Examples Of Performance Marketing Tactics - A Complete List For 2024
JTN Article
Marketing is nothing if not purposeful. Brands don't just do it for fun - there's always a clear goal in mind, whether it's to increase sales, build brand awareness, or drive customer loyalty.
Performance marketing, also known as results-driven marketing, takes this purposeful approach to the next level by focusing on specific actions and measurable outcomes. It's all about driving tangible results that directly impact your bottom line.
However, many subcategories, channels, and strategies exist within performance marketing. They aren't made equal, and some will be more suitable for your brand than others. In this comprehensive list, we'll cover all the major performance marketing tactics that you can use in 2024 to achieve your business goals.
Performance marketing is an advertising model in which campaigns are exclusively measured based on their results. It uses specific actions to determine effectiveness and therefore cost. Businesses only pay for successful actions towards predefined objectives such as clicks, leads, sales, or downloads. This form of marketing is also known as pay-for-performance or results-based marketing.
Traditional advertising models often require businesses to pay upfront and hope for the best in terms of return on investment (ROI). Performance marketing is different because it is based on specific, trackable actions. Businesses tend to go for this approach when they want to maximize their ROI and have greater control over their advertising spend.
Affiliate marketing is a digital marketing strategy that involves promoting products or services on behalf of a company in exchange for a commission. This form of performance-based marketing sees companies and individuals partner with one another to leverage the latter's online presence to drive sales for the former.
The typical affiliate marketing arrangement works by having an affiliate (also known as a publisher) promote a product or service on their website, blog, social media channels, or other online platform in the form of reviews, banner ads, text links, or any other type of content that encourages readers to click through and make a purchase.
When someone clicks on the affiliate's unique tracking link and makes a purchase from the linked site within a specified timeframe (usually 30-60 days), the affiliate earns a commission for facilitating that sale.
Affiliate marketing falls under the umbrella of performance marketing because payment is contingent upon the affiliate's ability to generate link clicks. With this model, businesses can benefit from potentially limitless engagement from relevant audiences without having to commit large sums of money upfront.
Affiliate marketing has been around for decades, and it now takes many forms in the online world. Here's a breakdown of the four main types:
Affiliate networks are organized marketplaces that connect publishers (affiliates) with merchants (businesses). You've surely come across one of these networks in your own online shopping - they're the ones that offer cashback, coupons, or other rewards for purchasing through their platform. Common examples include Rakuten, CJ Affiliate (formerly Commission Junction), and ShareASale.
Affiliate networks act as intermediaries between affiliates and merchants. They provide tracking technology, facilitate payments, and handle other administrative tasks as well. The structure and data reporting capabilities are helpful when running a campaign based on indicators of performance like impressions, clicks, and conversions.
Influencer partnerships are a newer form of affiliate marketing that has risen in popularity with the rise of social media influencers. These individuals make a living off their highly engaged audiences by subtly selling them products or services through sponsored posts or endorsements.
It's important to note that not all influencer partnerships are performance-based. Businesses usually connect with and negotiate terms directly with contractors, which may have different requirements than traditional affiliates.
This is only valid within our list of performance marketing tactics when compensation is provided based on results. Special links and promo codes are the most well-known examples of performance marketing on social media.
In a world where content is consumed as abundantly as coffee, content marketing offers businesses a lucrative way of getting their products out in front of large crowds. Affiliates in this space own one or several websites that post articles and videos related to a specific niche. Businesses pay for features in content with the hope of turning readers' interest in the topic into sales.
Content marketing affiliates earn commissions via specialized links within the content that redirect readers to the business's website. It's considered best practice to disclose paid promotions, although not all publishers choose to do so.
Coupon sites cater to a demographic of consumers who don't want to spend a dime until they're confident they've found the best possible deal. Sales, promotions, and special offers can be shared by individual users, businesses themselves, or affiliates. Some websites arrange direct partnerships with brands and then share a portion of the revenue generated from sales made through their site.
This makes it onto our list of performance marketing examples when the brands pay a commission on sales that were generated by site-sourced traffic. In this model, affiliate marketers can earn revenue through CPC (cost per click) or CPS (cost per sale) payment methods, which are typically tracked via unique links or promo codes. Popular coupon and deal sites include RetailMeNot, Groupon, and Coupons.com.
Search Engine Marketing (SEM) is a form of digital marketing that focuses on promoting websites through search engine results pages (SERPs). It's only become richer in sales potential with the widespread use of Google, which currently dominates over 90% of the global search market.
