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Back-to-School Targeted Marketing Strategies in E-Commerce
Back-to-school campaigns in e-commerce aim to increase conversion rates by analyzing user behavior and applying the right strategies. Methods like retargeting and dayparting provide visibility at the right time and on the right channel. Especially with the rise of mobile shopping during this period, being visible in categories like stationery shopping significantly supports sales.The Benefits of Targeted Marketing Strategies in E-Commerce for Back to SchoolTargeted marketing strategies for back-to-school deliver the right products to the right audience, increasing sales and strengthening customer loyalty. Here are some of the benefits:Audience segmentation allows personalized offers for the right users.Dayparting ensures visibility during the most effective hours.Increases conversion rates and boosts campaign efficiency.Know Your AudienceThe foundation of a successful marketing strategy lies in deeply understanding your audience. Demographics such as age, gender, and income level, as well as interests and shopping habits, determine the effectiveness of ad campaigns. Research shows that accurate demographic analysis can improve ad performance by up to 60%.Additionally, knowing what type of content your audience engages with helps you build personalized campaigns. For example, 70% of mobile shopping happens in the evening, which offers an opportunity to optimize campaign timing for seasonal categories like e-commerce and stationery. This way, you can deliver your message to the right audience at the right time.Reach Your Audience on the Right ChannelsChoosing the platforms where your audience spends time is critical for campaign success. Social media, search engines, email marketing, and mobile apps are the top areas where users are most active. In Turkey, 85% of internet users are active on social media, which significantly boosts conversion rates.Ad placement and format also impact performance. For example, younger audiences show higher engagement on Instagram Reels and TikTok videos, while professionals are more likely to click on banner ads. Choosing the right platform and format in e-commerce campaigns enhances both visibility and engagement.Quick Channel Guide:Search: Reaches users with high purchase intent.Social (Reels/TikTok): Boosts engagement and brand awareness among younger audiences.Email: Strong channel for loyal customer promotions and discount announcements.Push/SMS: Ideal for instant reminders and quick conversions.Affiliate: Adds traffic and sales through blogs, review sites, and coupon platforms.Marketplaces: Helps reach a broader audience searching for a wide product range while increasing visibility amid competition.Use Targeting Tools EffectivelyTargeting is no longer limited to demographics. Personalized campaigns can be created through user behaviors, social media interactions, and browsing patterns. Key data sources include:First-Party Data: Information collected directly from users on your site — the most reliable source.Third-Party Data: Interest-based segments and lookalike audiences from external platforms — useful for reaching potential customers unfamiliar with your brand.With accurate targeting, campaign reach can expand by up to 70%. For example, a stationery brand can analyze web browsing and social media behavior of student audiences to increase conversion rates. Additionally, leveraging data from other platforms where students are active helps expand reach and strengthen brand visibility.Engage at the Right TimeTiming is a critical element of digital marketing. Users are active at different hours: 70% of e-commerce shopping occurs in the evening, while B2B engagement peaks between 9:00–11:00 in the morning.Using dayparting, you can show ads during hours when users are most active. For example, school supply campaigns often perform better at midday and evening, while online education platforms benefit from morning activity. Proper timing can reduce cost-per-click by 20% and maximize ad budget efficiency.Drive Traffic and Boost SalesAttracting users to your website is not enough; you must also guide them to purchase. A fast-loading, mobile-friendly website keeps 80% of users engaged for longer periods.Incentives such as discount coupons, free shipping, or seasonal bundles can increase conversion rates by up to 30%. Retargeting campaigns are effective for bringing back users who visited the site but didn’t complete a purchase. For instance, offering a 10% discount to a user who abandoned their cart can triple return rates. Personalized recommendations and pop-up notifications also encourage users to finalize purchases. Take Action!To maximize your back-to-school campaigns, analyze your audience, choose the right platforms, and use personalized content to attract users to your site. Review your strategy today to use your ad budget more efficiently and increase sales!Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)Which data should be prioritized when conducting audience analysis?Start with demographic data (age, gender, income), then analyze interests and shopping habits. These insights ensure your campaign messages reach the right people.How should timing strategy be determined?Timing should be based on analyzing when users are most active. Reports from Google Analytics or ad platforms reveal the hours with higher engagement. Optimizing ad schedules based on this data can significantly improve conversion rates.
