Visitorless retargeting from buyer activity

Vector

Most buyers don’t raise their hand first. Many are researching competitors, browsing category content, or showing subtle intent signals, but they’re not hitting your site yet.

This playbook shows you how to turn that activity into hyper-targeted ads that reach the right people before they ever click your URL.

The Vector way

“Traditional ABM” tools either ignore these pre-site buyers or drown them in blanket, solution-first ads.

Vector flips that.

With Vector, you can:

Detect buyer activity (competitor research, topic searches, third-party intent).
Build smaller, higher-match audiences of named contacts.

Serve stage-fit creative that educates, differentiates, and warms them before they hit your site.

When to use this play

Use when you want to engage ICP contacts who:

Haven’t visited your site yet
Aren’t searching your brand
Aren’t in active sales conversations
Are researching competitors or topics you care about

Goal

Turn buyer activity into contact-level audiences and reach them with efficient, targeted ads, so you’re already on their shortlist when they’re ready.

Objectives

Boost ad match-rates with behavioral signals (vs. CSV uploads alone)
Engage named contacts with relevant ads on LinkedIn, Google, and programmatic
Improve CTR and engagement by matching creative to buyer research behavior
Prime future pipeline without overspending on high-CPC channels

Use case

Your ICP is showing research behavior around a competitor or hot topic. Instead of waiting for them to visit your site, you push tailored ads to those exact contacts and educate them earlier in the journey.

Play type: Mid-to-top funnel | Ad Strategy | Buyer activity activation Estimated time to execute: 1–2 hours setup + 2–4 week campaign

How it works:

Step 1: Identify buyer activity

Pull ICP contacts researching competitors or topics (Vector intent + CRM segments).
Export/confirm list of matched contacts.

Step 2: Upload + segment in Vector

Import into Vector and tag as “Buyer Activity Prospecting.”
Build a contact-level segment around that activity.

Step 3: Launch ads on stage-fit channels
Choose channels that allow precise targeting + efficient spend:

LinkedIn: Target by job title + buyer activity for relevance.
Google Ads/YouTube: Great for topic-driven education.
Programmatic: Scale reach by persona across display.

Creative tips:

Align message to the activity:
- If they’re researching a competitor → show how you’re different.
- If they’re reading about a problem → highlight why your approach solves it better.
Keep creative problem- or competitor-aware, not solution-overloaded.

Step 4: Track + measure
Key metrics to track:

Match-rate lift vs CSV uploads
CTR by audience segment
Named engagers in Ad Reveal
Optional: retarget engagers with deeper-funnel content

Step 5: Advance engaged contacts

Move contacts who click/visit into mid-funnel or retargeting plays.
Share named engagers with Sales via Ad Reveal alerts.

Best practices

✅ Match ad copy directly to the topic or competitor the contact is researching
✅ Use smaller, more specific segments instead of broad uploads
✅ Start with educational or differentiating content vs product-heavy ads
✅ Refresh audiences every 2–4 weeks to keep match rates high

Wrap up: ads-first prospecting

You don’t have to wait for buyers to show up on your site. With Vector, you can detect buyer activity, build precise audiences, and reach real contacts with ads that match their research stage.

That’s ads-first prospecting: efficient, targeted, and pipeline-ready.