Two Things Creep Me Out: Spiders & Super-Targeted Social Media Ads
ByI am always a little creeped out by how targeted marketing and advertising can be. Around Christmastime I was shopping for a dried Forsythia wreath – to this day I still see remarketed ads informing me that the Forsythia wreaths I had been looking are…still the same price.
Or how when I updated my Facebook status with a picture of a Snow Owl that I had come across in passing, my sidebar filled up with ads about Snow Owls. Snow Owl necklaces. Snow Own earrings. Snow Owl rings.
And not one real, live Snow Owl for sale gosh darn-it.
The point – or, rather, the question – is how personal is too personal? At what point does a so-strategic-it’s-almost-evil ad cross the line and become downright creepy?
This Neuromarketing article by Roger Dooley, ‘Forget Evil, Don’t Be Creepy!’ sheds some light on the matter.
First, Dooley50 percent of social media users don’t like having ads targeted to them based on information in their social media profiles.
That, of course, means that 50% of people DO like these uber-targeted ads.
But, unfortunately, companies need to not creep out ALL of the masses. Not just 50% of the masses.
To reduce your chances of being creepy, Dooley recommends:
- Don’t overpersonalize: Read his article – you’ll be blown away by how something VERY creepy can become something not-so-creepy-at-all…)
- Ask for Permission to Personalize: It’s not creepy if your consumer volunteers for it
- Stay Positive: Don’t associate your consumer with anything negative. For example, ‘Need a Job’ ads intrinsically make sense…but they can also work to make your consumer feel subconsciously inadequate.
So, now that your company knows how to avoid creepiness in marketing and advertising…let’s sit back and watch other companies come under public fire for their creepy advertising fails!
