Polina Buchan

Here’s a question for you. Do you find hyper-targeted marketing helpful or just plain creepy?

Me and my partner have both been inundated with ads for various diagnostic services for a specific health condition. As a marketer, I certainly understand how this happened. I searched for this information. The “algorithm” connected my partner to this data as well, likely through our shared Wi-Fi or past purchases, and decided we both needed to be reminded… multiple times a day. 🙄

Instead of feeling helpful, this feels invasive, like the search engine overstepped into my personal life by sharing this data with advertisers, and then the brands that chose to use that data to re-target me overstepped once more. Shouldn’t there be some tact in advertising on sensitive topics? Just because you can do it, doesn’t mean you should.

If I search for a travel destination, yes, please alert me when that flight itinerary’s price goes down or those travel dates are about to sell out. If I’ve been eyeing an electronics purchase for weeks, yes, show me a limited-time offer on it. But stay out of touchy personal subjects.

If brands want to build trust with consumers, they need to show some discretion. Just for a minute, at least *pretend* that you’re not *always* listening… 🙄

For example, instead of personalization, why not try the old-school but still effective contextual targeting? Offer your services to me in paid search ads on that topic and on sites where the topic is discussed. This classic approach will likely become mainstream again if Google succeeds in their mission to block cookie-based tracking.

I think that personalization in marketing is overrated. Brands are obsessed with hyper-targeting, trying to make every message feel custom-made for the individual. But here’s the reality: most customers don’t actually want brands to “know” them that well. 🤷🏻‍♀️ Sometimes, broad messaging or contextual targeting work better.