Akbank charges ahead to 12% more credit card sales with high-intent audiences

Akbank, one of Turkey’s leading private banks, is widely known for its digital‑first strategy and commitment to sustainable finance. But despite strong brand awareness and healthy organic traffic, Akbank had hit a ceiling on growth. It was struggling to increase new digital credit card applications and sales. Credit card demand was plateauing, acquisition costs were climbing, and existing retargeting strategies were recycling the same users without delivering incremental volume.

To continue growing digital sales, the financial services leader knew it needed a new way to reach net-new, high‑intent customers without cannibalizing existing channels. The team wanted to efficiently reach new people who were already showing signs they might need a credit card—without duplicating social and Search efforts.

Working with its agency, Optdcom, Akbank used Microsoft Advertising’s first‑party data and premium ecosystem to do just that.

Akbank’s strategy shifted from chasing known users to identifying intent signals earlier in the customer journey. With Microsoft Advertising, the team gained access to in‑market audiences to help them predict credit card demand before consumers ever searched or clicked an offer elsewhere.

Guided by the Microsoft Advertising team, Optdcom helped Akbank reach new, high-intent audiences more efficiently by...

• Finding people who already want a credit card: The team used Microsoft Advertising’s in-market audiences—enriched with first-party and behavioral signals—combined with Akbank’s internal data, industry data from the Turkish Banking Regulation and Supervision Agency, and broader market trends. This helped identify people more likely to spend with their credit cards in categories like travel, fashion, and beauty.
• Showing up in places others don’t: They ran Audience ad campaigns across MSN, Outlook, Microsoft Edge, and the Microsoft Partner network, reaching users in trusted, brand‑safe environments not accessible through other platforms.
• Running Native ads to encourage action: Delivering Native ads that matched the look and feel of each environment increased engagement without disrupting the experience, building brand trust and encouraging people to apply for a card.
• Improving based on performance: The team adjusted targeting and budgets based on performance signals and spending behavior. This allowed them to scale and contributed to record sales on the Microsoft Advertising platform.

The shift away from heavy retargeting paid off quickly. Within eight months, Audience ads drove 15% of all credit card applications and 16% of digital sales, despite no activity in the same period the year before.

In addition, average cost per click (CPC) dropped by 82% compared to other campaign types, making it much more efficient to acquire each new customer.

Overall, credit card sales increased by 12% year-on-year, showing that Microsoft Advertising was adding new, incremental customers alongside existing channels. Sales peaked in August 2025, delivering 2.5 times higher results than earlier months.