Forum Moderators: martinibuster
For a couple of weeks now, I have the impression that I get shown 3D related AdWords/AdSense ads on non-3D-related sites. One example is an ad for add-ons of a popular 3D software on a blog of a friend of mine which is not at all 3D related. I don't have any statistical evidence on this, but it's a subliminal feeling that I get more and more ads on 3D related topics on sites where they simply do not belong given their general content.
IF this observation is true, the only reason I can think of is that the ads shown are not targeted to the content of the site, but rather targeted at ME, the visitor!
Of course, Google knows who I am: I have the Google toolbar, I use GMail, I have customized Google settings. So Google knows that one of my big areas of interest is 3D modeling. It would only be a logical consequence to start targeting ads exactly to my interests.
So did anybody else notice something similar, or am I just getting paranoid?
If you think about it, it makes a huge amount of sense. If a user visits a travel site, he'll see travel-related ads. But, if Google knew that the user also visited a lot of golf web sites, it would be appropriate to throw in some "golf vacation" ads. If the visitor is checking Phoenix hotels, displaying hotel ads with golf packages would be ideal.
Other than the somewhat spooky nature of seeing personally targeted ads, it seems like win all the way around - the user sees more interesting ads, the CTR is up for Google and the publisher, and the advertiser gets more targeted clicks.
Other than the somewhat spooky nature of seeing personally targeted ads
Are you referring to the new ads Amazon comes up with? The ones which greet you by your first name on non-Amazon sites?
Regardless of the topic of the site you're visiting, Google displays ads about your thoughts.
to put an end to those scalpin sites , keyword optimisation n stuff
If a user visits a travel site, he'll see travel-related ads. But, if Google knew that the user also visited a lot of golf web sites, it would be appropriate to throw in some "golf vacation" ads. If the visitor is checking Phoenix hotels, displaying hotel ads with golf packages would be ideal.
On the surface, this sounds almost like an ideal situation in some ways. But I'm sure there could be problems as well.
I wonder if the reader would even be aware of the tracking needed to do this though. And if so, would they understand that the tracking was being done by Google, and not by the site they were visiting.
I am in India, and I visit a lot of high quality US and international websites everyday. I see a lot of India-specific ads, sometimes with no relevance to the page, sometimes with a passing relevance.
Like say, I am visiting your 3D modelling site, and I see an ad for personal loans by a bank in India. Happens a lot. I don't even bother anymore with them. But usually, in a 4-5 ad unit, there is a max 2 of them that I've seen - the rest are relevant to the page. Haven't come across a leaderboard or skyscraper or rectangle with ALL India-related ads on a foreign website yet. But with 2? Yes, very often.
Sure they have their reasons for doing it. I, however, am much more likely to click an ad if its related to the page, and not to me or where I am coming from.
But then I may not convert though I may click.
Hmm...
