Forum Moderators: martinibuster
Here's my worry for interest-based advertising (if that's what is causing the ad to follow me around), I have no intention of clicking on the ad again. This means the publisher is losing a possible click. If this happens on a grand scale shouldn't users be clicking less and publishers ending up with less money?
Since April 8th my eCPM has taken a tumble. I know that Google are just phasing in interest-based advertising slowly but I have a sinking feeling it's related.
but I have a sinking feeling it's related.
Funny you should write that since I had a similar experience yesterday.
I was on one of my sites and noticed a very nice 728 x 90 leaderboard banner ad, a few minures later I visited a completely different type of widget site and low and behold:
The same 1 x banner ad for my widgets
Plus the same company with a 160 x 600 skyscraper banner
PLUS
The same company again with a 300 x 250 medium rectangle.
Three ads all from the same company all on the same page for a site that had nothing to do with the advertised widgets.
Now don't try and convince me something's not quite right!
They put a tracking pixel on your site and if a visitor leaves without buying something, they claim to show your ads to that person on other sites they visit. According to the rep, they have hundreds of thousands of partner sites (some top-tier) that will show these ads. So yes, ads will start following you around the internet and there is nothing you can do about it!
I requested more information, just to get the skinny, but this seems to smell of borderline malware...even if they're only using a cookie.
Cheers,
As a site owner we can opt out of showing the behavior based ads,
But the AdSense Help [google.com] page says:
You can opt out of showing ads that are based on user interest categories (e.g. 'sports enthusiasts'). In turn, Google will not use visitation information from your sites to help create interest categories. However,you cannot opt out
of showing ads to users based on their previous interactions with the advertiser, such as visits to an advertiser's website.
It's just marketing spin to say "previous interactions" isn't the same as "interest based" in this case.
[edited by: bakedjake at 9:19 pm (utc) on April 28, 2009]
[edit reason] formatting [/edit]
It's just marketing spin to say "previous interactions" isn't the same as "interest based" in this case.
Not if they're talking about two different methods or processes.
You may have your own broad definition of "interest-based ads," but Google uses the term to mean a specific type of advertising.
I remember clicking on a Google ad (not on my site!) .... After visiting the site through the ad ... I have seen that same ad follow me all around the Web i.e. on sites with Adsense.bolding added
The page I quoted says....
you cannot opt outof showing ads to users based on their previous interactions with the advertiser, such as visits to an advertiser's website.
Seems pretty clear to me.
You can opt out of showing ads that are based on user interest categories (e.g. 'sports enthusiasts')
you cannot opt out of showing ads to users based on their previous interactions with the advertiser
Clarity in these behavioral targeting mechanisms (apparently there's more than just one ?) really would be useful. ASA: let's start by defining it all a lot more clear. There are implications to what is legal to do around the world, being unclear about it means the legality of using adsense is clear as mud.
ASA: let's start by defining it all a lot more clear
