DMA: Des Moines, IA Intent: Travel, Furniture Singles

Target Persona

Do it by persona.


Custom ad copy Young Families

Campaign

Technophiles

Custom ad copy

Do it by persona.

For a financial services client, iCrossing promoted the product features that research shows resonates they most with each persona

Mobile check deposit

Bill Reminders


What are some more tricks & tips? •  Link your AdWords and DFA accounts to share

remarketing lists and messaging in search and display •  Link your AdWords and YouTube accounts to build

remarketing lists of people who viewed your videos •  Don’t forget to apply RLSA to Product Listing Ads too!

WHAT WE HAVE LEARNED


Three things to remember: •  RLSA is low-hanging fruit to improve search campaign

performance by customizing the experience for people who have visited your site

•  The main requirement is implementing Google remarketing tags on pertinent web pages

•  By combining RLSA with a DMP, you will get ahead of the competition by customizing the experience based on gender, age, interests and other attributes

Q&A + THANK YOU

Download the POV at www.icrossing.com

Ty Mar7n Director, Digital Media Strategy, iCrossing Ty.Mar'[email protected] Stay connected with iCrossing Visit us at icrossing.com Call us at 866.620.3780 Google.com/+iCrossing Twider @iCrossing Facebook.com/iCrossing Linkedin.com/company/iCrossing

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