Frank’s story pt2: Making Ads Work

store traffic

This article continues Frank’s story, after the Part 1 in which Frank struggled to bring traffic to his new Shopify store.

Frank had accomplished a vital company goal during the pandemic – he moved his entire inventory online to Shopify, competing with all major retailers on the web. He also knew only losers and chumps rested on their laurels. Sure, the basics were out of the way, but Frank felt like a fish trapped in the social media “fishbowl” – an echo chamber he couldn’t market his way out of.

Unsure of where to start, Frank bought ad space on Google and Facebook. While he wasn’t experienced with these platforms, Frank invested thousands into marketing on social media because “that’s how many people do it now.” Frank is an expert on his store’s products, not marketing. He quickly found out the devil is in the details of online ad targeting – you need data analytics to uncover sales patterns and trends invisible to the naked eye. Frank needed to figure out how this all worked for his Shopify store… and quickly!

The social media advertising… it kind of worked. But Frank found himself as one of the 62% of business owners whose ads completely miss the mark. His social network was only seeing about 16% of the ads he put out… and it was draining his company funds.

If Frank didn’t find new horizons and more effective ways to promote his Shopify storefront online, he’d be insolvent in 2 months. Every time he looked at his online visibility and marketing versus the revenue brought from these efforts… the guy needed a scotch.  

On a final hurrah, Frank installed the Ad360 App for Shopify, which quickly introduced ad retargeting to Frank: something that went beyond social mediaHe knew he was onto something big when a few recent customers said they had found out about his Shopify store while surfing across the web.

One customer even said they heard about Frank’s Shopify store while reading a story on CNN international. “HOW?!” Frank exclaimed while his eyes lit up with excitement…

The ad technology had saved the customer’s interest in his store, and Frank’s product automatically popped up as an ad while the buyer scrolled through the news! The magnitude of that shift in visibility made Frank’s unique daily visitor go up and his sales significantly increased, without spending more ad budget. Really. We know it’s challenging and can be discouraging. Still, Frank’s story is not unique – and it changed his life and the life of his family for the better, forever.

Do you really feel you have researched and explored every vector of your Shopify store online promotions? Many Shopify owners need just a little push – and a little more visibility across the web – to truly flourish.

Find out how Ad360 takes local Shopify stores to success through next-gen ad retargeting. When customers start seeing your ads across more than just social media, you’ll want to keep driving ahead and never look back 😊

Be our next success story! Try Ad360s free demo today to learn more about leveraging new innovations in online advertising.  

Ecommerce Ads beyond Google and Facebook

Online Ads

Have you felt forced to choose between Google and Facebook ads? False – you can do both and more without breaking the bank; just keep reading here!

Web and mobile ads can help Shopify store owners stand out. You don’t have to only promote on global tech behemoths like Facebook, Google, Twitter, and other major social media platforms. Most business-minded individuals agree that the sheer scale and online reach made possible by “big tech” is terrific. But it feels easy to get lost in the shuffle within the millions of companies they serve. 

You have to remember that tech giants like those listed above provide ad services for millions of businesses. Google serves over 4 million active advertisers, for goodness’ sake! Within that frame of reference, it makes sense for small store owners to take it into their own hands and use different online advertising formats. Otherwise, the sheer number of other local businesses competing for online sales could push you out.

For example, let’s say your Shopify store sells clothing and denim. Think of how many different options your potential customers have to get a pair of jeans: gazillions! At that point, visibility beyond just Facebook and Google could seriously be the difference maker between the customer going: “Oh yeah, that place, I guess I’ll check it out now,” and them not even remembering your store!


Stay Local, Advertise Internationally

Ad360 gives Shopify store owners the advantage of advertising beyond social media platforms. Thanks to our integration of Menadex Media, you can run ads through programmatic advertising onto most websites and mobile apps. Virtually any page your store visitors go on could have your Shopify store ads now! Imagine your denim jeans Shopify store now displays not only on social media sites but can follow potential customers across the web – they’ll see your Shopify store products even when browsing CNN international! Or MSNBC! Or whatever news site they’re on!

The expansion beyond traditional social media sites is one of the most potent developments now available for online small businesses. The technology, which used to be only available for the most prominent brands, is now available for everybody, thanks to Ad360. You can now advertise on many more sites and media than before while at the same time focusing on the specific geographic area that matters the most to you. The amount of web visibility you get when considering the locality of your store is brilliant.

If you’re interested to see the kind of impact ads beyond social media can have, try a free trial at Ad360 today!

Your online shop is ready; now what?

ecommerce shop

After all the quiet hard work to set his Shopify store up during the pandemic, Frank sat back and took in a moment of true satisfaction. 

All the goods were beautifully posted with pictures. The account details looked correct, and Frank’s enterprise was officially off the ground! He took a victory lap for figuring all this crap out, feeling pretty good about it all!

