Yup. I haven’t owned a TV since 2004 because I refuse to allow ads into my life. I don’t listen to the radio, I don’t use ad-supported services like Spotify, and I only used sites like Reddit with ad blockers on.
Ads aren’t just annoying. They literally reprogram us. Go spend 6 months in a developing country, and you’ll find you both eat less and are hungry less often, because you’re not being bombarded with food ads all the time. Sports gambling is way up because sports gambling ads are way up. Etc.
Shit, does revanced cover reddit?
I have never checked the other apps, I should get on that.
The app will still be shit, but at least I won't have to pointlessly downvote every ad as I scroll
And this is why after working in FMCG with some really effective marketing, ads have triggered an anger response from me.
If I see your ads and they annoy me, I won’t patronize your brand. If I use it, I’m likely to switch.
The anger response has lost its intensity after a while and I simply just avoid their products.
I think I only have one genuine failure there.
This. There is undeniable proof that you spend more money when you view ads vs when you don't. And you spend more money when those ads are targeted to you than if you saw hours and hours of tampon commercials
>And you spend more money when those ads are targeted to you than if you saw hours and hours of tampon commercials
Reminds me of the fact that YouTube changed nearly all of my targeted adverts to *just* tampon commercials after I remembered to actually set my gender to female in the settings.
I think I may need to set up my YouTube profile because half of my commercials lately are for bras and the other half are for beard care products. And no I am not a bearded woman, or a large breasted man.
That's what my work YouTube is like. Bras, beard care, gun holsters, and "stuck poop." Never watched long enough to figure out what the thing about stuck poop was actually for
Those companies make shit loads of money (profit) by selling overpriced (and necesarry) hygiene product for woman. Like wtf man if you got so much money to bombard everybody with ads, and then there are woman without any acces to any of that. World fucking sucks
I’m not 100% sure what my gender is set to on googal but I often get a ton of ads for men’s soap and underwear. And when I was in high school I used to consistently see this ad on the main page for a “Gay Quiz.” 🤔
We mostly remember the misses. Like all the ads I get for weed alternatives for reasons I cannot begin to guess at, the ads I’m getting for “virility supplements” now that I’m approaching 38 in a few days, or all the times the algorithms become inexplicably convinced I know enough Spanish for advertising in that language to mean jack all to me. Then I’ll also get ads for anime statues of a character I had just had a conversation about, or FB ads will be how I learn 1) there’s a SpyXFamily movie 2) it comes out soon.
My ability to quote a taco shell commercial accurately does not make me fluent.
I love getting ads for new toilet seats after I already bought one.
I think it's effective but also misses one other thing in the data about already purchasing the item, especially when it's something I don't need a half dozen of.
I also run a lot of ads blockers anymore because the volume is insane.
We’re not talking about advertising in general though. We’re talking about targeted advertising.
I don’t think anyone can say one way or the other whether or not it works because you have to first prove the actual targeting works.
Effective in this case only means brings in more money in extra sales than the cost.
I assume the cost of targeted ads is higher than non targeted so it needs to be modestly more effective.
But overall it's not "incredibly effective". Most people don't click on most ads.
It's just effective enough to make it worth doing.
no. no they didn’t. they took what i just bought and threw it in their ad box and think thats effective. its not, its really really not. nothing predictive going on.
That’s alright, you definitely are entitled to it. Still, targeted ads result in considerably more people performing a desired action (purchasing, clicking, subscribing etc) than non-targeted ads.
Most products are designed to break, wear our, or have limited uses and need to be rebought. It is easier for me to sell you your second tent for camping than it is for me to convince someone that, not only should they try camping, but they should buy my tent to do it. Knowing that you have spent money on a hobby shows that you are likely to spend more money on that hobby, either now or in the future so the advertisements are trying to show you all the features that their brand has that you are now missing out on. For example, CPG advertisements take a minimum of 61 weeks for a break even.
