Your phone is a great listener
With a Microphone, Camera and GPS built in, what is your cell phone really up to ?
Ad Re-targeting
As a partner in a creative agency a big part of the work I do involves digital marketing. On-line advertising and ad re-targeting are major components of digital marketing. We have all seen the effects of Behavioral Ad Re-targeting campaigns when we visit a website or put something into a shopping cart that we do not buy. That product then follows you around the internet and ads for that product show up everywhere you go online.
Re-targeting campaigns have extremely high conversion rates compared to standard banner ads. Just ask Adroll.
For a re-targeting campaign to work the ad networks like Google and Facebook need detailed demographic information about the potential consumer. How old they are, who their friends are, what do they like, where do they live, what do they buy and so on. Most of the information they collect we have either voluntarily given to the ad networks or we have approved access by not reading the 73 page privacy documents and clicking “I Have Read And Agree To The Terms” check box.
What lengths are these advertising networks willing to go to collect this information that makes their ads more targeted? The more clicks from qualified leads these networks can deliver the more money they make. With that capitalist mindset, the more they know about you, the more money they make from you.
A Rubber Wedding Ring
Last night I was out to dinner with an old friend who was visiting. I recently got married 8 weeks ago and have just not been able to get used to wearing my wedding ring.
I noticed my friend was wearing a rubber ring, it looked classy and most importantly comfortable. So I asked him.
“Who makes that ring”. He responded with QALO, he let me try the ring on, told my they were about $20 and said “when you lose it, you just get a new one.”
I said, “I will have to check them out”, and that was the end of the conversation.
So Who Was Listening To Us?
I went on to Facebook the morning after our conversation and in my news feed was an advertisement for QALO Rings.
Were we talking so loud that Mark Zuckerberg overheard our dinner conversation?
Some of you may say its a coincidence; they are just taking out ads that target recently married men with an outdoor/active lifestyle. A demographic that I fit, and an assumption that is probably true.
However nothing in my profile changed. I have never seen an ad for this product before today. I have never searched online for a “rubber wedding ring”. I have never been to their website. So what made Facebook decide today was the day to show me an ad for this product?
Was Facebook listening to my dinner conversation?
Facebook messenger openly states that they can turn on your phones microphone and record bits of conversations if you use the app. I do not have this app on my phone for this reason, however my friend with the rubber ring does have the messenger app on his phone.
Did Facebook record our conversation, geo-locate me to be in the same proximity as where the word “QALO” was spoken — then match me through my Facebook profile that I recently got married, live an active lifestyle and then decided to show me this extremely targeted ad? As dark as its sounds it’s more likely than Mark overhearing us and trying to sell me a $20 rubber ring, right?
So did you buy the ring ?
You bet I did!
I am the target demographic and I just got a recommendation from a trusted friend. What better time to show me an ad for this product. These re-targeted advertisements really do work!
If re-targeting works this well, what is next ?
Advertising networks need more ways to collect personal information so they can build out robust consumer profiles. The more information they have on each individual the better the re-targeting. Manufacturers will look for ways to sell consumers on the convenience or novelty of “voice recognition” in everyday products as a way of gathering more personal information that consumers are unknowingly giving away for re-targeting.
Take a look at the products below
“Hears you from across the room with far-field voice recognition, even while music is playing.”
“Tell me, what’s your favorite part about the city? The food, fashion or the sights?”
Conclusion
At the end of the day I got shown an ad for a product I was interested in and did end up buying. I did not have to remember the name “QALO” (I had already forgotten it) and I probably would have just back burnered my search for a rubber ring. So is this re-targeting a good or bad thing ?
Advertisers are never going to stop putting advertisements in front of us. The more targeted these ads are the less time we have to spend filtering out the “Junk” ads and the faster we can see products that we actually want. Thus manufactures can spend less getting their products in-front of the right consumers, increase margins and either make more money or better products. That’s the american dream, right?