…. No Traffic

A week went by. And Frank’s Shopify store got lost in the millions of other e-commerce sites – no one clicked on it. This is the number 1 reason new stores fail. Business owners get confused and lose steam when trying to drive consistent, substantial traffic to their Shopify store and end up with barely any clicks. With no assistance or someone to bounce ideas off, such an event can be really discouraging. Frank knows his product is the best, but it’s virtually invisible.  

The new challenge? How the hell does Frank get more clicks? He didn’t major in online marketing… where do you even start? He tried his hand at Facebook and Google ads, but a few challenges immediately popped up after sitting down to make the ads:

  1. How should I make the ad, and what should it look like?  
  2. Where the hell do I put it, so potential customers actually see it?
  3. Is there a way to make it stand out?
  4. Can I follow up with people somehow after I click my ad, or am I stranded with visitors leaving the site without purchasing anything?

We’re pleased to let Frank know he can focus on the gazillion other things related to his business. Ad360 does the heavy lifting and answers all these questions for you! After starting with Ad360 App for Shopify, Frank felt like he had found his “needle in a haystack” – his ideal customers! Ads began popping up more often on the right websites. With Ad360 ad retargeting, Frank could engage further and further with customers genuinely interested in his Shopify store, while not wasting time on the ones who wouldn’t bat an eye.

If you want to see how your business grows with cutting-edge ad retargeting, contact Ad360 for a demo and free trial today!

Find the Buyer in the Haystack 100 times faster

Needle in the Haystack

If you are a hardworking store owner just a tad frustrated with your digital promotion, keep reading!! Because while most Shopify business owners know how to release ads on tech platforms like Google or Facebook, many ads end up not reaching their intended target. 

To help explain the difficulty of running successful online ads, think of the old analogy: 

“It’s as hard as finding a needle in a haystack.”  

That’s what generating truly great customers feels like – where do you start as a local business owner? The needle is your ideal customer base or promising lead… the hay is all the people you have to sift through before finding your golden geese.

I mean hell, there are billions of people surfing Google and Facebook…. How do you narrow that field down to those people most interested in your Shopify store?  

The answer is Ad Retargeting!

Automated ad retargeting software saves willingly given customer info of any customer who even glances at your Shopify store. If they visited once, the odds are MUCH higher they will consider visiting again! After that, business owners can send out ads – not only across all major social media platforms but also all over the web and in mobile apps – advertising specifically to individuals who have already visited and expressed interest in your store! It’s like having software that helps you find all the needles in a haystack for lead generation… in like 5 minutes. Set up correctly, this is the remarkable efficiency ad retargeting offers business owners. 

To extend our analogy, ad retargeting does not only extract out all the needles with ease – the targeted nature of it means you don’t even have to buy the bale of hay! You can just walk up and extract all the best potential customers who visited your Shopify store. And you save all the money, resources, and energy you would have put toward users online who, in reality, simply aren’t a part of your ideal customer base.

In other words, without ad retargeting, Shopify store owners end up paying for ads displayed on pages where 99% of the viewers are uninterested in your store – “cold calling.”  Ad retargeting allows you to channel all those resources to that 1% who are very likely to become regular customers/love your store offerings! By concentrating on winning over that 1% already interested, ad retargeting can improve customer lead generation efficiency by 1,046%.

Want to learn more about ad retargeting or give it a trial to jumpstart your business? Click on the link to get a demo of how the Ad360 App for Shopify will enable retargeting for your business!

Why retargeting outperforms all other ads

Here is a painful truth: According to LinkedIn, more than 90% of first-time website visitors are not ready to make a purchase. They are interested. They just are not ready yet.

Second-time visitors know about your offers. You know that they are interested because they have clicked on your link or visited your website. 

Retargeting works so well because you are not wasting money reaching people who are not interested. You focus your advertising on people who have already engaged with your store. You do not have to start afresh every time a visitor comes to your website. 

The truth is: if you are not retargeting, you are leaving money on the table.

Retargeting Achieves Higher Conversion Rates

Pay-per-click (PPC) campaigns have a lower conversion rate. They bring in first-time visitors who convert at the lowest rate. Retargeting generates warmer leads.

Because retargeting ads bring in more value for money, investing in retargeting bumps up conversions and gives you a better Return on Investment (ROI). If you are advertising and not retargeting, you are wasting money. 

Retargeting will get you more sales and revenue. 

Consumers often purchase after several encounters with a brand. When you retarget, you are nudging along prospects who have already had at least one encounter with you. They are closer to committing themselves. By using retargeting, you nurture the relationship with them, and they get more and more familiar with your brand.

Reinforce Brand Awareness

When you appear in front of your prospects more often, you remain in their short-term memory. They will be back when they are ready to buy. 

Brand awareness drives business growth. Retargeting is one of the best tools to strengthen awareness among your warmest prospects. 

Conclusion

Retargeting is not going anywhere. Advertisers witness better click-through rates, higher conversion rates, and better returns on investment. 

Want to know more about retargeting and how it can help your business? Book a demo with Ad360 and get a free consultation.

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