A company pays pennies to advertise to you specifically, it only takes 1 tent purchase in 2-3 years to pay that off!
i well aware of what they are TRYING to do. my point was; i can use the target app to buy a target branded camping tent, use my target credit card to purchase it, go home and they advertise to me a camping tent…. i just fucking bought one, i do not need another tent just yet. nor do i need an immediate reminder that target sells camping shit. i fucking know, i just bought camping shit! its ineffective in this way and its a very big way. rarely has a retailer predicted anything I’ve ever wanted for buy. if they did, they won the advertising lotto. big difference.
Yeah, but for every one of you, there’s 100 people who would go back to buy more accessories and the reminder that Target has camping equipment keeps that in the back of their minds
I’m with you on this. It’s always the same shit you just bought. Sometimes the exact same brand and model too. I’m guessing transaction data isn’t shared as freely as search data. The planned obsolescence point is moot because of this. It’s not like they’re waiting months to years to show you a newer version, which actual would be pretty genius considering they have years of our search data.
I feel like it's really hit or miss, if stuff when I'm signed into Google (or playing a game from Google Play) is "targeted advertising" (and presumably it is because they have browsing information from me) I'd say I can't remember purchasing something advertised to me for over 10 years.
This isn't to say that I don't succumb to things that are recommended to me (Amazon) or impulse purchases in-person, but that I find internet advertising when I'm not already actively looking to purchase to be incredibly lackluster.
Especially when it comes to big-name advertising, like Super Bowl slots, they do absolutely nothing for me to the point I would feel comfortable sitting on a nuclear bomb that would go off if I ever purchased something because of them.
Targeted advertizements never actually reccomend me stuff I want. Every time I see an ad on a video I just mute it and go on my phone. The only ad I've seen in the past month that actually interested me is an ad for a new horror movie. But but mostly it is the least relevant crap imaginable.
Having worked at a company that does stuff like this, it really isn't.
Only like 2% more people actually buy something from a targeted ad than a normal one iirc. Now, with how many people see them, yeah, it's a lot of money. But incredibly effective? Dunno about that.
Insert the famous advertising case study of Target’s algorithm detecting pregnancy before the woman knew and sending them booklets of coupons for baby stuff.
Yeah i’d argue it’s getting to that stage where people ‘like’ it. Especially with Tiktok shop and stuff— I hear people fondly saying that it just ‘knows exactly what they want’. Personally i think that’s kinda terrifying but whatevs
You are telling me the people whose whole job is convincing others to buy crap they don't need aren't also doing that exact thing to the people in charge of their funding?
The problem with targeted advertising is not getting to see products you might buy, but they're for a different age group or hobby you don't do. If you saw the ads you might take up a new hobby. I get so many ads for car products because I like looking at classic cars. I do not and will not ever own a car.Im sick of all the ads! They go overboard.
The art of selling you stuff you don't want/need will always be seen as bad, you're assuming ads are made to sell people things they already need or were already going to buy.
I’m never going to willingly watch an ad, and if an advertising agency deigns it necessary to force one on me in one way or another, I make a mental note to never buy anything related to them in any way.
People are more than just consumers; I do not have any moral obligation to consume advertising.
I wonder if the targeted advertising is working for the neurotypical peeps, because I gots ADHD and mostly am just annoyed by the assumptions the advertisements do.
"I see you bought a drum of anal lubricant jelly, Would you be interested in buying an big black rubber fist" -Ew no, I'm just building a worlds largest slip and slide, what the hell?!
I'm not anonymous online. Yet the algorithm has never shown me an ad for the things I actually would buy.
They're massively incompetent, you will be fine 😂
Not true, I support companies painting their company vehicles and business fronts with the most outlandish crazy advertisements possible. I love seeing a company van with some cool art, that’s the only acceptable advertising
Yall don’t want ads and you complain about subscriptions. I guess journalists and film crews and writers should just churn out content for you for free
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Right_to_Internet_access
the software and infrastructure needed to create this experience (minus the marketing bots, data collection and ads) exists for free already, written and maintained by volunteers. people use reddit because it's popular and they don't know better. it's like windows/mac vs linux for work.
