Criteo ad creatives, formats, and the most effective ways to leverage them

December 20, 2024

Criteo is a digital advertising company that specializes in retargeting. They use data and machine learning to show personalized ads to users based on their browsing history.

Criteo's Dynamic Retargeting evaluates shoppers' journey across thousands of publishers and devices to access purchase intent. 

The Criteo Engine then predicts the optimal personalized offer to display on Facebook for maximum sales conversions – all in real-time.

According to Criteo's website, they have 725 million daily active users and 35 Billion daily browsing and buying events. 

But before we discuss the company and the best practices for display ads, let's look into what retargeting is.

What is Retargeting, and how does it work?

Retargeting is a form of online advertising that is also known as remarketing. The term is often used interchangeably with remarketing. 

Retargeting aims to remind potential customers about a business and encourage them to return to the website or purchase. It allows companies to target people who have previously interacted with their website or mobile app by showing them personalized ads as they browse the web or use mobile apps. The main difference between retargeting and remarketing is that advertisers more often use it to describe campaigns that use tracking pixels to track and serve ads to users who have previously visited their website.

Remarketing works by tracking the behavior of visitors to a website or mobile app using cookies or mobile device IDs. A cookie or device ID is placed when a user visits the website or app. This allows the business to target that user with personalized ads later as they browse the web or use mobile apps.

When a user revisits the website or uses the app, the cookie or device ID is recognized, and the user is added to a remarketing list. This list is then used to target the user with personalized ads.

The ads shown to the user can be tailored to their specific interests and actions on the website or app. For example, if a user views a particular product page, the business can show them ads for that product or similar products.

Remarketing can also target users who abandoned a shopping cart or have yet to purchase to encourage them to complete the purchase.

Remarketing campaigns can be set up on platforms like Google, Facebook, and other social media platforms. These platforms provide businesses with tools to create and target their remarketing ads to the specific audience they want to reach.

Overall, remarketing is an effective way for businesses to reach potential customers who have previously shown interest in their products or services and convert them into paying customers.

Retargeting campaigns can be set up on platforms like Google, Facebook, and other social media platforms. These platforms provide businesses with tools to create and target their retargeting ads to the specific audience they want to reach.

Overall, retargeting is an effective way for businesses to reach potential customers who have previously shown interest in their products or services and convert them into paying customers.

Criteo Ads, and what are their formats?

Retargeting ad formats

Criteo Ad refers to display ads deployed across websites, social media, and apps, making them an ideal way to deliver a seamless, cross-channel experience.

Ad creatives can be created by the advertiser or Criteo's creative team. This includes images, videos, and texts that promote a product or service. Criteo also offers a dynamic creative optimization (DCO) service that automatically generates different ad creatives to optimize performance.

Criteo Ad formats are the different ways the ads can be presented to the users. The following are some examples of Criteo ad formats:

Display Ads: Display ads are banner ads on websites and mobile apps. They come in various sizes and shapes and can include text, images, and videos.

Video Ads: Video ads are ads that are shown in video format. They can be played on websites, mobile apps, or social media platforms.

Native Ads: Native ads are ads that are integrated seamlessly into the content of a website or mobile app. They often match the look and feel of the surrounding content, making them less intrusive for users.

Email Ads: Email ads are ads that are sent in email format. They can include text, images, and videos and can be targeted to specific users based on their browsing history.

Push Notifications: Push notifications are ads that are delivered as push notifications on mobile devices. They can include text, images, and videos and can be targeted to specific users based on their browsing history.

In-App Interstitial Ads: In-app interstitial ads are shown within mobile apps. Full-screen ads appear between different screens or actions within an app and can include text, images, and videos.

Criteo's ad formats and creatives are designed to help advertisers reach their target audience most effectively and efficiently as possible. They use machine learning to optimize ad campaigns and show users personalized ads based on browsing history.

How to effectively leverage Criteo's retargeting?

How to effectively leverage retargeting

To effectively use Criteo ads for retargeting, businesses can follow these steps:

Install the Criteo tracking pixel on their website: This allows Criteo to track visitors' behavior and add them to a retargeting list.

Segment their audience: Criteo allows businesses to segment their audience based on different criteria, such as browsing history, purchase history, and other demographic information. This will enable companies to target specific groups of users with relevant ads.

Create personalized ads: Criteo allows businesses to create customized ads tailored to the interests of specific users. For example, companies can create ads for users who have viewed a particular product page or abandoned a shopping cart.

Use dynamic creative: Criteo's dynamic creative feature allows businesses to personalize ads in real time, using information such as browsing history, search query, and purchase history. Users are shown ads tailored to their specific interests and actions.

Use multi-device targeting: Criteo allows businesses to reach users across multiple devices, ensuring that users see consistent messaging regardless of their device.

Use cross-channel campaigns: Criteo allows businesses to run campaigns across different channels such as web, mobile, social, and email, which ensures that users see consistent messaging across other platforms.

Monitor and optimize campaigns: Criteo provides businesses with detailed analytics on their campaigns' performance, allowing them to monitor their campaigns' success and optimize them accordingly.

By following these steps, businesses can effectively use Criteo ads for retargeting and deliver personalized, relevant, and consistent messaging to users across different devices, which leads to a more seamless and engaging experience for users.

Remember to use a tool like Adcreative.ai to supercharge your creative game!