SEM is often used interchangeably with paid search advertising, as both involve paying for placement in search engine results. However, SEM also encompasses other forms of online marketing such as display advertising and remarketing. Here's an overview of the main types to know:
PPC advertising is a form of online marketing in which advertisers pay each time their ad is clicked on by a user. Businesses bid for ad placement in search engine results pages, with the highest bidder typically winning the top spot at a price determined by their competitors' bids. The key thing to note is that costs are only incurred when a user clicks on the ad. This is what makes PPC performance-based - payment is only made for actual results, not just impressions.
For those who want to maximize the value they get from every click, Google has an ultra results-focused advertising service called Performance Max. It uses machine learning to optimize ad placement across Google's Search, Display, YouTube, and Discover networks, for the highest possible return on investment.
Local search ads target users searching for businesses or services in a specific geographic location. They appear on the top of Google's search results page when someone searches for relevant keywords, usually alongside a map with pins showing sponsored locations.
Like other performance marketing tactics, local search ad pricing models are transactional. Google specifically uses a pay-per-lead system that only charges businesses for calls or actions taken directly from the ad.
Where local search ads are geared towards brick-and-mortar stores, shopping ads mainly serve businesses that sell online. Google Shopping allows ecommerce sites to showcase their products' images, prices, and a brief description at the top of relevant search results.
Product Listing Ads (PLAs), as they're called, work through a performance-based bidding system similar to PPC. Brands pay every time users engage with rather than see a placement in SERPs.
Let's say that a consumer viewed an aforementioned shopping ad last week but didn't take action on it. Performance marketing tactics can come into play as a way to recapture their awareness or interest down the road. Retargeting and search remarketing systems use cookies or a pixel to track those previous site visitors, then display your ad to the consumer when they're on another website. Most charge on a per-click basis at rates slightly lower than regular ad placements. The cost of running a retargeting ad on Google currently averages rates between $0.66 and $1.23 per click.
Social media advertising is a form of digital marketing that leverages the wide reach and engagement potential of social media networks to connect with online audiences. Virtually every popular platform today has some sort of advertising program in place to sustain its revenue. The offerings of these programs can vary from in-feed ads to sponsored content, and from brand collaborations to paid promotions.
A social media platform's advertising solutions can be considered performance-based when cost is directly tied to results. Both that and success are measured through metrics such as clicks, views, conversions, and engagements. Take a look at the following list of performance marketing examples to get a better understanding of what we are talking about:
Rolled out in 2004, Facebook Ads is the oldest and most popular social media advertising platform out there today. Over 2.8 billion active users can be targeted through a variety of ad formats, including image ads, video ads, carousel ads, and collection ads. The platform also offers advanced targeting options based on demographics, interests, behaviors, and more.
Instagram is owned by the same parent company as Facebook, Meta. Its ad offerings are therefore very similar in style. In-feed placements have been designed to fit into the app's native style and are known as "Sponsored Posts." These can feature a single photo or video, a carousel of multiple images or videos, or run as an Instagram Story. On both Facebook and Instagram, businesses can pair their placement with a call-to-action that encourages users to visit their profile or an external website. Performance-based options use cost-per-click (CPC) and cost-per-impression (CPM) pricing models. Results from ad campaigns on both platforms are laid out in Meta Ads Manager.
Microblogging platform Twitter - now unfortunately known as 'X' - allows businesses and individuals to promote their posts through a self-serve advertising system that is highly targeted and measurable. Brands have the opportunity to increase their reach by targeting specific keywords, hashtags, or accounts using several different campaign formats, including Promoted Ads, Follower Ads, and Trend Takeover placements. Being objective-based, Twitter Ads only require payment when users take a specific action, such as clicking on a link or engaging with a tweet.
LinkedIn's advertising solutions are unique from those of other social media networks in that they're mainly intended for business-minded audiences. Organizations - and sometimes individual professionals - use LinkedIn ads to achieve a variety of objectives, ranging from increasing brand awareness and lead generation to recruiting top talent. Examples of performance marketing in this context would include paying for each click on an ad promoting a job opening or paying for each conversion on a lead generation campaign.
Pinterest's various ad formats are designed to inspire and drive action within the niche platform's interest-related content feeds and search results.
Promoted pins, shopping ads, and video ads each give businesses a unique way to reach and engage with Pinterest's active user base of over 518 million people.
A lot of investment has gone into developing features that drive campaigns to deliver performance in the form of clicks, impressions, and conversions. Pinterest's new API for Conversions has helped drive an average 28% increase in conversions and lowered costs per action by as much as 14%.
With over 1 billion active monthly users, TikTok presents a massive opportunity for businesses to reach a young, engaged audience. The platform's advertising solutions include in-feed videos, brand takeovers, and sponsored hashtags. Success is measured - and ads are billed - using performance metrics like Cost-Per-Mille (CPM) and Click-Through Rate (CTR).
