This Black Friday, brands can cut through the crowded ecommerce environment by reaching their audiences in unexpected places. That’s according to new insights from eBay Ads UK in their Also Bought Report, which reveals the unusual shopping behaviours that create opportunities for brands to engage with their audiences in places where there’s likely to be less competition. You can download the full report here
eBay’s Also Bought Report highlights some of the weird and wonderful keyword combinations that shoppers have searched for during a single session – and coins a number of new audience segments, including:
- Face mask fashionistas – 28,087 searches were made for “face mask” and “jewellery”
- New parents in denial – 18,858 searches were made for “cot” and “headphones”
- Disco drivers – 21,869 searches were made for “tyres” and “speakers”
- Biker babes – 54,764 searches were made for “dress” and “cycling”
- Decadent desk workers – 9,662 searches were made for “luxury” and “office chair”
Based on analysis of the shopping behaviour of the 32 million monthly users on eBay UK between March and August this year, the report makes the case for brands to be more creative about how and where they reach their audiences, by using real-time data to understand what else they might be interested in.
Taking just one example from the Also Bought Report, if new parents are searching for “Cot”, you might well want to advertise noise cancelling headphones as they may very well be in the market for them!
“With this year’s Black Friday forced to be an almost exclusively online event, competition for consumer attention will be fiercer than ever. Our insights show how unpredictable behaviour can be – and while this can be challenging for brands to navigate, it also presents an opportunity to reach audiences in unexpected places where competitors are less likely to be lurking. This will allow for more meaningful connections and, most likely, a more efficient use of marketing budgets.”
– Harmony Murphy, Head of Advertising UK, eBay
eBay Ads Also Bought Report Top Tips
- Turn data into actionable insights
There is such a thing as too much data, if you can’t make sense of it. Tap into tools to transform raw numbers into intelligent insights that add value to your campaigns.
- Operate in real time to reach people at the right time
It only takes minutes for data to become out of date. Campaigns must be based on the freshest insights to reach your target audiences when they are ‘in-market’ for a particular product or service.
- Don’t resort to ‘off the shelf’
A segment that works for your competitors won’t necessarily be right for you. At eBay, our solutions are customised because every business is different — and we’re transparent about how we build them.
- Master the message and format
As well as reaching the right audiences, every advert should be engaging and complement a user’s online experience. It certainly shouldn’t detract from it. How do you want your brand to be remembered?
“People are multifaceted and this data reveals the extent to which people’s passions can intersect in sometimes surprising ways. This can create interesting opportunities to engage with consumers in ways that are not immediately obvious. These fascinating product combinations show that, now more than ever, real time behavioural data is crucial to ensuring that brands stay on top of customers’ changing behaviours and needs.”
– Pauline Robson, Head of Real World Insight, Mediacom
