General Marketing Concepts

This guide is intended for entry-level marketers. If you’re more experienced, you may already be familiar with many of the points below.

One difference that some clients notice when comparing basic marketing campaigns with campaigns that use Pearl Diver Intent Data is that these campaigns often benefit from more active monitoring and optimization. While they may take a little longer to set up, many teams find that this additional effort can be worthwhile over time.

A/B Testing

A common approach in digital marketing is to remain flexible by using A/B testing.

A/B testing typically involves running multiple variations of a campaign (for example, different creatives, audiences, or settings) and comparing performance. Over time, lower-performing variations can be reduced or paused, while stronger performers can be given more focus, alongside continued experimentation.

Many teams use this process as an ongoing way to refine performance rather than aiming for a single “perfect” setup.

Campaign Goal / Target

The campaign goal selected within an advertising platform helps determine what the platform attempts to optimize for.

We generally recommend optimizing for:

• Form submissions

• Website conversions

Using these goals generally requires conversion tracking to be in place, often through the installation of the platform’s tracking pixel.

When a conversion is recorded, the platform receives feedback that may influence how it prioritizes contacts within the Pearl Diver Intent list (or similar contacts, if lookalike features are enabled).

Restricting Campaigns to Pearl Diver Intent Data

You will want to select the custom audience Pearl Diver is sending data to in the Ad Set settings under the Audience section, as per the image below. You should also see at the bottom a "switch to recommended setup" box if you have turned advantage+ off. If Advantage+ is on, it will instead say, "Further limit the reach of your ads".

Some advertisers choose to disable broad expansion features such as:

• Meta Advantage+

• Google Performance Max

These features may allow platforms to serve ads beyond the selected Pearl Diver Intent audience. Depending on campaign goals and settings, this can increase reach but may also introduce traffic that is less aligned with the intended audience.

Geo-Targeting

You can continue to use any Geotargetting restrictions in your campaigns in your advertising platform.

Ad Placement Settings

It can be helpful to review placement performance regularly to understand where ads are appearing and how those placements are performing.

In some cases, certain placements may generate clicks without meaningful engagement. For example:

• Short-form video placements may sometimes lead to accidental clicks when users interact with on-screen elements.

• These clicks can result in brief visits and limited on-site activity.

Metrics such as average session duration and conversion rate by placement can provide additional context when reviewing results.

Reviewing Low-Quality or Off-Target Leads

If conversion performance appears lower than expected, some areas that teams often review include:

• Landing page average session duration
  Short sessions may indicate a mismatch between ad messaging and landing page content or indicate the clicks are accidental.

• Visitor location data
  Checking whether traffic aligns with the intended geographic and customer profile.

• Ad platform reporting
  Reviewing which placements, creatives, or segments are driving clicks relative to conversions.

Budget & Learning Period

Advertising platforms typically go through a learning phase when a new campaign is launched.

Some advertisers observe that this period can last around two weeks, depending on daily spend and conversion volume (typically with budgets over $50 per day). Once learning stabilizes, performance data may better reflect the campaign’s longer-term potential.

Frequent structural changes during this phase will reset the learning period.