Display advertising uses visual elements, such as images, videos, and graphics, to attract the attention of potential customers in online environments. You'll see display ads on websites, social media platforms, search engines, and mobile apps in various forms, including banners, pop-ups, and auto-play videos.
As a very broad discipline, display advertising can serve different purposes and can be used in various ways. Some companies use it to increase brand awareness, while others aim to drive more traffic to their websites or generate leads and conversions.
Performance display advertising campaigns earn their designation by being measurable through key performance indicators like clicks, impressions, conversions, click-through rate (CTR), cost-per-click (CPC), and cost-per-action (CPA). They aren't performance-based when results from ad space aren't guaranteed. For example, Google's Display Network uses a cost-per-impression payment model, where advertisers pay for the number of times an ad is displayed. That's technically performance-based, as you only pay for the views your ad receives.
A directly negotiated display ad on a blog or website, on the other hand, wouldn't be considered performance-based, as the advertiser would pay a flat fee for a set amount of time or ad space on the website.
Per the name, display ads encompass ad formats that are visually displayed on websites, blogs, and various digital platforms. Here are a few examples of performance marketing in each of these formats:
Banner ads are rectangular or square-shaped advertisements that appear on websites, usually at the top, bottom, or sides of a webpage. They can also be placed within content or in between paragraphs of blogs and articles. Banner ads are typically sold on a cost-per-thousand-impressions (CPM) basis, which means the advertiser pays a set amount for every one thousand views of their ad. Specific costs depend on the website's traffic and audience demographics.
Video ads can be found on platforms like YouTube and streaming platforms like Hulu. Pre-roll placements appear before the main content, mid-roll ads appear during the video, and post-roll ads appear after.
Performance metrics for video ads include views, completion rate (how many viewers watched the whole ad), and engagement (such as clicks or calls to action). Advertisers can also track conversions from video ads, such as purchases or sign-ups.
Native ads blend in with the content of the website or platform they're displayed on. The thought is that this makes them less disruptive to users' experience, hopefully resulting in higher engagement and conversions. Native ad performance can be measured by CTR, CPC, CPA, or other metrics depending on the specific goals of the campaign at hand.
Retargeted display ads work just like retargeted SEM ads - the only real difference is the format. These specific placements are visual-based and found in the form of banner ads or video creatives. Being made to capture sales opportunities, retargeted display ads follow results-focused pricing models like CPC and CPA.
Programmatic advertising refers to the automated buying and selling of digital ad space. It replaces the manual process traditionally used in display advertising by enabling technology to facilitate real-time bidding (RTB) between brands and publishers. There are many different types of programmatic ads; most platforms today offer a combination of display, video, and mobile placements, which may be priced on either a CPM or CPC basis.
Email marketing promotes products and services by sending potential customers and current clients valuable content, promotions, and updates. It has been a foundational strategy for businesses and marketers for decades. Today's email marketing solutions have evolved to include personalization, automation, and advanced analytics to enable the creation of campaigns focused on goals ranging from brand awareness to direct responses and sales.
While many performance marketing strategies involve email, this method of communication isn't inherently performance-driven. Only campaigns with quantifiable results in the forms of open rates, click-through rates (CTR), and conversions can be measured for their effectiveness.
Businesses run targeted email campaigns when looking to reach a specific audience or segment of their email list. Targeted campaigns use data such as demographics, interests, purchase history, and behavior to send personalized messaging to the right people at the right time. Examples of targeted email campaigns include welcome emails for new subscribers, abandoned cart reminders for online shoppers, and personalized promotions based on past purchases. These messages fall under the purview of performance marketing because they have clear objectives and measurable outcomes.
Automated email sequences, also known as drip campaigns or autoresponders, are a series of emails sent at specific times after someone subscribes to an email list. Pre-written messages nurture leads and guide them through the customer journey with the ultimate goal of converting them into customers. Email sequences can be triggered by various actions, such as email opens or clicks, website visits, and form submissions. Their success, on the other hand, is measured by open rates, click-through rates, and attributable sales.
Transactional emails provide customers with important information about events or actions that they have taken on a company's website. They primarily serve as a record of things like order confirmations, shipping notifications, and password resets, but can also include upsell or cross-sell opportunities. Transactional emails are considered performance-based because they revolve around specific actions and have clear metrics for success, such as the number of completed purchases or clicks on recommended products.
