Display and retargeting is a digital advertising strategy that helps brands reconnect with people who have recently visited their website. It works by showing targeted visual ads, like banners or native ads, across other websites, encouraging users to return and complete a purchase.
This solution often runs alongside affiliate marketing and complements other digital channels like search and social, and is a powerful way to re-engage and convert your website visitors.
How display and retargeting works
Display and retargeting campaigns use a small piece of code (a JavaScript tag) placed on your website. This tag tracks visitor behaviour, such as pages viewed or products browsed, and then uses that data to serve relevant ads to those users as they browse other sites.
Here’s a simplified version of how the process works:
Advertisers define their target audience and create ads.
Partners make ad space available through platforms called SSPs (supply-side platforms).
DSPs (demand-side platforms) match the ad space with the advertiser’s audience criteria.
Automatic bidding takes place in real-time to win the ad placement.
Winning ads are shown to the user on the partner’s site.
Popular DSPs include Display & Video 360, theTradeDesk, Amazon Ads, and Adobe Advertising Cloud.
Types of campaigns
Retargeting: Re-engages users who’ve already visited your site.
Prospecting: Reaches new potential customers based on similar behaviours or interests (usually on a flat fee model).
Dynamic ads: Automatically show products a user viewed.
Native and social ads: Seamlessly blend into content or social feeds.
Geotargeting and custom targeting: Serve ads based on location or specific user traits.
Why use display and retargeting
Here are some of the key benefits for brands and advertisers:
Wider reach: Expand your visibility across regions and platforms.
Smarter targeting: Serve ads to the right people at the right time.
Cost-efficient: Often run on a CPA (cost-per-acquisition) model, making it performance-driven.
Boost conversions: Bring back users who showed interest but didn’t convert.
New customer acquisition: Prospecting campaigns help you reach fresh audiences.
Incremental revenue: Drive more sales without increasing your media spend.
How it integrates with Awin
Display and retargeting campaigns can be easily implemented through Awin’s MasterTag. This setup:
Requires minimal technical input from your team.
Enables both post-click and post-view attribution.
Allows display partners to run campaigns on your behalf using your site data.
Some partners may require additional tags, but most can work directly through the Awin MasterTag.
The MasterTag should be unconditionally appended to every page on the site, including the confirmation page, but excluding any page that displays or processes payment information. Once deployed through the MasterTag, display and retargeting partners will have access to the needed website data to properly load their script and deploy campaigns on the brand’s behalf.
What data is used
To run and optimize campaigns, display and retargeting partners typically use:
Page views
Site visits
Product-level data
Conversion events
This data helps them serve the most relevant ads and improve campaign performance over time.
In summary
Display and retargeting is a smart, scalable way to:
Reconnect with interested shoppers.
Reach new audiences.
Improve your return on ad spend (ROAS).
Drive more conversions through targeted, visual advertising.
It’s a flexible and efficient solution that works seamlessly alongside your affiliate program to maximize your digital marketing impact.