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Harnessing Retargeting and Signal-Based Audiences for B2B Success
Written by Christian Holst
In the competitive landscape of B2B marketing, reaching the right audience at the right time is critical. Retargeting for B2B marketing and leveraging signal-based audiences have emerged as two of the most powerful strategies for improving conversion rates and driving ROI.
This article explores how these strategies can work together to help B2B marketers optimize their campaigns, nurture prospects, and boost their bottom line.
What is Retargeting in B2B Marketing?
Retargeting is a form of online advertising that allows businesses to re-engage individuals who have already interacted with their website or content but have not yet converted into customers. In B2B marketing, this strategy is especially important due to the longer and more complex sales cycles typical of B2B buying processes.
Unlike in B2C marketing, where retargeting tends to be more transactional and focused on individual purchases, B2B retargeting focuses on re-engaging potential buyers who are involved in longer decision-making processes, often across multiple touchpoints and decision-makers within an organization.
The Purpose of Retargeting in B2B
The goal of retargeting in B2B is to:
Re-engage potential buyers: B2B buying cycles are often long, and retargeting helps keep your brand top-of-mind for leads who are still in the consideration phase.
Nurture prospects with personalized ads: By serving relevant ads based on prior interactions, you can provide tailored messaging that resonates with different stages of the buyer journey.
Examples of B2B Retargeting Campaigns
Retargeting Based on Website Visits: A potential client visits your website but leaves without filling out a contact form or signing up for a demo. Retargeting ads can be shown to remind them of your services, offering additional information to move them closer to conversion.
Retargeting Previous Webinar Attendees: After hosting a webinar, you can retarget attendees with more focused content, such as case studies or demo offers, to nurture these leads further down the sales funnel.
What Are Signal-Based Audiences in B2B Marketing?
Signal-based audiences refer to a more advanced form of audience segmentation, where businesses leverage intent data—signals that indicate a potential buyer’s likelihood of making a purchase. These signals help identify high-intent prospects who are actively showing interest in your product or service.
This is a key difference from traditional audience segmentation, which often relies on demographic or static data.
Intent signals are gathered from multiple sources, including website behavior, content engagement, and third-party data providers, enabling marketers to target prospects who are showing a genuine interest in solving a business problem.
Types of Signals for Building Audiences
Behavioral Signals: These include actions like content consumption (e.g., downloading a whitepaper or watching a webinar) or ad engagement. These behaviors indicate a prospect’s interest in a specific topic or product.
Firmographic Signals: These involve company-level characteristics such as industry, company size, and location, which can provide insights into whether a business is likely to benefit from your product.
Technographic Signals: Technographic data involves the technologies a company is using. For instance, if a company is already using a competitor’s software, they may be a prime target for switching to your solution.
Signal-Based Audiences vs. Static Audiences
Unlike static audiences, where marketers segment leads based on broad demographic characteristics (e.g., job title, company size), signal-based targeting is more dynamic. Signals are constantly evolving in real-time, and targeting is adjusted as a prospect's behavior or intent changes. This makes signal-based targeting much more adaptable and responsive to shifts in buyer intent, increasing the relevance of your marketing efforts.
The Importance of Combining Retargeting and Signal-Based Audiences in B2B
Integrating retargeting with signal-based audience targeting can significantly enhance B2B marketing campaigns, improving ROI and lead conversion rates. By combining the two strategies, B2B marketers can target high-intent prospects at the right stage of the buyer journey, with messaging that resonates.
Benefits for B2B Marketers
Reaching High-Intent Prospects at the Right Time: Combining retargeting with intent signals ensures you're reaching prospects who are not only familiar with your brand but are actively considering solutions similar to yours.
Increasing Personalization and Engagement: By leveraging both behavioral and firmographic signals, you can tailor your retargeting efforts more effectively, leading to a higher level of engagement and greater chances of conversion.
How Signal-Based Retargeting Enhances Lead Nurturing
Signal-based retargeting allows you to move prospects further down the sales funnel with more personalized messaging. For example, if a prospect shows interest in a specific product feature or downloads a case study, you can retarget them with an ad that addresses that specific interest, helping nurture them to the next stage.
By combining firmographic (e.g., company size, industry) and technographic (e.g., technology stack) data, you can craft messaging that speaks directly to their business needs, improving your chances of converting them into qualified leads.
Retargeting Strategies for B2B Marketers
Here are some actionable strategies to implement effective retargeting campaigns in a B2B environment.
Segmenting Your Audience for Better Targeting
Successful retargeting campaigns start with effective segmentation. Use firmographics (industry, company size) and technographics (software usage) to define high-intent segments that will benefit most from retargeting efforts. Prioritize these segments to maximize your ad spend.
Crafting Effective Retargeting Ads
Personalization is key to creating ads that resonate with your target audience. Craft messages that reflect the prospect's prior interactions with your brand, such as:
Ads promoting content relevant to their interests.