Email newsletters are a less-talked-about but highly effective method of digital marketing. According to data from HubSpot, 87% of B2B marketers consider it an essential ingredient to success in 2024. Sponsorship opportunities can be obtained in various ways, such as negotiating with individual publishers, opting for a newsletter sponsorship platform or network, or using a media buying agency. The terms of the arrangement will determine whether this is performance marketing. For example, contracts requiring an upfront payment with no guarantees of results don't qualify. Campaigns with a pay-per-click (PPC) or cost-per-acquisition (CPA) structure are considered performance-driven as they directly tie to measurable results.
Influencer marketing is a massive domain, valued at roughly 21.1 billion U.S. dollars as of 2023. That's mostly attributable to the internet's largest social media platforms - Facebook, Instagram, Twitter/X, and TikTok. YouTube also hosts a large community of individuals and businesses who create content for marketing purposes.
Influencer marketing campaigns look different depending on the creator and platform at hand. Social networks like Instagram have features specifically meant for paid partnerships, and accounts can employ their own strategies as well. Again, this is only performance marketing if the influencers involved in the campaign are paid for measurable results.
Here are a few examples:
Sponsored content is where a brand pays an influencer to promote their products or services on social media. This can come in the form of sponsored posts, stories, videos, or even live streams. Brands can also sponsor a creator's entire account for a certain period of time. This type of content is often labeled as "sponsored" or "#ad" to ensure transparency with followers.
Anyone who's ever scrolled through TikTok or Instagram has surely come across the phrase 'link in bio' before. That's how most influencers direct audiences to the special links they've been given by the brands they're working with. Affiliate links track purchases made by followers who click through the link, allowing influencers to earn a commission on every sale.
Product giveaways aren't well-known among performance marketing tactics because they can be used for a range of purposes. Tangible sales just happen to be one of those things. Brands and influencers often partner up to host a product giveaway where participants can win an advertised product by completing specific tasks like following both accounts or sharing a post. Performance is then measured through the number of these actions taken.
Unboxing and reviewing stand as entire subsections of their own within the realm of influencer marketing. There are creators who focus solely on producing content around opening up products and showing off their features. It's especially popular among tech reviews, beauty and cosmetics, and subscription boxes. Like giveaways, review content isn't always paid for on the basis of performance. Many well-established YouTubers have preset fees businesses must pay to even get their product featured at all. Other times, brands send items to creators for free in exchange for an honest review. This only makes it onto our list of performance marketing strategies if a commission is involved.
Content marketing is a strategic approach to marketing that involves creating and sharing valuable, relevant, and consistent content with online audiences. Rather than directly promoting products or services like traditional display ads, it focuses on creating and distributing useful information to attract and build trust among potential customers.
This particular discipline shines where most performance marketing tactics don't in the sense that published material isn't overtly sales-driven. Brands put a great deal of thought into creating assets with dual reader and marketing value. Common forms of content marketing include:
We've already touched on sponsored posts a bit - the format is mainly associated with social media platforms with built-in advertising capabilities. But other digital sources can host sponsored content as well. For example, blogs, online publications, and even podcasts use native advertising to generate revenue streams. Their promotions may be performance-based - measured by clicks or sales generated - or paid for up-front through traditional fixed rates.
Guest blogging is the practice of writing and publishing original content on someone else's blog or website. It is a popular content marketing tactic used by brands to reach new audiences and increase their online visibility. This only counts as performance marketing when the content promotes a product or service in a way that can be measured for its impact on sales or conversions. A majority of guest blogging platforms don't work like this. Brands must pay a fee to have their content published and don't always have the right to include trackable links.
Video content marketing is the use of video to promote or market a brand, product, or service on digital channels - the most popular being YouTube, social media platforms, private websites, and streaming services. Don't get it confused with video ads, though. In the realm of content marketing, video serves as a storytelling medium to engage and connect with viewers. It's usually the main event rather than the pre-roll before it. Success can be similarly tracked using KPIs like views, engagement, and shares.
Webinars and online events have gained popularity in recent years as more and more people turn to the internet for learning and networking opportunities. Brands tap into the medium by hosting their own webinars or participating in online events as sponsors. These are great for building thought leadership, generating leads, and creating a buzz around a brand. Performance KPIs include attendance rates and follow-up actions such as downloads or sign-ups.
As more and more people rely on their smartphones for daily tasks, businesses have recognized the need to adapt their marketing strategies accordingly. Mobile advertising solutions translate many of the same functions and benefits as desktop-focused campaigns to the touchscreen environment. They too, exist to serve a plethora of business goals ranging from brand awareness to sales to app downloads.
Performance mobile marketing campaigns are often defined by KPIs like impressions, clicks, and installs. However, in-app metrics such as engagement rates, session lengths, and purchases can also be used to measure success. We've listed a few relevant examples of performance marketing in this context below.
