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Retarget audiences who have previously visited your site
Retarget audiences who have previously visited your site
RTX Platform Support avatar
Written by RTX Platform Support
Updated over a week ago

With retargeting for Push and Pops, you can create customized ad experiences for audiences that have previously visited your offer or website, giving them a reason to come back and convert.

Getting started

Before you can create a retargeting Push ad group or Pops campaign, or update an existing campaign or ad group for retargeting, you need to create and implement a retargeting pixel to track the pageviews and/or events that determine which visitors enter your retargeting audience.

Once your pixel is implemented, it will immediately begin building your audience. You can then customize a Push ad group or Pops campaign to retarget this audience and specify when these visitors should enter and exit the audience.

Creating and implementing retargeting pixels

Retargeting pixels track specific pageviews and actions visitors perform on your site so you can retarget those visitors later with custom advertising.

Retargeting pixels work globally, meaning you can install the same pixel wherever you want to collect your retargeting audience, and the pixel will work with both Push and Pops. You will, however, need to create unique pixels for each unique retargeting audience. For example, if you have an online clothing store and want to advertise socks to visitors who have shopped for shoes, while adverting gloves to visitors who have shopped for scarves, you'd create one pixel for shoe shoppers and another pixel for scarf shoppers, then install the appropriate pixel on the appropriate product pages.

There are two types of criteria you can track with retargeting pixels, and each has a different way of being implemented:

1. Tracking and retargeting based on pageviews: Use this implementation to track and retarget users who visit specific page(s) on your site. For example, you could implement a retargeting pixel on a product's page, then advertise related products to anyone who's visited that page. To retarget previous visitors regardless of the specific parts of your website the visitor has browsed, you'd implement the pixel on every page of your site.

2. Tracking and retargeting based on in-page events: Use this implementation to track and retarget users who have performed a specific action or set of actions on your site, like clicking a button or watching a video.

Retargeting based on pageviews

To retarget users who have visited a specific page (or pages) on your website, follow the steps below:

  1. Click Pixels in the top navigation bar to navigate to the page where you can create and manage your pixels.

  2. Click the + Create New Pixel button, then select Retargeting Pixel.

  3. Enter a descriptive name for your pixel. As a best practice, we recommend choosing a name that describes the retargeting audience you're creating or the behavior you're tracking.

  4. Enter the domain(s) where you'll be installing your pixel, then click Save.

  5. Copy the entire retargeting pixel code and paste it anywhere in the HTML of the page(s) you want to track for retargeting. For example, if you want to retarget visitors who have viewed a specific set of products on your site, you'd install the code on each of those product's pages. You can also implement the pixel on every page of your site to retarget previous visitors regardless of the pages they've browsed in the past.

Retargeting based on in-page events

To retarget users who have performed a specific action (or actions), follow the steps below:

  1. Click Pixels in the top navigation bar to navigate to the page where you can create and manage your pixels.

  2. Click the + Create New Pixel button, then select Retargeting Pixel.

  3. Enter a descriptive name for your pixel. As a best practice, we recommend choosing a name that describes the retargeting audience you're creating or the behavior you're tracking.

  4. Enter the domain(s) where you'll be installing your pixel, then click Save.

  5. Copy the first two sections of the pixel code, beginning with <script type="text/javascript"> and ending with the portion of code that initializes the tracking code. Do not copy the last section of the code.

  6. Paste the code you copied anywhere into the HTML of the page or pages containing the event. For example, if you want to retarget all users who have watched videos on your site, you'd place this code onto all pages containing videos. Then, add a closing </script> tag to the end of the code you just pasted.

  7. Finally, you need to track the specific event by tying it to the HTML element you're tracking, like a button or video. To do this, copy and paste the last section of your pixel code within the element you'd like to track. Specific implementation will vary depending on the element and how it's coded, but generally, this should be pasted within the actual element's HTML. If you've implemented event tracking for Google Analytics or used Facebook's pixel to track in-page events, for example, this implementation is done the same way.

TIP: Find the codes for your retargeting pixels anytime by clicking Pixels in the navigation bar, then opening the options for your pixel by clicking the three dot icon in the Options column and selecting Install Pixel.

Need extra help implementing your retargeting pixel? Schedule a call with a pixel expert who can help you place your pixel or do it for you.

Retargeting an audience with a Push ad group or Pops campaign

Push ad retargeting is set up at the ad group level. Follow the instructions below to customize retargeting for a Push ad group.

  1. Click Push in the navigation bar, then click the name of the campaign with the ad group you'd like to create or edit for retargeting. You can also click + New Campaign to create a new campaign for your retargeting ad group.

