Solved: App Remarketing Woes in Cambridge (Data Inside)

Hi there,

Thanks for reaching out! I'm happy to give you some initial thoughts and guidance on your situation.

It sounds like you're running into a really common but frustrating problem with your app remarketing on Google Ads. Tbh, seeing ad spend go down the drain while your downloaded user base sits dormant is a massive headache. The good news is the solution is probably not where you think it is. Most people would tell you to tweak your Google Ads bids or test new ad copy, but that’s just papering over the cracks. Your problem isn't really a Google Ads problem; it’s a re-engagement strategy problem. We'll need to dig a bit deeper than just the ad account.

We'll need to look at why you're losing them in the first place...

Right, let's be brutally honest. If users are downloading your app and then abandoning it, the problem starts long before you ever run a remarketing ad. You can have the best Google Ads campaign in the world, but if you're driving people back to an experience that they've already decided isn't for them, you are literally just burning money. Ad spend is an accelerant; it makes good things happen faster, but it also makes bad things happen faster. Pouring ad budget onto a leaky bucket just makes the bucket leak quicker.

Before you spend another pound on ads, you need to become an expert on why your users are lapsing. This isn’t guesswork; it’s detective work. You need to dive into your app analytics (like Firebase, Mixpanel, or whatever you use) and find the patterns. Where is the drop-off?

• -> Are they downloading but never even completing onboarding? This suggests your first-run experience is confusing, too long, or isn't selling the value properly.
• -> Are they using one specific feature and then leaving? Maybe they see your app as a single-use tool rather than a daily habit.
• -> Are they dropping off after a certain number of days? This could point to a lack of new content, notifications, or reasons to keep coming back.

You need to map this out. This isn't a Google Ads task, it's a product and user experience task. Fixing these internal drop-off points is the highest-leverage thing you can do. A 5% improvement in user retention can be far more profitable than a 20% reduction in your Cost Per Click. The ad campaign is the last piece of the puzzle, not the first.

I'd say you need to forget 'remarketing' and start thinking 're-activation'...

The term "remarketing" is lazy. It encourages you to lump all non-active users into one bucket and shout the same generic message at them. This is why your campaigns are failing. A user who downloaded yesterday and never opened the app is fundamentally different from a power user who was active for 3 months and hasn't logged in for 30 days. They have different problems, different levels of familiarity with your product, and need completely different messages to be persuaded to come back.

You need to build audience segments based on behaviour. This is non-negotiable. Using your app analytics data, you can create these audiences and sync them to your Google Ads account. Stop targeting "all users who have downloaded the app." It's the most expensive, least effective audience you have. Instead, you need to get granular.

Here’s a basic segmentation framework I'd start with. This should be your new targeting structure inside Google Ads.

Each of these segments should be a seperate ad group or campaign in Google Ads, each with its own specific messaging, creative, and offer. It's more work upfront, but it's the difference between precision-guided marketing and just firing a shotgun in the dark.

You probably should stop asking them to come back...

And start giving them a reason to. This is the single biggest mistake in re-engagement advertising. The "Request a Demo" button is the curse of B2B websites, and its equivalent in the app world is the "We miss you!" or "Come back and use our app!" ad. It’s an arrogant, low-value Call to Action. It presumes the user should care about you, when in reality, they only care about what your app can do for them.

Your ad's only job is to deliver a moment of value or remind them of a problem you can solve. You need to craft a message that they can't ignore because it speaks directly to their situation. This means your ad copy and creative must be tailored to the segments we just defined.

Let's take a hypothetical fitness app based in Cambridge. Here's how you'd apply this thinking:

See the difference? The "After" examples are not asking for anything. They are offering something of specific value that relates directly to the user's likely context. They solve a problem (finding a route), introduce a new benefit (injury prevention), or reconnect with a past goal. This is how you get clicks that actually lead to re-engagement.

You'll need a better way to measure success...

The question isn't "how low can my Cost Per Click go?". The real question is "how much can I afford to spend to re-activate a valuable user?". Without knowing this, you're flying blind and you'll always think your ad spend is "wasted" because you have no benchmark for success. You need to understand the Lifetime Value (LTV) of your users, and by extension, the value of re-engaging them.

Let's do some simple maths. The calculation for a re-engaged user is a bit different from a new customer, but the principle is the same.