6 Reasons to Buy Media in November - AnalyticaHouse
Everyone knows that the November sales events, which even consumers who have never shopped online know well, hold special importance for both e-commerce brands and consumers. The Black Friday phenomenon, which began years ago in the U.S. and quickly took hold in our country as well, has extended beyond its original date (the last Friday of November). Seeing the potential of this period, brands with "bright" ideas have spread it before and after that date with various special days (11.11, Cyber Monday, etc.), turning the entire month of November into a month of deals in e-commerce. In just a couple of years, the term “Black Friday” has evolved into “Black November.” As you know, digital media channels outside the main performance marketing channels (Google, Meta, etc.)—such as Onedio, Ekşi Sözlük, Kızlar Soruyor, Admatic, Medyanet, Sahibinden.com, etc.—do not operate on a retargeting logic, and are therefore usually positioned in the user funnel for new user acquisition. Considering that new users on e-commerce sites typically make a purchase on their 7th–8th visit, expecting first-time visitors from these channels to complete a purchase in their first session (last click non-direct transaction) is not very realistic. In this article, we wanted to address the missed opportunities that arise when, looking at digital marketing activities as a whole, we focus too much on concrete metrics like ROAS and their primary inputs (search, retargeting, affiliate campaigns, etc.), while sidelining less directly measurable inputs like brand visibility and awareness. 1. Volume Problems in Performance Advertising In November, e-commerce brands of every scale are incentivized to run eye-catching promotions. Especially marketplace-based e-commerce brands (Trendyol, Hepsiburada, etc.) increase both their brand and performance marketing budgets to reach more people or drive existing users to shop. During this period, advertising slots on digital media channels see high demand due to the huge budgets of e-commerce giants. On the other hand, these channels prioritize selling inventory directly to brands that can purchase it outright; any unsold inventory is made available via Real Time Bidding (RTB) to Google and programmatic buying platforms. Therefore, brands relying solely on Google or programmatic display buys in peak season get stuck with lower-impact inventory. And because demand is high there too, they end up paying higher CPM or CPC to remain competitive in RTB auctions. 2. The Need for Extra Reach and Gain from Share of Voice As in traditional retail, clearance events in e-commerce make sense only if you bring in new customers. The discount model works by sacrificing margin to drive volume and maximize total profit. Therefore, performance marketers’ top priority must be to reach new users outside their core base during promotional periods. Thus, opening reach- and new-user–oriented display campaigns on Google, Meta, and other RTB platforms is necessary—but in November, due to the reasons outlined, their impact alone will fall short. 3. Visibility Loss and Ad Blindness in Performance Ads As noted in point 1, the most visible slots get sold direct, leaving lower-impact RTB inventory. Further, performance campaigns optimize for clicks or conversions, sidelining the creative impact of the banner itself—and thus any awareness benefits. 4. Rising Unit Costs and the Need for Alternative Channels Some non-performance platforms charge on a CPC basis. While more cost-effective than performance channels in normal times, in November they lose that edge due to high RTB bids. Thus, non-performance platforms become part of a holistic performance plan—Engageya, Medyanet, Ciner, etc., all offer CPC models. 5. Turning Increased Demand and Purchase Motivation into Opportunity Consumers tend to postpone non-essential purchases until big sale events—and casual browsers are more inclined to buy under the influence of heavy promotion. This “buying mood” benefits both big and small brands alike. 6. Indirect Performance Gains from Higher Brand & Campaign Awareness Performance ads target users most likely to convert, but brand campaigns raise overall awareness, strengthening later organic and paid performance. Regular media investment boosts search volume on Google, which yields the most valuable and cost-effective traffic for e-commerce. Google’s RTB rewards ads with higher click-through rates (CTR) by lowering their CPC. By positioning media buys as brand investments in November, brands can boost CTR, reduce CPC, and achieve lasting efficiency gains. In short, brand marketing and media buying become even more essential and effective in November. We recommend that all digital brands treat marketing holistically—balancing performance metrics with the brand awareness and positioning gains achieved in consumers’ minds.
