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The Madison Avenue Field GuideA field guide to marketing & advertising, by Brandon Mina

GlossaryAdtech & ProgrammaticRetargeting

Adtech & Programmatic

Retargeting

Serving ads to people who previously visited a site or engaged with a brand.

By Brandon MinaCEO, BrandPilot AIUpdated November 2026

Short answer

Retargeting is the practice of serving ads to people who previously visited a website, used an app, or engaged with a brand. It typically relies on pixels, cookies, device IDs, or first-party customer lists to recognize past visitors, and aims to bring back interested prospects who did not convert on their first visit.