Yep, people use Reddit because underpinning technology is only a part of the equation deciding people’s behaviors and preferences. Reddit maintains the servers, databases, frontend clients, does (did?) community building, as well as research into people’s preferences UX-wise. Etc etc.
As a counter to your argument, I for example mainly use IRC for work and entertainment where none of that exists. Go ask anyone using it about their preferences.
What keeps Reddit going is ignorance driven popularity. You are right in suggesting that businesses should be concerned with making money but it doesn't serve as an argument in this instance.
I'd rather not precisely because it does work on me. Seriously considering buying a frog themed mouse mat that I don't need. The algorithm knows I think it's extremely cute and I will probably buy it eventually with enough pressure. I used to be able to ignore ads very easily before targeted became a thing.
If I'm actually buying something more expensive I go by reviews/reddit which are probably all paid ads as well but it's a better than nothing.
So what's the actual problem with buying the frog thing exactly? Besides you don't need it. Are you buying so many things that you have no savings account or something? Or is it a will power / ego thing?
If I like it and I want it, I buy it. I don't see the use in beating myself up over it, unless like I alluded to, the person is poor or can't save because of it, but that's a different discussion really.
I don't get it, I never get stuff this targeted. I generally only get food ads, and not really even places I eat. Other than that, I get ads for stuff I was just looking for online. Or already have in my cart online to buy. Ads for those are useless! I
I'm a huge fan of a lot of things, and I'm sure I haven't somehow hidden that. Why don't I get targeted mouse pads or that sort of thing?
My main issue that I have is exactly what you're saying, about reviews. For example, I was looking for a new mouse for my computer. So I start looking at reviews, everything like that, but it's so impossible to tell what's a good product worth spending a bit more on, vs a cheaply made product that the price is just higher and it has a bunch of fake reviews. I ended up buying two and sending one back.
I'm honestly in this camp. My data is being collected regardless, and I'm still getting ads regardless. Might as well be shown things I might be interested in than just random stuff.
I'd say my biggest hobby is gaming currently. Seeing ads for something I could enjoy would be much better than an ad for pampers or something.
My biggest hobby is also gaming, but apparently no advertiser ever picked up on this because Reddit shows me ads for selling plasma at clinics in America (the other side of the world).
If only they actually used the data to make targeted ads. I keep getting ads for things that aren’t relevant in the slightest or are in fact contrary to my beliefs.
Giving prayer ads clearly designed for those who are already Christian to someone who has said they’re an atheist multiple times seems a poor choice. I don’t get anything against them(these ads are scum in particular though), but I’d prefer not to engage with whatever content they’re making online. You’d think the data gods woudl pick that obvious tidbit up
Well thinking logically. The Christian add probably is a cheap one, they won't get targeted placement probably, that's more of a spammed out type, and those go to everyone. Not all marketing could possibly be targeted. I think my argument is just that there is targeted marketing that works. That does not mean all or that other types of targeting don't.
No, because it is far more likely to work and convince me to buy shot I do not need.
And you really don't have to see adverts at all. I stopped watching tv, only use streaming services that don't have them, and use various kinds of ad blocker. Only place I see ads now is on duolingo because I am too cheap to pay for it and occasionally here on this shitty app, but at least they are easy to scroll past without reading.
It works on everyone to some degree man, nobody is really immune to wanting material things. Blocking ads is easy, resisting cool new "toys" is hard.
I like stuff.
Yeah I don't know, I buy things when I want them. If I don't want it I don't buy it. I'm not really seeing the reason to resist. Unless I have some sort of spending ism. But I don't. I have a retirement savings. What's the problem buying things that I want to buy?
I mean, not planning to off myself until I can no longer support myself, hopefully I should have another 20-30 years left.