  2. On the Ad Groups tab within your campaign, click + New Ad Group to create a new ad group for retargeting. If you'd like to enable retargeting on an existing ad group, click the name of the ad group on the Ad Groups tab within your campaign, then click the Settings tab within the ad group.

  3. In the Retargeting section of your ad group's settings, choose the option labeled Only show ads to users you've previously encountered, then select the pixel you're using to track your retargeting audience. Use the sliders to adjust when visitors should enter and exit your retargeting audience. NOTE: The time frame for your retargeting audience applies to the most recent visit, and visitors can re-enter your audience if they revisit your site within your custom time frame. For example, if you're only retargeting visitors from the last 90 days, anyone who's visited your site more than 90 days ago will exit your audience. However, if someone comes back to your site after 90 days, they'd be re-added to your audience.

  4. Save your settings at the bottom of the page.

Pops ad retargeting is set up at the campaign level. Follow the instructions below to customize retargeting for a Pops campaign.

  1. Click Pops in the navigation bar, then Campaigns in the second-level navigation bar.

  2. Click + New Campaign to create a new campaign for retargeting. If you'd like to enable retargeting on an existing campaign, click the name of the campaign, then click the Campaign Settings tab within the campaign.

  3. In the Retargeting section of your campaign's settings, choose the option labeled Only show ads to users you've previously encountered, then select the pixel you're using to track your retargeting audience. Use the sliders to adjust when visitors should enter and exit your retargeting audience. NOTE: The time frame for your retargeting audience applies to the most recent visit, and visitors can re-enter your audience if they revisit your site within your custom time frame. For example, if you're only retargeting visitors from the last 90 days, anyone who's visited your site more than 90 days ago will exit your audience. However, if someone comes back your site after 90 days, they'd be re-added to your audience.

  4. Save your settings at the bottom of the page.

NOTE: A Run of Network (RON) target will automatically be added when you enable retargeting on a Pops campaign. You may pause this target any time, however, doing so will severely restrict your traffic.

Checking pixel status and statistics

The Pixels page populates pixel data that can help you see if your pixel is firing, and how many times it's fired. Learn more below about the information in each column on your Pixels page.

  • Status: Status represents whether a pixel is able to be used. If you're using a pixel, plan to use a pixel, or want to be able to access a pixel's data or installation code anytime in the future, keep the pixel enabled. If you do not plan to use a pixel and do not need to access its data or installation code, update its status to archived to remove it from view.

  • Name: Click the name of a pixel to view the campaigns or ad groups it's assigned to.

  • Type: Type represents whether a pixel is used to track conversions or for retargeting audiences.

  • Event: Conversion pixels can be tied to specific events, like filling out a form or viewing a page. Retargeting pixels' events will be listed as "Other".

  • Instant Verification: If your pixel has fired, it will be shown as "Verified".

  • Last Fired: Timestamps are shown for the last time your pixel has fired. This information is useful to verify that pixels you've installed are still working.

  • Pixel Fires: The total number of times your pixel has fired. For retargeting pixels, this number is not indicative of audience size. Retargeting pixels that track pageviews will fire whenever someone visits the page the pixel is installed on, and retargeting pixels that track events will fire whenever someone performs that action. A single member of your retargeting audience can trigger a pixel fire multiple times, and the pixel may not have been triggered by a member of the retargeting audience you've defined in your retargeting audience time frame settings.

  • Assignments: The number of campaigns or ad groups assigned to the pixel.

  • Options: Click the icon in this column to access your retargeting pixel code.

Tips and best practices for retargeting

  • Craft your creatives thoughtfully. Retargeting users with the same ad that brought them to your site in the past defeats the purpose of retargeting. Give them a reason to come back to the page, for example, by offering a discount or alerting them of a price drop. Or direct them to a different page that might interest them, like a related product or article on your site.

  • Target as broadly as possible to ensure optimal traffic. Retargeting audiences are naturally much smaller, especially when your retargeting pixel is newly installed. Restrictive settings like custom frequency caps, dayparting schedules, Platform & Device targeting, blacklisting, etc. can severely restrict your volume.

  • Bid competitively to win more impressions from your retargeting audience. Remember, other advertisers are competing with you for the same impressions. These impressions are especially valuable for you because you're targeting an audience that's already shown interest in your offer, so they're worth paying more for.

  • Avoid frequency cap settings that conflict with your retargeting. If you feel the need to use frequency caps, make sure they align with your retargeting strategy. For example, if you're retargeting visitors from the last 2 weeks, but your frequency cap settings limit each user to 1 click or impression every 24 hours, you won't be able to retarget anyone who's visited your site in the last day.

  • Use conversion caps to refine your reach. If you don't want to retarget users who have already converted on your offer, apply a conversion cap over a time frame that matches your retargeting time frame.

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