In-app advertising is a subset of mobile marketing that specifically refers to ads that appear within an app in the form of banners, interstitials, and native media. Businesses purchase placements through the app store or mobile ad networks. In some cases, a brand and app developer may privately negotiate an advertising deal. In-app ads from ad networks are usually performance-based because these platforms follow a cost-per-click or cost-per-install payment model. Direct agreements can include terms of payment that consider more than performance alone - for example, a fixed fee for placement or the option to pay for sponsored content in a game.
SMS (short message service) marketing, also known as text message marketing, is a form of mobile marketing that utilizes SMS messages to communicate with potential or existing customers. Because all that's needed is a list of phone numbers, this strategy is relatively cost-effective and easy to implement. So much so that many businesses opt to do it themselves using a platform like Ez Texting, SlickText, or SimpleTexting. Performance campaigns are then monitored for metrics like open rates, clicks, and conversions.
Push notifications are alerts that are sent directly to a user's mobile device. They can be used for various purposes, such as promoting sales or discounts, announcing new products or features, and reminding users about abandoned shopping carts. A well-timed push notification has the potential to serve several performance-oriented goals - especially conversions.
Similar to traditional search engine marketing, mobile search ads appear at the top of search results when a user enters a relevant query into a search app like Google. Placements direct users to a landing page or app store listing, and each resulting click-through, purchase, or download is tracked and attributed to the ad.
A performance-based partnership is a collaborative effort between two or more parties established for the purpose of achieving a specific objective. The arrangement may be between businesses, individual creators, or a mix of both. If you were paying attention earlier, you'll probably note some similarities to influencer partnerships. Those can indeed be performance-based, but not all of them are. Performance-based partnerships have their own spot on our list of performance marketing tactics because they exclusively focus on the results of a specific project and can stretch farther than social media.
Every performance-based partnership is - or should - be unique to the parties involved. Everyone has something unique to bring to the table when negotiating a contract. Campaigns are similarly created to pursue many different collective goals. Here are a few examples:
Co-branding campaigns are often seen in the fashion industry. Clothing brands and celebrity designers partner up to create a limited edition collection or line with the hope of generating buzz and excitement around both brands, as well as potentially reaching new audiences, and producing sales from those who are fans of both brands. Examples of performance marketing KPIs in this type of partnership would be sales, brand visibility, and social media engagement. Starbucks and Stanley Cups recently ran a very successful co-branding campaign with the Starbucks x Stanley Quencher.
Because co-branding campaigns engage two separate audiences, tracking their performance requires a strong attribution model and clear communication between both brands.
In a joint venture, two or more parties combine their resources and expertise in order to achieve greater success than they would on their own. An excellent example of performance marketing at play in this context would be a small company teaming up with a larger, more established brand to reach new markets or tap into the larger brand's customer base. In this scenario, performance marketing KPIs would include revenue generated from the joint venture and customer acquisition cost.
Referral programs incentivize customers to share their positive experiences with a brand and refer their friends and family to make purchases. Unlike the two performance marketing tactics mentioned above, referral programs can be launched independently or through a collaboration between businesses. Performance-based partnerships see that each party tangibly benefits from referrals, either through a lead-for-lead and sale-for-sale system or one that compensates the referring company for each successful referral made.
Cross-promotion is a lot like co-branding, with the main difference being that this example of performance marketing presents each business' offerings as complementary rather than combined. To go back to the Starbucks example earlier, a cross-promotional performance-based partnership could see Starbucks partnering with Stanley to offer their respective customers discounts on one another's products.
Content syndication is the process of distributing and republishing content from one source to multiple platforms or websites. It allows content creators and publishers to reach a wider audience by making their content available on different platforms, increasing its visibility and potential for engagement.
Articles, blog posts, videos, podcasts, and even social media posts are all examples of content that can be syndicated. While the main goal of content syndication is usually exposure, businesses may gauge the success of their efforts through the number of leads or volume of website traffic generated. See two examples of performance marketing in content syndication explained below.
When using paid content distribution for syndication, businesses typically pay a third-party platform or publisher to distribute their content. This can be in the form of sponsored articles, sponsored social media posts, or native advertising on websites. We've already covered many performance marketing strategies that can be used in paid content distribution, such as pay-per-click advertising and influencer marketing.
Guest podcasting gives brands the opportunity to expose their content to a new audience through collaborations with popular podcast hosts. Features aren't always contingent upon performance, nor do they always create measurable results. For example, a 30-minute interview with the host might not directly lead to an influx of website traffic. If the marketer in that case agreed to pay based on that outcome, they wouldn't pay much for a lack of direct results. They would, however, if the guest podcasting opportunity was based on a fixed fee, which isn't considered performance marketing.
