Mapping your Market: Mastering Geotargeting Campaigns
Imagine running an ad campaign for your business without considering your consumers’ location. You might be advertising snow boots to someone in Thailand or promoting a new Dosa joint to people thousands of kilometres away who don’t even know what that is. Not exactly the best use of your money…. this is where geotargeting comes into play. It is a simple yet incredibly effective step to ensure your ads reach the right audience in the right place.
What Is Geotargeting?
Geotargeting allows advertisers to deliver content based on a user’s geographical location. It is an accurate way to include or exclude countries and regions from your campaigns. Whether you’re promoting a global e-commerce store or a local coffee shop, geotargeting ensures your message is seen by whom it matters.
How Geotargeting Works
When setting up geotargeting, you have two primary options:
- Select Countries from a List: Use a comprehensive list of countries to specify your ad’s coverage. Simply tick the countries you want to include in your campaign or exclude those where your ads are not relevant.
- Manual Map Targeting: You can also use a map interface to define your coverage area. Draw boundaries around cities and even specific zip codes to ensure pinpoint accuracy. This option is perfect for hyper-local campaigns, such as promoting ‘Winter Wonderland’ in London or a marathon in New York City.
Why Geotargeting Matters
Advertising in irrelevant locations can drain your resources fast. With geotargeting, you are not wasting money showing ads to people who are unlikely to engage. For example, suppose you’re a small bakery in Atlanta. In that case, geotargeting ensures your ads don’t accidentally reach viewers in Los Angeles or New York, as they are audiences that can’t visit your shop.
Different locations have different cultures, climates, and needs. Geotargeting allows you to create ads that resonate with specific regions. During the same ad campaign, a clothing retailer could promote summer wear in Florida while highlighting winter gear in Stockholm.
How to Effectively Use Geotargeting:
If you are hosting a global campaign but know your product does not ship to certain countries, exclude those regions to avoid disappointing potential customers. If you focus on specific markets, fine-tune your targeting to include only those areas.
Location isn’t the only factor that matters. Combine geotargeting with demographic filters like age, gender, or interests to further refine your audience. For example, a ski resort might target users aged 18-35 who show interest in outdoor activities, but it will not be effective if shown to residents of a retirement town.
Once your campaign is up and running, monitor how it performs in different areas. If certain regions outperform others, allocate more of the budget to those locations. You can also exclude underperforming areas to maximize your ROI.
Let us say you run a merchandise shop that sells products inspired by famous Rock Bands. By using geotargeting:
- You can create separate campaigns for each city you are present in or are willing to ship to.
- Exclude cities where you do not ship or operate to prevent wasting your ad budget.
- Target main cities where people are more likely to purchase such merchandise.
While geotargeting is powerful, it is possible to overdo it. If you set your targeting parameters too tightly, you might miss out on potential customers who live just outside your defined area or who travel to your location. Try to strike a balance between precision and reach.
Geotargeting goes beyond just pinning locations on a map; it gives you the control to make every ad count. So, next time you are setting up a campaign, take the time to map out your audience- quite literally. Your future customers are waiting, and geotargeting can help you find them wherever they may be!
Make use of robust geotargeting features with Cubera’s DSP- Edge!