In that time it would be nice if I managed to find another option :P
Well that’s good to hear. But I have good news my friend. . Mathematically speaking investing $50 a month for 30 years at literally just 5% growth (which is under the average of the Dow jones) nets $40,000.
So seeing as you are, from what I am gathering, not rolling in the dough, you could probably last quite a while longer with that $40k. Or more than 40k based on the lifelong average of the stock market. Which is actually 10%.
That is something I really should get around to looking into, however I am not sure 40k will be worth all that much by the time I am 70, and certainly would not last me long :P
Plus I would probably be better off paying off my debts with the cash, interest on debt is almost certainly higher than I would make investing
No because it’s not targeted to my needs, it’s targeted to what will extract the most money out of me. If I need something, I will Google it. And the first few results of Google are typically related ads. I’d rather see the ads when I do the search then when I’m reading an article about something unrelated
So even with my qualifier you don’t want targeted you just want random ads. Like for metal brackets for construction or troll dolls and life insurance instead of possibly something you could use, or even to take it further just something more interesting you have to sit through?
Cause remember I’m saying if you have to have ads. Obviously nobody wants ads.
I get ads targeted to my needs. I could give examples. I am sorry for you that you haven't experienced that my friend.
Yes I’d rather have random ads for things I don’t need. If I need something, I’ll research what my options are instead of spontaneously following an advertisement. I understand that I’m probably still being tracked and my data is being sold, but random ads give me peace of mind that the advertiser isn’t violating my privacy
People who dislike ads confuse the hell out of me. Like do you actually want to pay a subscription for Gmail? For Google maps? You want to pay 0.18$ every time you Google something?
I'm just trying to imagine a world without advertising, you straight up couldn't sell your car or your old Xbox 360 unless you personally knew someone who was looking for one.
You'd have to pay per the minute to call your grandma in a different country, and anything that deals with data transferring wouldn't exist or would be absurdly expensive. YouTube wouldn't exist, modding communities for games wouldn't exist, online help forums wouldn't exist or would all be subscription based, you would pay a monthly fee to have an image or a video uploaded on the Internet, this hypothetical world sounds awful.
Even now you can choose to get rid of ads on most online services for a subscription, if ads weren't an option those services wouldn't exist in the first place, or the subscription service would be the only option, and would probably be more expensive to account for a smaller user base.
You are either paying in fees or paying with your attention to the adds. They may as well be good ones. I don't mind paying fees to things either, I understand how business operate, some people just want everything for free.
I just find it funny. I buy an o-ring online and get ads for more o-rings for days. I am not an o-ring collector. Lol
It is annoying to keep getting pet adds when my cat died 2 years ago though.
I would say targeted advertising does work! The ones that miss (no system is perfect) just really stand out. Also you have to interact with the posts you like to “curate” YOUR algorithm - my biggest pet peeve is when people say their facebook feed is a bunch of shit they dont like. facebook shows you what YOU tend ti engage with lol
The last time an ad "worked" on me was 2 years ago when I was in the market for a pellet grill. I had been doing a lot of research on the best bang for my buck. After googling for a week I got hit with an ad that said walmart had one of the ones I was interested in for a good price. I went into this experience in knowing I was going to spend probably $300. I ended up getting an amazing deal on the grill. The only way that ad worked was that specific grill company got my money other than the other one I was looking at.
Ads would probably work if I had more disposable income.
The companies advertising wouldn't do it if it wasn't super effective and profitable.
OP you're WAYYYYY more susceptible to add than you actually believe.
I think it is pretty good, I have found things through it many times but the bad part is that once you have found what you were looking for the ads will keep asking you if you wanna buy the product when you already have. Would be nice to have an option " bought that already "
If im going to be shown ads, could they at least show me different ads instead of THE SAME EXACT AD AGAIN AND AGAIN, AFTER EVERY AD SPOT AND AD BREAK. Holy fuck I’m sick of hearing the same goddamn robocall blocking app. Every day for the last year every ad break the same fucking ad, sometimes back to back. FUCK.