Creating Personas and Funnels in Digital Media Planning
In digital marketing—and especially in e-commerce—identifying potential customers and reaching them at the right time, in the right place, is essential.In traditional marketing, the first step to identifying target customers is creating personas and developing individual strategies for each. However, this is not enough to get ahead of your competitors. The tools of digital marketing have introduced an unprecedented level of data and customer insight into the marketing world.This boundless sea of marketing data has made it necessary to create more nuanced personas and develop micro-level strategies tailored to these segments. Undoubtedly, in today’s marketing world, the leading brands are those that can interpret this data most effectively and turn their learnings into powerful strategies.The key to interpreting data and creating strategies lies in understanding the source of the data—in other words, identifying the users from whom the data is gathered. Comparing different customer groups using the same metrics is often the first and most critical mistake made.To put it simply: while strategy creation requires creativity, reading data requires numerical and analytical thinking. Identifying the customer, on the other hand, is a part of marketing that draws heavily from social sciences like psychology, philosophy, and sociology.1. First Step in Defining the Customer: Persona CreationAlthough there are various approaches today, the widely accepted method for persona creation in marketing is based on consumption motivation. Since personas are often associated with demographic details like age and gender, these are usually the first elements considered. But this is a mistake.Potential customers should first be segmented based on the motivations that drive them to purchase. Then, the demographic characteristics of these personas can be examined. In other words, demographics are not the cause—they are the result.Pro Tip: The personas you create may overlap or be interchangeable. For example, imagine you're managing an e-commerce platform that sells stationery products. A 30-year-old white-collar male with a university degree might purchase products for his company, buy colored pencils for his child to use at school, or make a personal purchase simply because he enjoys drawing.These three different purchasing motivations require three different strategies. Therefore, a defined demographic group can include multiple personas (overlap), and the same user can belong to different personas at the same time (interchangeability).2. Second Step in Defining the Customer: Funnel CreationThe persona definition provides a general and static profile of your target customer. However, your communication with the customer is constantly changing and evolving based on actions you take and macro variables. Within the same persona, you may have both potential customers who don’t know you and loyal customers who frequently purchase from you.Trying to reach consumers at different communication stages (brand awareness) with the same ad (message) or the same advertising channel will lower the efficiency you get from that persona. Therefore, you need to define communication stages with your customers on a persona-based level and structure it within a funnel (user funnel).Although standard funnel structures are often used in marketing, digital user funnels based on personas are more complex than basic steps like awareness, consideration, and engagement.Most importantly, when defining funnel steps, it’s more functional to name them based on the user’s current milestone rather than their place in the brand communication journey. Regardless of persona, every target customer will fall into one of the groups below:2.1. New User AcquisitionNote: Users in this funnel step do not include those who have already progressed to later stages. Users who recognize your brand and logo in the context of your industry. Users who know and are convinced of the unique features that distinguish your product/service from competitors. Users who are not actively searching but may enter the search phase when approached. Users who are actively searching for a product/service. Users who have visited your digital sales channel at least once during their active search. (Retargeting begins here and continues through subsequent steps.) Users who have engaged with your platform at above-average levels (e.g., membership, favorites list). Users who have completed at least one purchase (new customers). 2.2. Remarketing Previous customers who were satisfied with their last purchase. Former customers reminded of their positive past experience. Former customers not currently searching but may become active again when approached (by you or competitors). Former customers who might specifically choose you if they re-enter the purchase phase. Past customers who have recently visited your sales channel again during an active search. Customers who have made repeat purchases (loyal customers). 2.3. EngagementWhile engagement is typically defined as strengthening interaction and communication with users who have not yet made a purchase, it also includes efforts to maximize the lifetime value of existing loyal customers.Note: Remarketing and engagement efforts are carried out simultaneously for users who have completed at least one purchase. The main goal of engagement is not just repurchasing, but generating different customer values. Former customers who were satisfied with their last purchase. Customers who have shared positive experiences in digital or social settings. Customers who have decided never to choose another brand (lovemark). Further actions depend on your marketing team’s brand vision. In the media planning phase, applying the approach above with 100% precision may not always be feasible due to the limitations of ad platforms’ infrastructure and content-advertising models. Therefore, when choosing ad platforms, it’s best to evaluate their targeting and data capabilities and decide where your funnel steps can realistically be applied.