Marketing isn't the first thing people think of when they hear the words 'Customer Relationship Management', commonly abbreviated CRM. It typically takes place after a sale has been made. But businesses have found several ways to leverage the positive connections they make with buyers for further benefit down the road.
Performance-based customer relationship management campaigns are intended to foster customer loyalty and ultimately lead to increased sales. They're built on the idea that a happy, engaged customer is more likely to continue purchasing from a company and possibly even recommend it to others. That opens the door to plenty of hard KPIs, like customer lifetime value, cost of acquiring a new customer, or churn rate. These two performance marketing tactics are two great examples of how CRM can be helpful on the marketing front:
Loyalty programs can be considered a form of performance-based marketing because they incentivize and reward desired customer behaviors. Companies typically structure their loyalty programs to encourage repeat purchases, higher spending, or other actions that drive business results. Rewards are tied directly to the value a customer generates for the company. The more a customer spends or engages, the more rewards they earn. This "pay for performance" model aligns marketing spending with measurable outcomes.
Customer retention campaigns often use performance-based tactics to reduce churn and increase customer lifetime value. Companies may analyze customer data to predict which segments are at high risk of attrition. They can then target those segments with personalized offers, incentives, or content designed to win back their business before they defect to a competitor. The performance of these campaigns can be measured by improvements in retention rate, reactivation of lapsed customers, or incremental revenue gained from customers who would have otherwise churned. The marketing budget is allocated based on the actual impact of retaining high-value customers.
We've already discussed several forms of video advertising, including pre-roll and mid-roll ads, social media ads, and native advertising. But there are a few more special types worth mentioning in this list of performance marketing strategies - particularly stream-based ads.
Ads can be woven into streamed content in a few different ways. These include:
Sponsored live streams allow brands to partner with influencers or content creators to showcase their products or services in a live video. Payment is typically based on the viewership and engagement the streams generate. Compensation can also be tied to metrics like concurrent viewers, chat activity, stream duration, or click-through rates on featured product links.
Shoppable videos are a newer tool in the modern marketer's toolbox, combining the power of video advertising with the convenience of e-commerce into one accessible package. Viewers can click on products within shoppable video ads to purchase them directly on an advertiser's website. You'll probably notice lots of potential performance KPIs to track here, from view-through rates (VTRs) and engagement to conversion numbers, average order value, and ROI.
Remember influencer marketing? This is its less costly and more organic cousin. User-generated content, or UGC for short, is any type of digital media created and shared by real consumers online. It can take the form of reviews, comments, testimonials, social media posts, and more.
UGC should ideally be authentic, original, and unedited by the brand or marketer. It’s found naturally through hashtags and mentions on social media, product reviews on e-commerce sites, and online communities and forums.
Based on the above explanation, it's a little tough to see how there might be a connection between user-generated content and performance marketing. How can brands drive results when the material they're using to do so is supposed to be organic? Here are a few examples of performance marketing combined with the community-driven nature of UGC:
Brands often use their social media accounts to run contests or challenges that reward customers for creating and sharing content featuring their products. Winners may be determined by the engagement their content receives, such as likes, comments, or shares - whichever measure the business thinks best reflects progress against performance goals.
Soliciting customer reviews and testimonials can be considered performance-based if brands offer rewards for this content based on its impact. For example, reviewers could receive discounts or loyalty points proportional to the views, upvotes, or conversions their reviews generate.
Event marketing is a type of marketing strategy that involves promoting and showcasing a brand, product, or service through events. Businesses plan for weeks or even months to create an event that will attract their target audience and leave a lasting impression. In today's digital world, events have begun to take on a new form, being completely remote and accessible to audiences around the globe.
A brand might host an event for a number of reasons. But in most cases, it isn't to just socialize. Many have business outcomes in mind, like getting investors, sponsors, or sales. Performance event marketing is all about creating an engaging and impactful experience conducive to that specific goal. Here are two examples of the use of performance marketing tactics in event marketing:
Despite being online, virtual events and webinars still serve as an excellent opportunity to showcase products or services, engage with potential customers, and establish industry expertise. Progress towards goals like sales can be enabled through admission fees or a ‘pay per lead’ model, paid access to exclusive content, or upselling to attendees through promotions and discounts.
Sponsoring industry conferences or trade shows allows brands to pay for exposure to a highly qualified audience of potential customers. Performance-based arrangements can be set up through the use of lead scanning technology or by offering special discounts and promotions to attendees who visit the sponsor's booth.