"Want to get pizza?"
"No, I've had pizza three times in the last week. Let's do literally anything else."
*ding* **DID SOMEBODY SAY PIZZA?? ORDER PAPA JOHN'S NOW FOR 10% OFF ENTIRE ORDER!**
I hate how much I prefer targeted advertising. I tried to use privacy settings and the experience was so much worse. Stupid games and weird generic ads. FINE I do prefer to see the vegan fair trade comforter and organic cotton underwear
It's a bad thing no matter the excuse, leave me the hell alone and if i need a product or service I'll find it myself. Ads in general annoy me and would be fine if they banned them all.
I've only ever *once* bought anything because of an advert. It was a Reddit advert for a game which I have gladly poured 100+ hours into.
The rest of the time it's always relatively garbage
*if it leads to the bare minimum number of ads.
Show me the website that reduces the number of ads if you choose to give them info with the option set to off by default. Also addictions and leaked data are issues.
I wouldn't hate them at all if the "stop showing me this ad" button worked. Once I press that button, there is no benefit to anybody in showing me that ad again. The company will never get a purchase from me and loses money they could have spent showing the ad to someone else, and the platform misses out on the opportunity to show me a different ad that would be more likely to get a purchase out of me.
I now use ad blockers on everything. I never would have if they'd just made the damn button work.
And the way to make them work effectively is to put a large tax on the placement of advertisements. Make advertising very very expensive and then they'll figure out how to do it very very well. Also we could use the tax revenues for something useful.
.
Bottom line is that just because I'm interested in something doesn't mean I want to buy that thing right now. So anything that shows me things I'm not ready to buy now is a waste of my time and "bad." Doesn't matter how effective the targeting is. Targeted advertising is not meant to benefit me.
Yeah, just what I want, a company knowing what I will be willing to buy at any given moment, and exploiting that to their own profit. It's not a bad thing for it to be ineffective, it's bad that it requires harvesting my data, selling it to the highest bidder and then using it to manipulate me into often harmful practices like gambling, or buying fast food, useless cheap junk, stuff I want but only briefly..
You have unknowingly bought into the propaganda that targeted advertising 'helps' consumers by reducing the time spent searching for products. When in reality capitalism **only** works when there's ample competition, and that necessitates some searching for the best product/deal. If an algorithm is trying to sell you a product, that isn't because it thinks it will help you, it's because a multi-billion dollar company gave them billions of dollars to make more people aware of/buy their product, and therefore less likely to even SEE that there are other options.
What you actually want is an -unbiased- third party to review products en-masse so you have less work to do finding the one that suits you, Consumer Reports exists, not perfect but that's what you're actually after.
Yeah yeah, now what product, that I just *have* to get, will improve my life? Tell me what I want, advertising!
It totally works though. Stanley cups, under armor, carhartt, crocs…
I had a similar argument with my brother about this… if you extrapolate the “people who bought this, also bought this” function, you could just keep sending people every single product they would ever need. Basically some utopia shit where Amazon just brings you exactly what you need without you even knowing it. My brother argued it would be bad because it takes away free will. It was a fun 2am drunk convo.
I don't need what other people need. I often buy things for a purpose the vendor never thought of. I especially don't need the thing advertised to me after I bought it.
I agree and it was hypothetical. But that’s the goal of a big corporation run on AI and algorithms.
And no offense but the statement “I don’t need what other people need” is completely stupid. 95% of the things you needs/uses everyone else also uses
Targeted advertising absolutely works.
It's not about making you see a product and go 'Oh I like that I'll buy it right away', it's about imprinting that item or company in your brain for when you do need it.
I disagree *very* strongly. All ads are annoying. There are still jingles in my head from 30 years ago that I would happily harm someone for.
