What we’re seeing work: email retargeting in action

Using email retargeting, brands like Secret Sales and Discount Dragon are turning anonymous site visits into measurable revenue, without relying on cookies or paid social retargeting.

Recent results we’ve seen:

• 1,000+ sales driven in December for Secret Sales from email retargeting alone

• 5-10% conversion from identity match to new subscriber

• Conversion rates from email retargeting consistently outperform on-site banners and pop-ups

Same visitors. A very different outcome with Optivo.

How email retargeting actually works

Instead of chasing users around the web with ads:

1. A consumer visits a brand’s website

2. Their visit is matched to a real email identity

3. They continue browsing with no disruption, no pop-ups, no overlays

4. After they leave, a relevant email lands in their inbox

That email can:

• Prompt a return visit

• Encourage a purchase

• Or invite them into CRM via a frictionless opt-in

If they click, they become a first-party contact, ready to be:

• Nurtured through email

• Used for segmentation

• Activated across other channels

• Built into lookalike audiences

Why this matters for your 2026 acquisition media mix

Email retargeting gives brands something paid social increasingly can’t:

• One-to-one communication, not one-to-many ads

• No competition in a crowded feed

• Durable identity you can reuse elsewhere

It’s the same retargeting objective 
just powered by people, not cookies or MAIDs.

The bigger shift we’re seeing

This is why email retargeting has scaled so quickly in the US, and why we expect it to become a core part of UK acquisition strategies in 2026.

Retargeting isn’t disappearing.
It’s evolving, away from cookies, and back to owned, identifiable audiences.

If you’re planning to update your acquisition media mix, this is one channel worth testing early.