Interactive content uses gamification to engage and involve the audience in a more active and participatory way. In other words, it's a type of content that requires the audience to interact with it rather than just passively consuming it.
Interactive content has gained popularity in recent years due to its ability to capture and maintain the attention of online users who are constantly bombarded with information. It allows for a more personalized and interactive experience, making it more appealing and memorable for audiences of all sizes, demographics, and age ranges.
Active participation can be considered a performance goal in and of itself when measured using KPIs like click-through rates and experience completion rates. Some common types of interactive content used in performance-based campaigns include:
Brands often create quizzes or polls to entertain and educate audiences while gathering valuable data on their preferences and interests. This interactive content can also encourage specific actions such as signing up for a newsletter or following social media accounts. In that context, performance would be gauged by the number of completed quizzes or polls and the resulting leads or conversions.
Infographics are a popular way to visually display data and information. Adding an interactive element to infographics, such as the ability to explore data or content by clicking, hovering, or zooming on different elements, gets people more involved and engaged in the information being presented. Performance-based marketing campaigns leverage interactive infographics to drive traffic, increase brand awareness, and educate audiences on specific topics or products. A great example of this is a fitness brand using an interactive infographic to educate their audience on the benefits of different types of workouts and then encourage them to click through to their website for more information.
Gamification applies game-like elements like challenges, rewards, and leaderboards to otherwise boring tasks or content. Marketers know that people's natural competitiveness can be harnessed to drive engagement and action. This is why many performance-based marketing campaigns incorporate gamification, such as quizzes or contests, to capture leads and increase conversions. Companies have seen great success with gamified landing pages that require users to complete a fun challenge or game before accessing exclusive deals or promotions. This not only increases engagement but also creates a sense of urgency and exclusivity, which can end up leading to higher conversion rates.
Interactive ads allow audiences to engage with the brand's message through actions like clicking, swiping, or watching. Formats like playable ads, AR/VR experiences, or chatbot ads can create deeper engagement than passive formats. Performance here is measured through interactions, conversions, or time spent with the ad content.
A true testament to the times we live in, chatbots and AI-driven engagement tools have become increasingly prevalent in everything from customer service and shopping to personal assistance and entertainment. Marketing teams use the technology to engage with customers and gather data while pursuing various campaign objectives.
AI isn't just a helpful assistant in personal or professional tasks - it has also become a key tool for businesses in marketing and engagement strategies. There are various types of performance AI marketing, each with its unique benefits and applications. See an overview of the most popular categories below.
Conversational marketing relies on the use of AI and natural language processing to create an interactive experience for users. Chatbots today have the capacity to engage website visitors in real-time conversations, answer questions, provide recommendations, and guide them toward making a purchase. They can be deployed on landing pages, social media, or messaging apps, with performance measured by metrics like conversation rate, lead quality, or number of sales assisted.
In a traditional setting, salespeople work to meet performance targets by identifying and presenting relevant products to customers. AI-driven recommendations do the same thing, minus the extra time, work, and overhead costs.
Machine learning algorithms can analyze customer data to provide personalized product or content recommendations across various touchpoints, from websites to emails to social media. Performance is measurable in units of click-throughs, conversions, revenue generated, average order value, or engagement rates.
Native advertising places sponsored content within the organic flow of a platform, matching the surrounding style and format. This makes ads feel less intrusive and more engaging to audiences.
Native advertising and performance advertising are two different forms of online advertising, but they both have the ability to complement the other. Performance advertising's focus on measurable results like clicks and conversions can be enhanced by the more subtle and integrated nature of native advertising. Examples of performance marketing strategies in native environments include:
Sponsored content, also known as branded content or advertorials, is a type of native advertising that appears on media sites. Rather than being traditional banner ads or pop-ups, sponsored content takes the form of articles, videos, or other types of media that are created by the advertiser or in collaboration with the media site. These pieces of content are then published on the media site and labeled as sponsored, but otherwise blend seamlessly into the rest of the site's content.
Brands can partner with media publications to create sponsored articles, videos, or other content that aligns with the site's editorial themes. Performance can be measured through metrics like views, engagement, or conversions driven by the sponsored content, with pricing models like cost per click or cost per lead.
In-feed ads are a type of native advertising that appears within the natural feed of content on a platform. They blend in with the surrounding content and can include text, images, and videos. In-feed ads are commonly seen on social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
Social media platforms and content discovery networks offer in-feed ad placements that match the look and feel of organic posts. These native ads can be targeted to relevant audiences and priced based on performance metrics like clicks or conversions. The seamless integration can drive higher engagement and ROI compared to disruptive ad formats.