Personalized offers like free consultations or demos.
Ad types that work well for B2B retargeting include:
LinkedIn Ads: Perfect for targeting specific job titles or industries.
Google Display Network: Ideal for showcasing banner ads to previously engaged visitors.
Dynamic Ads: Use personalized creatives based on the actions a prospect has taken on your website.
Retargeting Across Channels
Leverage a multi-channel approach to reach your audience across different platforms. For instance:
Email marketing: Integrate retargeting efforts with email campaigns to reinforce your messaging.
LinkedIn and programmatic ads: These platforms are particularly effective for B2B retargeting due to their precision in targeting based on job titles, industries, and behaviors.
How to Build Signal-Based Audiences for B2B Marketing
Building signal-based audiences requires identifying and leveraging the right intent data to target high-quality prospects.
Step 1: Identify Relevant Signals
Start by identifying signals that reflect high purchase intent. These may include:
Firmographics: Key attributes like industry, company size, and decision-maker roles.
Behavioral Signals: Actions such as visiting specific product pages or downloading resources.
Step 2: Leverage Technology and Tools
Use platforms like Demandbase, 6sense, and LinkedIn Insights to gather and analyze intent signals. These tools allow you to capture both on-site behavior and third-party data to identify high-potential prospects.
Step 3: Integrate Signals Across Campaigns
Ensure that the signals you gather are integrated across your CRM, ad platforms, and marketing automation tools. This integration ensures a seamless flow of data, allowing you to create targeted campaigns that are adaptive to changes in buyer behavior.
Tools and Technologies for B2B Retargeting and Signal-Based Audiences
A variety of tools can simplify and automate the process of building and managing retargeting campaigns and signal-based audiences:
Retargeting Platforms
LinkedIn Ads: A powerful tool for B2B marketing, especially when targeting decision-makers in specific industries.
Google Ads: For running display campaigns that retarget website visitors.
Facebook Ads Manager: Although primarily B2C, Facebook can be used for B2B if your audience is active there.
Platforms for Signal-Based Targeting
Demandbase: Offers a robust account-based marketing (ABM) platform that helps target and segment based on intent signals.
RollWorks: A platform designed to identify high-intent accounts and engage them with targeted ads.
6sense: Uses AI to detect buyer intent signals, helping you target accounts that are most likely to convert.
CRM and Automation Tools
Salesforce, HubSpot, Marketo, and Pardot: These tools help track lead interactions and integrate data across platforms for a more seamless retargeting experience.
Measuring Success: Key Metrics for Retargeting and Signal-Based Campaigns
To gauge the effectiveness of your campaigns, track these key metrics:
Retargeting Metrics
Click-through rates (CTR): Measures how often your retargeting ads are clicked, indicating engagement.
Conversion rates: Track how many of your retargeted visitors take the desired action, such as filling out a contact form or scheduling a demo.
Cost per acquisition (CPA): Measures how much it costs to acquire a customer through retargeting ads.
Signal-Based Audience Metrics
Engagement rates: Track how often prospects engage with your ads or content based on their intent signals.
Pipeline acceleration: Measure how quickly prospects move through the sales funnel after being targeted with signal-based ads.
Revenue attribution: Determine how much revenue can be attributed to campaigns that used signal-based targeting.
Best Practices for Using Retargeting and Signal-Based Audiences
Aligning Sales and Marketing Teams
Ensure sales and marketing teams collaborate on identifying and targeting high-intent accounts. This synergy leads to more effective ABM and retargeting campaigns.
Staying Compliant with Privacy Regulations
Adhere to GDPR, CCPA, and other data privacy laws. Be transparent about data usage and ensure prospects can easily opt-out of retargeting campaigns.
Testing and Iterating on Campaigns
Regularly A/B test your ad creatives and targeting criteria to identify what works best and refine your campaigns accordingly.
Conclusion: Elevating Your B2B Marketing with Retargeting and Signal-Based Audiences
By combining retargeting with signal-based targeting, B2B marketers can create highly effective, personalized campaigns that engage the right prospects at the right time. These strategies help marketers nurture leads, increase ROI, and ultimately drive revenue growth. Implementing these tactics will allow you to stay ahead of the competition and build stronger, more lasting relationships with your target audience.
FAQs About Retargeting and Signal-Based Audiences
What is retargeting in B2B marketing?
Retargeting in B2B marketing involves serving targeted ads to people who have interacted with your website or content but have not yet converted.
How do signal-based audiences work for B2B campaigns?
Signal-based audiences use intent data to identify prospects who are showing signs of active interest in your product or service, allowing you to target them more effectively.
What tools should I use for signal-based retargeting?
Tools like Demandbase, 6sense, LinkedIn Insights, and RollWorks can help identify and target signal-based audiences.
How do I measure the success of retargeting campaigns?
Key metrics to track include click-through rates (CTR), conversion rates, cost per acquisition (CPA), engagement rates, and revenue attribution from targeted campaigns.