Most advertisers know that Google is poised to remove third-party cookies. Although the removal was delayed, it remains imminent, which means your use of third-party cookies for target audience advertising will have to evolve.
As the industry actively pivots to find different solutions and technologies to target consumers, one of the key areas marketers are weary of is the future of retargeting. Without the use of third-party cookies, marketers are questioning how to set up a retargeting campaign once the change goes live.
Luckily, there is already a solution available. Marketers can use alternative forms of data such as second- and first-party data to target audiences. However, in order to successfully implement this targeting, businesses must have an effective customer relationship management (CRM) platform.
A CRM platform is a tool used to manage, organize, and share your company’s interactions, communications, and relationships with current and future customers (first-party data). Establishing a CRM that serves your company’s goals is essential when implementing this data into your strategies as an alternative to third-party data and navigating first-party vs. third-party cookies. Currently, the most popular CRMs in the U.S. are Salesforce, Oracle, Zoho, monday.com, HubSpot, Pipedrive, and Freshsales.
An effective CRM platform will enable you to run retargeting campaigns with the data you gather. Ideally, if a customer abandoned their cart, signed up for a newsletter, downloaded content from your website, or requested a quote, all of this information is stored in your CRM. With this information, you can create personalized experiences based on your customers’ previous interactions with your brand. If a customer abandons their cart, you can send an email offering free shipping. If they sign up for a newsletter, send an email thanking them for subscribing.
So, what is CRM retargeting? A CRM retargeting service allows you to create custom audience segments based on the interactions stored in your CRM. You can then use this information to run ad campaigns targeting these audiences. This solution doesn’t rely on third-party cookies, while still creating a personalized experience for your consumer.
An Overview of CRM Retargeting
Before you lean on a new CRM retargeting strategy, it’s essential to understand some of the advantages and disadvantages of incorporating CRM retargeting into your digital advertising retargeting strategy. There are several advantages to using CRM retargeting, including:
- Creates a more personalized customer experience
- Provides “interest” audience segmentation to tailor your ads and differentiated retargeting strategies between consumers
- Allows you to focus on high-value prospects that have gone cold
- Implements cross-sell and up-sell strategies
- Accommodates for interaction with consumers through direct email messages
CRM retargeting yields smarter, more efficient ROI. It relies on consumers’ specific experiences with your brand to determine which ad experiences they should receive with retargeting strategies. With CRM retargeting, you are meeting consumers where they are in the sales funnel, allowing them to move down the funnel more efficiently.
And while CRM retargeting is a great strategy for any brand, it has specific benefits for B2B digital marketers because it aligns well with ABM strategies. It enables you to hone in on critical decision-makers at companies. Rather than solely communicating with them via “traditional” channels like phone, email, or text, you can reach them throughout the decision-making process with more targeted messages. CRM retargeting works in tandem with ABM to get personalized messages to specific accounts.
The disadvantages are few, but CRM retargeting does require regular maintenance and upkeep to ensure timely data. It also requires buy-in from your entire organization to confirm you are keeping up with all customer interactions.
Best Strategies for Implementing CRM Retargeting
Incorporating a new marketing strategy isn’t always easy, but the advantages of CRM retargeting are worth ample consideration as Google shifts away from third-party cookies. If your organization is new to CRM retargeting, here are a few of the best strategies for effective implementation:
1. Prioritize first-party data.
The success of a CRM retargeting strategy hinges on the quality of your data. Start investing in growing, organizing, and implementing processes that incorporate first-party data. You can begin by considering different ways to gather more first-party data and answering the following questions:
- How can you can prioritize building good first-party data?
- What content on your website should be gated to access email addresses?
- How can you gather and organize contacts you gain at events and exhibitions?
- What buy-in do you need from other teams to continue to update contact interactions and information?
Once you have these strategies in place, its essential for the data to stay up-to-date. Keeping data relevant and updated will help your team understand exactly where each contact is in the customer journey and allow for further personalized marketing experiences.
2. Define your audiences.
As these interactions get recorded by your CRM, you’ll need to use this information to categorize and segment the audience before uploading them into an ad network for targeting. This is an excellent time to look at where your current consumers are falling off in the sales funnel and prioritize this segment. After identifying priority accounts, you can then move to additional strategies to target consumers no matter where they are in the customer journey.
3. Think several steps ahead.
The key to an effective CRM retargeting campaign is to think ahead. Let’s say your campaign was successful and a CRM-retargeted lead made an online purchase. How do you continue to foster that lead and make them a regular customer? Conversely, a different lead in your CRM campaign clicked on your ad but abandoned their cart. How do you continue the interaction in these cases? Thinking about these scenarios a few steps in advance will ensure the personalized experience doesn’t stop after a respective campaign ends.
If you are new to CRM retargeting, it can be challenging to know where to start. Focus on finding ways to gather quality first-party data. Doing so will ultimately provide the foundation for better customer interactions and conversions down the line.
At Digilant, we’re here to help. Contact us here to learn more about finding a CRM solution for your business and how to implement it to meet your specific needs.