Targeting ads by taxonomy
If you’re like most marketers you’ve been targeting your ads using 3rd party tools and detailed user data. Most likely this data is gathered using gray- or black hat tracking tactics employed by various different data aggregators, mostly unknown to you. Well, recent rulings are putting an end to that, forcing the industry to lean on quality content targeting. A problem, you say? Why? Content is king, after all.
For years we’ve been told that the only way to reach new clients is to target their interests and other demographical variables. This in itself is true but fails to factor in that even though you may have the right person, you may not have the right moment for that person to act.
For this reason, content taxonomy is on the rise again. Content creators have restarted employing strategies to tag their content appropriately to deliver better and more appropriate ads to their users.
Targeting your users by targeting their consuming content increases the odds that you reach them when they’re in the right state of mind for them to act on your message. It’s obvious when you consider your own online behavior.
The tweet above exemplifies one of the failures of relying overly on demographic data when targeting ads. Judging from experience, whenever I spend money on products, the businesses selling those products couldn’t care less how old I am, the color of my skin, or when I most likely had sex last time.
They just want to sell products. So let’s help them do just that.
Full disclosure
This article is written by Airserve CEO. Airserve is your one-stop shop for ad serving with respect for your user’s privacy.