Podcast advertising has grown in popularity as the medium attracts dedicated audiences. Businesses can partner with podcasts to reach niche listeners through various ad formats.
Performance is typically measured through unique discount codes or trackable URLs mentioned in the ads.
Like with everything else we’ve discussed so far, podcast promotions only qualify as performance-based if payment depends on results. Below are two instances where this could be the case.
Host-read ads are a common podcast advertising format where the show's host reads a script promoting a product or service. These ads often feel more authentic and engaging due to the host's established relationship with listeners. Brands pay on a cost per mille (CPM) basis, meaning they pay a fixed rate per thousand downloads or streams.
Sponsored episodes involve a brand fully sponsoring the production of a podcast episode. This allows for deeper integration of the brand's message into the show's content. Sponsors may have input on the episode's theme or talking points to align with their marketing goals. Payment terms are negotiated directly between the podcast and the sponsor.
Social proof and user reviews play a significant role in influencing consumer behavior. Brands can leverage the power of positive customer experiences to boost credibility and drive conversions.
Performance marketing tactics in this area focus on encouraging and showcasing authentic user feedback. Here are a few examples:
Review campaigns incentivize customers to leave honest reviews about a product or service. Brands might offer discounts, loyalty points, or entry into a prize drawing in exchange for a review. The goal is to increase the volume and visibility of positive reviews across platforms like Google, Yelp, or industry-specific sites. Success is measured by the number and quality of reviews generated.
Testimonials and case studies provide in-depth, real-life examples of how a product or service has benefited customers. Brands often feature these on their websites or in marketing materials to build trust and demonstrate value. Performance can be tracked by monitoring engagement metrics like time spent on testimonial pages or conversions attributed to case study views.
The added sections cover podcast advertising and leveraging social proof through reviews and testimonials. The writing style matches the informative tone of the existing content, providing an overview of each tactic and how performance is measured. Let me know if you would like me to revise or expand on anything.
With the many forms of performance marketing laid out, you're probably wondering which one to choose. These options clearly aren't made equal in terms of cost, reach, targeting capabilities, and overall effectiveness. Making the wrong choice can mean wasting time and money that could be better spent elsewhere. Use the following factors to guide your decision-making process.
Who are you trying to reach and where do they spend their time online? Some channels are better suited for specific audiences. Social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram, for example, skew towards a younger demographic. Meanwhile, LinkedIn is better for reaching business professionals.
Search engine marketing can be effective for reaching people actively searching for solutions to a problem. Businesses see the best results from email marketing when they have a strong list of message recipients to start with.
Carefully consider which channels your target buyers are most likely to respond through. There's nothing wrong with launching a performance marketing campaign on more than one, but in the beginning stages of something so results-driven, focusing on a single option is usually best.
A clear budget upfront is necessary for the success of any marketing campaign. Performance marketing efforts are particularly made and broken by cost - the amount of money you pay to acquire traffic, leads, or sales is a key factor in determining ROI, one of the most important performance KPIs of all.
Consider how much you're able to invest in performance marketing and then allocate those funds strategically. Keep in mind that costs can vary significantly between channels. Some, like partnerships, may be very cheap or even free. The price of running social media and search engine ads can vary based on a multitude of factors, including placement type, audience size, demographic details, location, and industry.
The type of product or service you offer can also impact which performance marketing channels will be most effective. For example, visually oriented products tend to perform well on social media and display ads, while more complex B2B services often see better results from search engine marketing and content marketing.
There you have it - a full list of potential avenues to take when planning performance marketing endeavors in 2024. The marketing world is constantly evolving and new tactics will undoubtedly emerge. However, these are some of the tried and true strategies that have proven to drive results for brands across industries.
Performance marketing can be a daunting and overwhelming task for businesses of any size. With so many different strategies, platforms, and metrics to consider, it's easy to get lost in the sea of information and feel at a loss for direction. JTN Group is the guiding compass countless companies rely on to find their heading.
Based in the UK and US but serving clients worldwide, JTN Group is a full-service digital marketing agency specializing in performance marketing. Our results-obsessed approach has helped businesses across various industries achieve their goals and surpass their expectations. Whether you're a small startup or an established enterprise, our team has the knowledge and expertise to create custom-tailored performance marketing strategies that drive real, measurable results.
Discover the possibilities of performance marketing by partnering with the experienced practitioners at JTN Group.
Lucinda is a Marketing Manager at JTN Group in London where she leads the Paid Social team. Outside of her work Lucinda plays sports on three continents and coaches and participates in international debating competitions. Learn more about JTN Group here.
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