Poor targeting on Google Books

[farmboy]

I visited Google Books today after reading they were now including old issues of magazines. On the top of the home page were pics of three magazines. I clicked on one and it took me to a back issue of the magazine.

On the right column was an AdSense display with very irrelevant ads.

I wonder if the Google Books people email the Google AdSense people to ask for help with their targeting?

FarmBoy

[IanCP]

I visited Google Books today after reading they were now including old issues of magazines

I can't comment on the rest of your obsevations but it's [Google Books] a huge buzz at the moment in my genre.

People are excited about schematics, pages etc. from previously thought long lost magazines.

[signor_john]

I wonder if the Google Books people email the Google AdSense people to ask for help with their targeting?

I think you've got it backwards. If anything, the AdSense people should be asking the Google Books people for help in the form of "hints."

BTW, I saw some ads that were on target, which was more surprising than the fact that many ads weren't. (Matching Cincinatti or bridal ads to CINCINNATI BRIDE shouldn't be too hard, but figuring out what to display next to a 1993 issue of POPULAR SCIENCE could be trickier--especially if the PS article is a George Jetsonesque fantasy about flying cars or supersonic subway pods!)