Most website visitors aren't ready to buy on their first visit; they are often just researching or getting distracted by a phone call. Retargeting allows you to stay top-of-mind by showing tailored ads to people who have already interacted with your brand, significantly increasing your chances of a conversion.
What You’ll Need Before Starting
- An active website: With decent traffic (at least 100-500 visitors per month).
- Tracking Pixels installed: The Meta Pixel (formerly Facebook Pixel) and/or Google Tag must be active on your site.
- High-quality assets: Professional images or videos of your products/services.
- A clear offer: A reason for them to come back (e.g., a discount, a free consultation, or a helpful guide).
- Privacy Policy: Ensure your website has a privacy policy that mentions third-party tracking to comply with Australian privacy laws.
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Step 1: Verify Your Tracking Pixels
Before you spend a cent on ads, you must ensure your tracking is working. If the "Pixel" isn't firing, your platform won't know who visited your site.
What you should see: Log into your Meta Events Manager or Google Tag Manager. You should see a green 'Active' status and a graph showing recent 'Page View' events. If the graph is flat, your tracking is broken.Step 2: Define Your Retargeting Segments
Don't treat all visitors the same. A person who spent 10 minutes on your 'Services' page is more valuable than someone who bounced off your homepage in three seconds.
Create specific audiences based on behaviour:
- All Website Visitors: Good for brand awareness.
- Product/Service Viewers: People who looked at specific pages.
- Cart Abandoners: The highest intent audience (they almost bought!).
Step 3: Create a Custom Audience in Meta (Facebook/Instagram)
Navigate to the 'Audiences' section in Meta Ads Manager. Click Create Audience > Custom Audience > Website.
In the setup window, select your Pixel. Under 'Events', choose 'People who visited specific web pages'. Enter the URL keywords (e.g., /services/ or /pricing/). Set your retention period—30 days is a standard starting point for Australian service businesses.
Step 4: Set Up Google Remarketing Lists
In Google Ads, go to Tools and Settings > Shared Library > Audience Manager. Click the blue plus (+) button and select 'Website visitors'.
Name your segment clearly (e.g., "Visitors - Last 30 Days"). This allows you to follow users across the Google Display Network (millions of websites and apps) or via YouTube ads.
Step 5: Craft Your "Hook" and Creative
The biggest mistake in retargeting is showing the exact same ad they ignored the first time. You need to address why they didn't buy.
- Overcome Objections: If they are worried about price, mention your 'Interest-free' options or 'Value for money'.
- Social Proof: Show a testimonial from a local Brisbane client.
- The 'Nudge': Offer a 10% discount code or a limited-time bonus.
Step 6: Choose Your Campaign Objective
When creating the campaign, choose Sales or Leads. While 'Traffic' is cheaper, you want the platform's algorithm to find the people within your retargeting list who are most likely to actually complete the transaction.
Step 7: Set a Realistic Budget and Schedule
Because your retargeting audience is much smaller than a broad 'cold' audience, you don't need a massive budget.
Pro Tip: For many small Australian businesses, $5–$10 per day is enough to start seeing results from a retargeting campaign. Monitor your 'Frequency' metric; if it goes above 4 or 5 in a week, you are likely annoying your customers, and you should lower the budget.Step 8: Exclude Recent Converters
There is nothing more frustrating for a customer than seeing an ad for a product they just bought.
In your ad set settings, under 'Exclude', select your 'Purchased' or 'Thank You Page' audience. This ensures your budget is only spent on people who haven't converted yet.
Step 9: Write Compelling, Action-Oriented Copy
Use language that acknowledges the relationship. "Still thinking about that kitchen renovation?"* "We noticed you left something in your cart!"* "Don't miss out—our Brisbane team is booking out fast for June."*
Step 10: Launch and Monitor
Hit publish! But the work doesn't stop there. Wait at least 7 days before making changes. Digital advertising platforms use 'Machine Learning', and they need time to optimise based on who is clicking.
Warning: The 'Creepiness' Factor
Be careful not to be too specific. Saying "We saw you looking at the Blue Widget at 2:00 PM today" can feel like an invasion of privacy. Keep it helpful and professional.
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Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Too Small an Audience: If your website only gets 10 visitors a week, your ads won't run. You need a steady stream of traffic first.
- Long Retention Periods: Following someone for 180 days for a $20 product is wasteful. Match the retention period to your typical buying cycle.
- Broken Landing Pages: Ensure the ad leads exactly where they expect to go. If the ad is about 'Plumbing Services', don't send them to your homepage; send them to the 'Plumbing' page.
Troubleshooting
- My ads aren't delivering: Check your audience size. If it's under 100 people, Meta and Google often won't show ads to protect user privacy. Increase your 'Days' (e.g., from 30 to 60) or drive more traffic to your site.
- High Cost Per Click (CPC): This usually means your creative is boring or irrelevant. Try a new image or a stronger headline.
- Tracking isn't working on iPhones: Since the iOS14 update, many users opt out of tracking. Ensure you have 'Aggregated Event Measurement' set up in Meta to help recover this data.
Next Steps
Once your retargeting is running smoothly, look into Dynamic Product Ads (if you have an e-commerce store) or Lookalike Audiences to find new customers who behave just like your best visitors.
Need help setting up your tracking or crafting the perfect ad copy? Our Brisbane-based team at Local Marketing Group specialises in high-conversion campaigns for Aussie businesses. Contact us today to see how we can help you grow.