Image source: http://blog.lyfemarketing.com/facebook-marketing-company-use-retargeting-get-better-roi/

One of my more interesting takeaways from this digital marketing course was the impact of retargeting advertisements. In the past, retargeting was something that I was aware of, but not something that I consciously thought about. When I saw online advertisements on my Facebook, I didn’t think about how the ads were specifically targeted towards me.

Unsurprisingly, after our discussion of the use of retargeting and how it works on the back end in class, I begun to notice it a whole lot more. Whenever I browse for a product I’m interested in and/or add it into my shopping cart, the advertisement follows me everywhere–both on my phone and laptop. The ads are most prominent on Facebook and Instagram. I find it funny that even items that my friends link me will show up everywhere I go on the web. For example, one of my male friends asked for my opinion on a men’s Ted Baker briefcase. The next day, I immediately saw the ad pop up on my Facebook homepage.

The use of retargeting really reminds me of how little privacy we have when using the Internet. At the same time, however, I am amazed at the power of the web and many business’s ability to use it to their advantage in order to convert someone into a customer, to really give them that final push from consideration to purchase. I have to admit that several times I have ended up making an impulse purchase due to retargeting as well. It is most definitely an effective (albeit sometimes annoying) marketing tool, and it is something that both big and small businesses can look into.