Engagement is all the rage in Internet marketing, especially when companies like MasterCard talk about how to measure it and why it’s important. Engagement is reaching the right people, and motivating them to do something. Today, you have more opportunity than ever before to reach market segments on a micro level.

Geographic Targeting

Targeting users by location is a huge boost for local business, especially those who rely on mobile. Mobile users are more likely to buy, and banner advertising aimed at their location can boost sales. Geo-targeting also helps eliminate a state where your offer may not apply, which is common in affiliate and lead generation campaigns.

Demographic Targeting

Targeting by gender, age, and income level are all possible now thanks to greater amounts of data on users. Companies like Facebook have helped to catalog and crunch data, and those practices have filtered down to many buy-side platforms offering better quality traffic at a fair rate.

Retargeting

Marketers now have a second chance to reach users at a fraction of the cost. Retargeting looks at users who have viewed your website or your display advertising, and reaches out to them specifically. Advertising needs repeat views to sink in, and retargeting allows marketers to reach these segments alone.

Final thoughts

When you micro-target your audience, you remove all of the irrelevant page views your campaigns can accumulate. That immediately cuts spend, and should raise the overall response rates of your campaigns. If you’re unsure of a new segment that you’re targeting, try opening a new campaign to test that variable.

Bio: Ted Dhanik is an Internet marketing thought leader, and CEO of engage:BDR. Ted Dhanik began his work with MySpace.com and LowerMyBills.com, learning the secrets to banner advertising. Find out how to generate leads through Internet marketing tips from Ted Dhanik.