More of what is bought on the web is searched for, but the big challenge for companies is not to bore the consumer with too many ads to improve conversion. In consumers over 50 years of age, this is a common behavior and when asked, they comment that they looked at many products, but they do not usually choose to buy them. A recurring case is that of a father who asks his millennial son to help him make the purchase online or else they end up going to a physical store some time later.
This type of baby boomer consumer is not the only pattern: younger consumers, however familiar they may be with ecommerce, do not buy everything online. Generally speaking, more research and search processes for products and services are carried out on the web than final purchases. Obviously the growth of online stores continues to be exponential, but the great challenge for a brand in terms of digital marketing is to reduce the difference between potential carts and those who finally finish the purchase.
A study conducted at the Universities of Shanghai, California and Pennsylvania, defined that marketers are increasingly aware of this type of decision-making behavior that builds a company’s destiny in the digital world.
Retargeting practices are an element of massive use by such companies, for example, those who entered to search for a hotel or a flight, will know that they will start receiving similar ads. However, the obsession with retargeting can cause a waste of time and resources if it is not managed within a proper strategy. Different researchers analyzed reasons why consumers search but don’t buy.
“We found that there are predictable patterns,” say those who conducted the study. “Those consumers who have a high search intensity for certain products are the most likely to confirm a purchase. This intensity is calculated in volume of clicks related to the same search term. The first click is the most important: since the results linked to what is being searched for are offered, the first site entered is more likely to confirm the purchase.
The key to reconnect with consumers who have already viewed a product and browsed the online store is retargeting. The digital strategy that repeats ads over and over again, thinking that they will have more chances of conversion raises the question if it is really efficient or ends up causing consumer boredom. The researchers created two models to follow according to the way consumers respond to two retargeting patterns: the first in the offer of personalized and product-focused advertising and the second, the use of a discount coupon to convince the buyer.
Both strategies improved conversion data, but the personalized model delivered more positive returns. The conclusion depends on each company and the value of the information it chooses to provide to its consumers to take advantage of retargeting.