It used to be that the value of an email list did not extend much beyond email marketing.
Google Adwords changed all that last month, when they introduced a new feature called Google Customer Match.
Customer Match allows you to upload your list of email recipients to your AdWords account. Then, it matches gmail.com addresses on your lists with Gmail users, and enables you to target online ads to those recipients – or what Google calls your most loyal and valuable customers.
You can segment the ad campaigns any way you want, but a couple of ways we see this benefiting AdWords users are:
- Remarketing – By including your email list in remarketing campaigns, you can target customers who already have established relationships with you. Whether that means an online ad showing a complementary product to a prior purchase, or reaching out with event or registration reminders, you can refine your online ad for audiences who are more likely to engage.
- Opt-out – If you have online ads that you only want served to new and potential customers (i.e. those who have not done business with you), then you can tell AdWords to exclude the email addresses you have uploaded. This helps further refine who sees the ad, and leaves out impressions unlikely to convert.
A Few Notes about Google Customer Match
While we believe this is an excellent feature for adding value to your opt-in email subscribers and your online advertising, there are a few things AdWords users should know about Customer Match.
- Email lists must have at least 1,000 unique subscribers to upload through Google AdWords. They must also comply with Google’s policies.
- Customer Match will only look for and approve email addresses with the gmail.com extension, and only accepted email addresses can be used with online ad campaigns.
- The Customer Match feature is available across Search, Gmail, YouTube, and the Google Display Network.
- Google prioritizes the security of uploaded email addresses. In fact, it has documented that “The list of email addresses you upload will only be used to match to Google IDs and for policy compliance. It won’t be shared with anyone and will be deleted 7 days after matching and the compliance check are complete.”
If you already maintain a list of email addresses for your customers, then Google Customer Match could be one way to leverage your data to drive traffic to your website, increase conversions, and grow online revenue.
And if you do not have an email list, then this just might be an indicator that it is time to build one.
