5 Performance Marketing Examples to Inspire Your Next Campaign

Go beyond impressions with metrics-driven marketing campaigns that get results

Marketing used to be something of a guessing game. You might advertise on television and the radio, in magazines, and on websites, but tools for measuring performance were primitive and generally didn’t go beyond potential impressions. Of course, that’s no longer the case; advances in technology and increasing data transparency have made it possible for marketers to embark on results-driven performance marketing campaigns.

Performance marketing is generally less risky, as you only pay once a specified result is met — a customer clicks through to a website, downloads an app, or fills out a contact form, for example. And because the data surrounding performance campaigns is transparent and measurable, it’s easier to make adjustments and optimize for the desired result. That said, not every performance marketing example will apply to your specific brand and audience. Understanding different performance marketing types and success stories will help you hone your own efforts and create a campaign that connects with your audience.

5 Examples of Performance Marketing

Connected TV Advertising

If you still consider television advertising to be a relic of the past, then you haven’t spent enough time studying the connected TV landscape. Connected TV combines the targeting precision and granular data of mobile with the creative power of a bigger screen. This best-of-both-worlds approach drives results like installs and conversions while boosting ROAS.

Better yet, CTV has a massive built-in audience; about two-thirds of people in the United States have at least one CTV service, and usage is particularly high among Millennials and Generation Z. About 50% of consumers prefer to watch streaming services on smart or connected televisions, allowing advertisers to reach their audience at a time when they’re relaxed and engaged with the screen in front of them. Television ads also beat out social media, websites, and mobile game ads for brand recall and affinity. To learn more about why connected TV is a top choice for performance marketers, read our free report.

Native Advertising

Native advertising is a performance marketing strategy in which ads appear to be a natural extension of their media source. Native ads match their surroundings in aesthetics and formatting, making them less jarring and intrusive than traditional banner ads. They might appear on websites, in apps, in videos, or in social media feeds, and their content should relate to their media source in some way.

This collaboration between Apartment Therapy and Home Depot is just one example of how native advertising works. With a monthly global audience of 22 million readers, Apartment Therapy is an independent website “designed to guide our readers in creating a home that’s happy, healthy, and uniquely their own” — making it an ideal match for home improvement retailer Home Depot. As a result, Home Depot created a stylish, interactive native advertising campaign that leans into the website’s aesthetic while appealing to the interests of its audience.

Influencer Marketing

The rise of the influencer economy has shown brands that you don’t need to partner with a Hollywood celebrity to sell a product; you just need a savvy content creator with an engaged audience. A 2023 report found that the influencer marketing industry is expected to grow to $21.1 billion by the end of the year, and it’s easy to see why: The strategy gets results. Like other performance marketing examples, influencer marketing’s success is determined by metrics such as ROI, CPA, and website visitors. Because younger consumers value authenticity, they’re more likely to trust someone they already know than a movie star or company spokesperson.  

Keep in mind that influencer marketing is less about finding the person with the most followers and more about collaborating with someone whose content is relevant to your brand and whose audience likes to participate in the conversation. Working with micro-influencers, or those with fewer than 100,000 followers, can be a cost-effective way to boost brand awareness. This strategy has proven especially effective for Glossier, a makeup and skincare brand that works with micro-influencing “ambassadors” to promote its messages of natural beauty and authenticity.

Social Media Marketing

Social media marketing looks a lot different today than it did five years ago. While Facebook still dominates social marketing spend, Instagram is quickly gaining ground. Meanwhile, Tiktok has become a global phenomenon as Twitter ads fall out of favor. In other words, while you’re likely already familiar with social media marketing, it’s necessary to reevaluate the landscape frequently and reassess your strategies.

It’s not just the platforms themselves that are changing; brands are eschewing corporate-speak and overly promotional language in favor of visually interesting, memorable online experiences that connect with audiences. In one particularly successful performance marketing example, beauty brand Anastasia Beverly Hills utilized TikTok’s TopView Ad solution to increase visibility for its new line of mascara. The campaign garnered over 27 million impressions, along with a 9% lift in awareness.

Email Marketing

Boasting one of the highest returns on investment of all performance marketing examples — $36 for every $1 spent — email is one of the best avenues for results-driven campaigns. Email marketing has enormous reach, as there are nearly five billion active email users around the world, and more than half of consumers say it’s their preferred channel for business communications. In addition to ROI, there are a number of metrics that indicate the success of an email marketing campaign, including clickthrough rate, bounce rate, and conversions.

Email marketing campaigns are effective at all stages of the marketing funnel. Brand awareness campaigns can establish your company as an industry leader and keep it top-of-mind for potential customers, while mid-funnel emails can drive traffic to your website and first-time sales. Email marketing also boosts long-term loyalty after those initial purchases and allows marketers (like those at Urban Decay) to flex their creative skills.

Expand your knowledge of performance marketing strategies, metrics, and more with our guide, What is Performance Marketing?

Boost Marketing Performance with tvScientific

Email, social media, web, and mobile will likely always have a place in your ad strategy, but don’t ignore the performance marketing potential of connected TV. At tvScientific, we’ve created an incredibly sophisticated performance TV platform perfectly suited for growth marketing, allowing brands to increase reach, lift, and ROAS. With more than 15,000 targeting segments, you can reach the right audience at the right time. Meanwhile, an intuitive interface delivers real-time reporting and analytics. To learn more about how tvScientific can boost your brand and help you achieve measurable results, get in touch and set up a free demo.