How to Set Up Retargeting on Your Digital Publications

Why Retargeting Matters for Digital Publications

You spent hours creating a flipbook or digital brochure. Someone opens it, flips through a few pages, and leaves. Without retargeting, that reader is gone forever.

Retargeting changes the equation. By placing a small tracking pixel on your digital publication, you can follow that reader across Facebook, Instagram, Google, and thousands of other websites — reminding them of exactly what caught their attention.

The numbers speak for themselves: retargeted visitors are significantly more likely to convert than cold audiences. For marketers, sales teams, and publishers sharing flipbooks and documents online, retargeting is one of the highest-ROI tactics available.

This guide walks you through setting up retargeting on your digital publications using FlipLink's built-in tracking pixel support.

How Retargeting Works on Flipbooks

Traditional retargeting works on websites. But when your content lives inside a flipbook or embedded document, the setup is slightly different.

Here's the flow:

1. You add a tracking pixel (Facebook, Google, or custom) to your FlipLink publication
2. A reader opens your flipbook — the pixel fires and drops a cookie in their browser
3. The reader leaves without taking action
4. Your ad platform recognizes them as they browse other sites
5. Your retargeting ad appears, bringing them back to convert

FlipLink handles the technical part. You paste in your pixel ID, and FlipLink injects the tracking code into your publication automatically. No code editing, no tag manager gymnastics.

Supported Tracking Platforms

FlipLink supports all major advertising and analytics platforms through its tracking pixels feature:

You can add multiple pixels to a single publication. For example, run Facebook Pixel and Google Ads simultaneously to retarget across both networks.

Step-by-Step: Adding Facebook Pixel to Your Flipbook

Facebook Pixel is the most popular retargeting tool for digital publications. Here's how to set it up in FlipLink:

Step 1: Get Your Facebook Pixel ID

Log into Facebook Business Manager, navigate to Events Manager, and copy your Pixel ID. It's a 15-16 digit number.

If you don't have a Pixel yet, create one under Events Manager → Connect Data Sources → Web → Facebook Pixel.

Step 2: Open Your Publication Settings

In FlipLink, go to your publication dashboard and open the flipbook or document you want to track. Navigate to the Tracking or Pixels section in the settings.

Step 3: Paste Your Pixel ID

Enter your Facebook Pixel ID in the designated field. FlipLink will automatically wrap it in the correct base code and inject it into every page of your publication.

Step 4: Publish and Verify

Save your changes and open the publication in your browser. Use the Facebook Pixel Helper Chrome extension to confirm the pixel is firing correctly. You should see a PageView event each time the publication loads.

Step-by-Step: Adding Google Ads Retargeting

Google Ads retargeting lets you show display and search ads to people who've already engaged with your content.

Step 1: Create a Remarketing Audience

In Google Ads, go to Tools → Audience Manager → Audience Sources. Set up your Google Ads tag if you haven't already.

Step 2: Copy Your Conversion ID

From the Google Ads tag setup, copy the Conversion ID (format: AW-XXXXXXXXX) and optionally the Conversion Label for specific events.

Step 3: Add to FlipLink

In your publication's tracking settings, select Google Ads and paste the Conversion ID. If you're using Google Tag Manager instead, paste your GTM container ID and manage the Google Ads tag from within GTM.

Step 4: Build Your Retargeting Campaign

Back in Google Ads, create a new Display or Search campaign targeting the remarketing audience that's now being populated by your flipbook readers.

Advanced Retargeting Strategies

Adding a pixel is just the beginning. Here's how to get more out of retargeting on your digital publications:

Segment by Engagement

Combine retargeting with FlipLink's analytics and insights to understand which readers are worth retargeting. Someone who read 80% of your catalog is a warmer lead than someone who bounced after the cover page.

Pair with Lead Capture

Use lead capture forms alongside retargeting pixels. Readers who submit their email get added to your email funnel. Readers who don't still get retargeted with ads. Either way, nobody falls through the cracks.

Add CTA Buttons for Conversion

Retargeting drives people back to your content. Make sure there's something for them to do when they arrive. CTA buttons inside your flipbook — linking to product pages, booking forms, or checkout — turn returning visitors into customers.

Create Lookalike Audiences

Once your Facebook Pixel has enough data (typically 100+ events), create a Lookalike Audience in Facebook Business Manager. This lets you reach new people who behave similarly to your flipbook readers — effectively scaling your reach beyond retargeting.

Common Retargeting Mistakes to Avoid

Retargeting everyone the same way. A reader who spent 10 minutes in your product catalog deserves a different ad than someone who glanced at page one. Use engagement data to create tiered audiences.

Forgetting frequency caps. Showing the same ad 50 times makes your brand annoying, not memorable. Set frequency caps in your ad platform to limit impressions per user per day.

Not excluding converters. If someone already bought your product or signed up, stop retargeting them with the same ad. Create exclusion audiences for people who've completed your desired action.

Running retargeting without a landing page. Your retargeting ad should link somewhere relevant — ideally back to the flipbook, a dedicated landing page, or a signup form. Don't just send people to your homepage.

Retargeting Use Cases for Different Publication Types

Retargeting works across every type of digital publication. Here are practical examples:

Product catalogs: Retarget readers who viewed specific product pages with ads featuring those exact products. Dynamic retargeting on Facebook makes this easy.

Marketing reports and whitepapers: Readers of your marketing reports are high-intent prospects. Retarget them with a demo offer or consultation booking link.

Event brochures: After someone browses your event flipbook, retarget with early-bird ticket ads or speaker highlight reels.

Training manuals: For internal publications, retargeting isn't relevant. But for customer-facing training content, retarget readers who dropped off with reminder ads to complete the course.

Sales proposals: If a prospect opened your proposal but didn't respond, a subtle retargeting ad keeps your brand visible during their decision-making window.

Measuring Retargeting Performance

Track these metrics to evaluate whether your retargeting setup is working:

• Pixel fire rate — Confirm the pixel fires on every publication load (use browser extensions to verify)
• Audience size — Monitor how quickly your retargeting audience grows in your ad platform
• Click-through rate (CTR) — Retargeting ads typically achieve higher CTR than cold campaigns
• Cost per acquisition (CPA) — Compare CPA for retargeted audiences versus prospecting campaigns
• Return on ad spend (ROAS) — The ultimate metric: revenue generated per dollar spent on retargeting

FlipLink's analytics dashboard shows you reader behavior at the publication level, so you can correlate engagement depth with retargeting outcomes.

Get Started with Retargeting on FlipLink

Setting up retargeting on your digital publications takes less than five minutes with FlipLink. Add your Facebook Pixel, Google Ads tag, or any custom tracking script — and start building audiences from every reader who opens your content.

Combined with lead capture, CTA buttons, and detailed analytics, retargeting turns your flipbooks from static content into active lead generation tools.

Ready to retarget your flipbook readers? Create your free FlipLink account and start adding tracking pixels today. Check out our pricing page to see how FlipLink's lifetime deal gives you everything you need for just $129.