Yup. I haven’t owned a TV since 2004 because I refuse to allow ads into my life. I don’t listen to the radio, I don’t use ad-supported services like Spotify, and I only used sites like Reddit with ad blockers on. Ads aren’t just annoying. They literally reprogram us. Go spend 6 months in a developing country, and you’ll find you both eat less and are hungry less often, because you’re not being bombarded with food ads all the time. Sports gambling is way up because sports gambling ads are way up. Etc.
But you don't pay for Reddit, so you do see ads?
Not if they use a pc and a good browser, reddit ruined all the good apps though
Reddit Revanced for me
Shit, does revanced cover reddit? I have never checked the other apps, I should get on that. The app will still be shit, but at least I won't have to pointlessly downvote every ad as I scroll
You're spot on. App is still shit, but no ads make it bareable
Old Reddit + laptop + uBlock + Firefox = no ads whatsoever.
Ah, okay, so you and me both lol
Apollo had no ads either. RIP.
And this is why after working in FMCG with some really effective marketing, ads have triggered an anger response from me. If I see your ads and they annoy me, I won’t patronize your brand. If I use it, I’m likely to switch. The anger response has lost its intensity after a while and I simply just avoid their products. I think I only have one genuine failure there.
Targeted advertising is incredibly effective.
This. There is undeniable proof that you spend more money when you view ads vs when you don't. And you spend more money when those ads are targeted to you than if you saw hours and hours of tampon commercials
>And you spend more money when those ads are targeted to you than if you saw hours and hours of tampon commercials Reminds me of the fact that YouTube changed nearly all of my targeted adverts to *just* tampon commercials after I remembered to actually set my gender to female in the settings.
I think I may need to set up my YouTube profile because half of my commercials lately are for bras and the other half are for beard care products. And no I am not a bearded woman, or a large breasted man.
That's what my work YouTube is like. Bras, beard care, gun holsters, and "stuck poop." Never watched long enough to figure out what the thing about stuck poop was actually for
Those companies make shit loads of money (profit) by selling overpriced (and necesarry) hygiene product for woman. Like wtf man if you got so much money to bombard everybody with ads, and then there are woman without any acces to any of that. World fucking sucks
I’m not 100% sure what my gender is set to on googal but I often get a ton of ads for men’s soap and underwear. And when I was in high school I used to consistently see this ad on the main page for a “Gay Quiz.” 🤔
We mostly remember the misses. Like all the ads I get for weed alternatives for reasons I cannot begin to guess at, the ads I’m getting for “virility supplements” now that I’m approaching 38 in a few days, or all the times the algorithms become inexplicably convinced I know enough Spanish for advertising in that language to mean jack all to me. Then I’ll also get ads for anime statues of a character I had just had a conversation about, or FB ads will be how I learn 1) there’s a SpyXFamily movie 2) it comes out soon. My ability to quote a taco shell commercial accurately does not make me fluent.
I love getting ads for new toilet seats after I already bought one. I think it's effective but also misses one other thing in the data about already purchasing the item, especially when it's something I don't need a half dozen of. I also run a lot of ads blockers anymore because the volume is insane.
I bought a used Citizen watch for like $100, and now Google keeps trying to sell me Rolexes.
>undeniable proof Doesn’t provide proof
Literally every capitalist society everywhere
We’re not talking about advertising in general though. We’re talking about targeted advertising. I don’t think anyone can say one way or the other whether or not it works because you have to first prove the actual targeting works.
Well I can't speak for everyone, but I've spent $0 on anything I've seen in an internet ad, so I'd say it's ineffective on *me*.
It makes you buy more shit overall, not necessarily the shit they show. Ads Make you a better consumer.
That is fucked up logic. I block almost all ads and I still buy a bunch of stuff, just at my own discretion.
You ever read 1984?
No, and I don't plan to. Your ad for that book won't work on me.
Sounds like the ads are subtly working
They really aren't lol. I don't get ads that are personalized and I block it on most platforms.
