Google Ads remarketing (also called retargeting) shows your ads to people who previously visited your website. It is one of the highest-ROI Google Ads tactics because you are re-engaging an audience that already knows your brand — typically converting at 2-5x the rate of cold traffic.
Most website visitors do not convert on their first visit. Research consistently shows that the majority of South African service business visitors leave without enquiring, even if they were genuinely interested. Remarketing brings those visitors back with targeted ads — at lower cost and higher conversion rates than reaching cold audiences. This guide explains what remarketing is and how it works. Related: Google Ads campaign types.
What is Google Ads Remarketing?
Remarketing (also called retargeting) is a type of Google Ads campaign that specifically targets users who have previously interacted with your website, app, or YouTube channel. When someone visits your website, a cookie is placed in their browser (with their consent, as required by POPIA and cookie consent requirements). When that person then visits other websites in the Google Display Network or searches on Google, your ads can appear to them specifically.
The core insight of remarketing: someone who has already visited your website and spent time on a service page is a fundamentally different audience from someone who has never heard of you. They have already demonstrated interest. Remarketing re-engages this higher-intent audience with a targeted message at a fraction of the cost of acquiring new cold traffic.
Types of Google Ads Remarketing
- Standard Remarketing: Show display ads to past website visitors as they browse the GDN
- Dynamic Remarketing: Show ads featuring the specific products or services a visitor viewed — most powerful for e-commerce
- Search Remarketing (RLSA): Adjust your Search campaign bids specifically for past visitors who search on Google again
- YouTube Remarketing: Target users who watched your YouTube videos with follow-up ads
- Customer List Remarketing: Upload a customer email list and show ads specifically to those individuals
- Similar Audiences: Target new users whose browsing behaviour resembles your remarketing list — extends reach beyond past visitors
Why Remarketing Works so Well for South African Businesses
The South African consumer journey for most service purchases involves multiple touchpoints. A business owner searching for an SEO agency may visit five websites over two weeks before enquiring. A homeowner considering a bathroom renovation may research contractors for a month. Remarketing allows your brand to stay visible throughout this consideration period — so when the prospect finally makes a decision, your name is top of mind.
Remarketing CPCs on the Display Network are typically much lower than Search CPCs (R1-R8 vs R30-R100 for competitive service terms) because you are only showing to a defined audience rather than entering open auctions. The combination of lower cost and higher conversion rate makes remarketing one of the most cost-efficient tactics in the Google Ads toolkit.
Remarketing Requirements and POPIA Compliance
Google Ads remarketing uses cookies and Google’s audience tracking technology. For South African businesses, POPIA (Protection of Personal Information Act) requires that visitors be informed about cookie tracking and given the option to opt out. Ensure your website has a cookie consent banner that allows users to accept or decline tracking cookies. Remarketing should only be set up for visitors who have consented to advertising cookies. See Google’s remarketing setup guide for technical implementation details.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does it take to build a remarketing audience?
Remarketing audiences require a minimum of 100 active users (for Display remarketing) or 1,000 active users (for Search remarketing, also known as RLSA) before ads can run. For websites with under 500 monthly visitors, it may take several weeks to build a usable audience. Higher-traffic sites build audiences within days.
What is the difference between remarketing and retargeting?
Remarketing and retargeting refer to the same concept and are used interchangeably in the industry. Google uses the term ‘remarketing’ in its platform. ‘Retargeting’ is more commonly used when referring to the same practice on other platforms (Facebook, LinkedIn, programmatic display). The mechanics — showing ads to past visitors — are identical.
How do I know if someone has been added to my remarketing audience?
You cannot see which specific individuals are in your remarketing audiences (Google Ads anonymises the data). You can see the total size of each audience list in Tools > Audience Manager. You can also see how many users from your remarketing audiences were reached by your campaigns in the Audiences tab of your Display or Search campaigns.
Should I show the same ads to all remarketing visitors?
No — segmenting your remarketing audiences produces better results. Someone who spent 5 minutes on your pricing page deserves a different, more direct ad than someone who visited your homepage and left immediately. Create audience segments based on pages visited, session duration, or actions taken, and tailor your ads and landing pages to each segment’s level of intent.
Can remarketing work for B2B businesses in South Africa?
Yes — B2B remarketing is particularly effective because B2B purchase cycles are long. A CFO researching accounting software over six weeks is an ideal remarketing target. LinkedIn is also an important B2B remarketing platform for South African professional services businesses, though Google Display remarketing reaches B2B decision-makers during their personal browsing outside business contexts.