What is re-engagement?
What is re-engagement?
Re-engagement is the practice of engaging users who previously interacted with your app, website, or ads but did not convert or have since become inactive, with the goal of bringing them back and driving further actions.
Re-engagement campaigns are designed to reconnect with users who have already shown interest in a brand. By targeting audiences who are familiar with a product or service, marketers can increase the likelihood of conversion while improving return on ad spend (ROAS). In mobile marketing, re-engagement is a critical strategy for driving repeat usage, increasing lifetime value (LTV), and reducing churn.
Re-engagement in mobile marketing
Re-engagement focuses on users who have already taken some form of action, such as installing an app, visiting a website, or clicking an ad. Because these users have demonstrated prior intent, they are typically more likely to convert than entirely new audiences.
In mobile marketing, re-engagement often targets users who installed an app but have since stopped using it. These users may receive targeted ads or messages encouraging them to return and complete a valuable action, such as making a purchase, booking a service, or progressing in a mobile game.
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Marketers identify these audiences using behavioral data such as inactivity windows, previous purchases, or in-app events. For example, a travel app may re-engage users who searched for flights but never completed a booking, while a gaming app may target players who stopped playing after reaching a certain level.
Re-engagement strategies help brands extend the value of existing users rather than relying exclusively on new user acquisition.
Re-engagement vs. retargeting
Re-engagement and retargeting are closely related concepts and are often used interchangeably, but they are not the same thing.
Retargeting typically refers to showing ads to users who interacted with a brand’s website or product but did not complete a conversion. These ads commonly appear across websites or mobile apps and are designed to bring users back to complete an action.
Re-engagement, particularly in the mobile ecosystem, focuses on bringing existing app users back into the app more generally. The user has already installed the app, but their activity has declined or stopped entirely. The goal is to encourage them to reopen the app and perform meaningful actions.
Retargeting is, in many ways, a mechanism for re-engagement. Both approaches rely on historical user behavior and data signals to deliver highly relevant ads or messaging, making them more efficient than campaigns targeting completely new audiences.
Common re-engagement methods
Re-engagement efforts can take many forms depending on the product, industry, and marketing goals. Successful strategies focus on reminding users of the value they previously found in the product, or creating urgency around returning.
Dynamic product ads
Dynamic product ads (DPAs) are a common example of re-engagement in e-commerce. These ads automatically show users products they previously viewed, added to their cart, or interacted with but did not purchase.
For example, if a user browses multiple products in a shopping app and leaves without completing the purchase, a dynamic product ad can display those same items later in a personalized ad. This reminder encourages the user to return and complete the transaction.
By showing relevant products based on previous activity, DPAs can significantly reduce cart abandonment and increase ROAS.
Push notifications and in-app messaging
Push notifications are another powerful re-engagement tool. Marketers can send personalized messages to users who have installed the app but have not opened it within a specific time frame.
These messages may highlight new content, limited-time offers, or updates designed to entice the user back into the app. For example, a streaming service may notify users about new content related to shows they previously watched, while a retail app may alert users about discounts on items they viewed earlier.
When used strategically, push notifications can reintroduce users to the app experience and encourage them to continue their customer journey.
Lifecycle-based campaigns
Re-engagement campaigns often rely on lifecycle segmentation. Rather than treating all users the same, marketers group users based on their stage in the customer lifecycle.
Examples include:
- Recently inactive users
- High-value users who have stopped purchasing
- Users who abandoned a key action such as checkout
Each group receives messaging tailored to their specific behavior, improving the likelihood of reactivation.
Measuring re-engagement performance
Accurately measuring re-engagement is critical for understanding which campaigns and channels drive users back into an app. To do this successfully, marketers need reliable attribution and deep insights into user and audience behavior across channels.
Key metrics commonly used to evaluate re-engagement include:
- Re-engagement rate
- Post-engagement conversion rate
- Revenue from returning users
- Lifetime value of re-engaged users
Without accurate measurement, it becomes difficult to understand which strategies are driving meaningful engagement and long-term growth. Mobile measurement partners (MMPs) like Adjust help marketers connect ad interactions with subsequent user activity, providing visibility into which campaigns successfully reactivate users.
With Adjust’s measurement and analytics solutions, marketers can get the full picture on re-engagement campaigns, understand how users return to their apps, and optimize strategies for higher retention and revenue.
To learn how Adjust can help you measure and scale re-engagement campaigns and grow your app business in general, request a demo today.
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