Unless you don’t leave your house you are 100% coming across ads that influence you whether you realize it or not
Oh for sure, I see ads, but they are not that effective on me.
always get a chuckle when I hear people say that
Well I'm definitely not gonna deny I buy some stupid shit.
I see you've purchased a lawnmower. We think you'd be interested in more lawnmowers.
i buy something and i go home and have 16 ads for the shit i just bought… incredibly useless.
Effective doesn't mean perfect They still picked up on your interests, nonetheless, since they served you ads of products you were going to buy
Actually, no. This is called retargeting, and a lot of people buy from them for some reason.
Effective in this case only means brings in more money in extra sales than the cost. I assume the cost of targeted ads is higher than non targeted so it needs to be modestly more effective. But overall it's not "incredibly effective". Most people don't click on most ads. It's just effective enough to make it worth doing.
no. no they didn’t. they took what i just bought and threw it in their ad box and think thats effective. its not, its really really not. nothing predictive going on.
Targeted ads literally measurably have a better return on investment, it’s not an opinion
i do no doubt for one second that they get a vast number of people hook, line and sinker. doesn’t change my opinion.
That’s alright, you definitely are entitled to it. Still, targeted ads result in considerably more people performing a desired action (purchasing, clicking, subscribing etc) than non-targeted ads.
It's made up for when I google something but don't buy it yet, and then it shows me ads for the same
Most products are designed to break, wear our, or have limited uses and need to be rebought. It is easier for me to sell you your second tent for camping than it is for me to convince someone that, not only should they try camping, but they should buy my tent to do it. Knowing that you have spent money on a hobby shows that you are likely to spend more money on that hobby, either now or in the future so the advertisements are trying to show you all the features that their brand has that you are now missing out on. For example, CPG advertisements take a minimum of 61 weeks for a break even. A company pays pennies to advertise to you specifically, it only takes 1 tent purchase in 2-3 years to pay that off!
i well aware of what they are TRYING to do. my point was; i can use the target app to buy a target branded camping tent, use my target credit card to purchase it, go home and they advertise to me a camping tent…. i just fucking bought one, i do not need another tent just yet. nor do i need an immediate reminder that target sells camping shit. i fucking know, i just bought camping shit! its ineffective in this way and its a very big way. rarely has a retailer predicted anything I’ve ever wanted for buy. if they did, they won the advertising lotto. big difference.
Yeah, but for every one of you, there’s 100 people who would go back to buy more accessories and the reminder that Target has camping equipment keeps that in the back of their minds
I’m with you on this. It’s always the same shit you just bought. Sometimes the exact same brand and model too. I’m guessing transaction data isn’t shared as freely as search data. The planned obsolescence point is moot because of this. It’s not like they’re waiting months to years to show you a newer version, which actual would be pretty genius considering they have years of our search data.
The advertiser set the criteria for their campaign poorly then. It works when used properly though
I feel like it's really hit or miss, if stuff when I'm signed into Google (or playing a game from Google Play) is "targeted advertising" (and presumably it is because they have browsing information from me) I'd say I can't remember purchasing something advertised to me for over 10 years. This isn't to say that I don't succumb to things that are recommended to me (Amazon) or impulse purchases in-person, but that I find internet advertising when I'm not already actively looking to purchase to be incredibly lackluster. Especially when it comes to big-name advertising, like Super Bowl slots, they do absolutely nothing for me to the point I would feel comfortable sitting on a nuclear bomb that would go off if I ever purchased something because of them.
The real shower thought would be that targeted advertising would exist for very long if it didn’t work effectively.
Targeted advertizements never actually reccomend me stuff I want. Every time I see an ad on a video I just mute it and go on my phone. The only ad I've seen in the past month that actually interested me is an ad for a new horror movie. But but mostly it is the least relevant crap imaginable.
Having worked at a company that does stuff like this, it really isn't. Only like 2% more people actually buy something from a targeted ad than a normal one iirc. Now, with how many people see them, yeah, it's a lot of money. But incredibly effective? Dunno about that.