Value of a Re-Engaged User = (Monthly Value of an Active User * Expected Active Months) - Cost to Re-Engage

This tells you what each successful re-activation is worth in profit. From there, you can work backwards to set a target Cost Per Re-Engagement (CPRE). If a re-activated user is worth £50 to you over the next year, you can confidently spend up to £10 or £15 to bring them back and still be wildly profitable. Suddenly, a £1 click doesn't seem so expensive if it contributes to that £50 return.

To make this tangible, I've built a simple calculator for you. Play around with the sliders. This is the kind of calculation you should be doing to set your budgets and judge the performance of your re-engagement campaigns. It moves the conversation from "wasted spend" to "strategic investment".

We'll need to look at your campaign structure...

Once you've done the strategic work—diagnosing the leaks, segmenting your audience, crafting value-driven offers, and calculating your targets—then you can go back into Google Ads and build something that works. I've worked on a lot of app campaigns, including one where we drove over 45,000 signups at a low cost, and the secret is always a solid, logical structure.

For re-engagement, you should be using Google App Campaigns for engagement (ACe). They are designed specifically for this purpose. Within that campaign, your structure should mirror your segmentation strategy:

1. Create one primary ACe campaign.
2. Inside that campaign, create an Ad Group for each of your key segments (e.g., 'New & Inactive', 'Lapsed Champions', etc.).
3. Assign your specific audience lists to the corresponding ad groups. This is the most important step. Make sure your 'New & Inactive' ad group is only targeting that list from your analytics.
4. Upload bespoke creative and copy for each ad group. The ads for 'Lapsed Champions' should look and sound completely different from the ads for 'New & Inactive'. Use the 'Before/After' table above as your guide. Test different formats - video often works well to demonstrate a new feature, while a simple image ad can be great for a special offer.
5. Set your bids based on your target CPRE. Google's AI will optimise towards in-app actions, so you want to tell it what a valuable re-engagement action is (e.g., completing a key task, using a feature for the first time).

I'd also suggest a clear budget allocation. Your 'Lapsed Champions' are likely your most valuable segment, so they might warrant a higher budget and a higher target CPRE than your 'New & Inactive' users. You have to be strategic about where you place your bets.

I'd say you are probably relying too much on one channel...

My final point is a bit of a contrarian one. For re-engaging existing users, paid ads should be one of your last resorts, not your first. Why? Because you have cheaper, more direct ways to contact these people. They've already given you permission to talk to them by downloading your app.

Your re-engagement strategy should be a multi-channel effort, prioritised by cost and effectiveness.

1. Push Notifications: This is your cheapest and most direct line of communication. A well-timed, personalised push notification is far more likely to be seen than a display ad. Use these for your most time-sensitive and personalised messages.
2. Email Marketing: If you collect emails during signup, this is your next best channel. You have more space to tell a story, announce a new feature in detail, or make a special offer. It's incredibly cost-effective.
3. Paid Social Ads (e.g., Meta): In my experience, sometimes re-engaging users on Meta can be cheaper and more effective than on Google, especially for consumer apps. You can target your custom audiences there just as easily.
4. Google Ads: This should be used to support the other channels, to catch the users who have push notifications turned off and don't check their email. It's an important part of the mix, but it shouldn't be the entire mix.

Thinking you can solve a retention problem with a single ad channel is a flawed premise. A healthy re-engagement ecosystem uses multiple touchpoints to remind users of your value in different contexts. Relying only on Google Ads is like trying to build a house with only a hammer—you're missing a lot of essential tools.

This is the main advice I have for you:

I know this is a lot to take in, and it's a fundamental shift from just "fixing Google Ads". But this strategic approach is what seperates campaigns that limp along from those that drive real, profitable growth. I've detailed my main recommendations for you below as a checklist to get you started.

Implementing a strategy like this takes time, expertise, and a lot of testing. You're not just running ads; you're building a system for re-activating and retaining your hard-won users. This is precisely the kind of challenge where professional experience can make a massive difference, helping you avoid common pitfalls and get to profitability much faster.

We specialise in this kind of strategic, data-driven approach to paid advertising for software and app clients. If you'd like to have a chat and walk through your specific analytics and ad account, we offer a completely free, no-obligation initial consultation. It's a great way to get a second pair of expert eyes on your setup and come away with even more actionable advice.

Hope this helps!

Regards,

Team @ Lukas Holschuh