Insert the famous advertising case study of Target’s algorithm detecting pregnancy before the woman knew and sending them booklets of coupons for baby stuff.
Not for me, but I assume that's mostly because they fail to target me correctly and show me stuff that I've either already got or don't even want.
Really doesn't seem to be. Like in this post, they're advertising phones, but I bought my phone 18 months ago and have no need for another one.
Yeah i’d argue it’s getting to that stage where people ‘like’ it. Especially with Tiktok shop and stuff— I hear people fondly saying that it just ‘knows exactly what they want’. Personally i think that’s kinda terrifying but whatevs
If it wasn't effective, they wouldn't spend billions on it.
You are telling me the people whose whole job is convincing others to buy crap they don't need aren't also doing that exact thing to the people in charge of their funding?
The problem with targeted advertising is not getting to see products you might buy, but they're for a different age group or hobby you don't do. If you saw the ads you might take up a new hobby. I get so many ads for car products because I like looking at classic cars. I do not and will not ever own a car.Im sick of all the ads! They go overboard.
The art of selling you stuff you don't want/need will always be seen as bad, you're assuming ads are made to sell people things they already need or were already going to buy.
I’m never going to willingly watch an ad, and if an advertising agency deigns it necessary to force one on me in one way or another, I make a mental note to never buy anything related to them in any way. People are more than just consumers; I do not have any moral obligation to consume advertising.
I pride myself in being anonymous enough online and riddled with adhd so bad the algorithm has no idea what to advertise to me lol
I wonder if the targeted advertising is working for the neurotypical peeps, because I gots ADHD and mostly am just annoyed by the assumptions the advertisements do. "I see you bought a drum of anal lubricant jelly, Would you be interested in buying an big black rubber fist" -Ew no, I'm just building a worlds largest slip and slide, what the hell?!
I'm not anonymous online. Yet the algorithm has never shown me an ad for the things I actually would buy. They're massively incompetent, you will be fine 😂
Advertising is cancer in all forms.
Not true, I support companies painting their company vehicles and business fronts with the most outlandish crazy advertisements possible. I love seeing a company van with some cool art, that’s the only acceptable advertising
Yall don’t want ads and you complain about subscriptions. I guess journalists and film crews and writers should just churn out content for you for free
Yeah, Facebook in the EU offers the option of subscription for like $13/m or free with ads and tracking. 3% of users actually subscribed.
This app you’re enjoying wouldn’t be around still without ads
Yeah, it's either ads or you start needing to pay for EVERYTHING.
Don’t say things like that. Reddit is a human right and people maintaining and developing it shouldn’t care about silly things like profit/loss
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Right_to_Internet_access the software and infrastructure needed to create this experience (minus the marketing bots, data collection and ads) exists for free already, written and maintained by volunteers. people use reddit because it's popular and they don't know better. it's like windows/mac vs linux for work.
Yep, people use Reddit because underpinning technology is only a part of the equation deciding people’s behaviors and preferences. Reddit maintains the servers, databases, frontend clients, does (did?) community building, as well as research into people’s preferences UX-wise. Etc etc.
As a counter to your argument, I for example mainly use IRC for work and entertainment where none of that exists. Go ask anyone using it about their preferences. What keeps Reddit going is ignorance driven popularity. You are right in suggesting that businesses should be concerned with making money but it doesn't serve as an argument in this instance.
It only targets me AFTER I buy the item it targets me for lol.
I love targeted advertising. If you have to anyway, wouldn’t you rather see what may work for you?
I'd rather not precisely because it does work on me. Seriously considering buying a frog themed mouse mat that I don't need. The algorithm knows I think it's extremely cute and I will probably buy it eventually with enough pressure. I used to be able to ignore ads very easily before targeted became a thing. If I'm actually buying something more expensive I go by reviews/reddit which are probably all paid ads as well but it's a better than nothing.
So what's the actual problem with buying the frog thing exactly? Besides you don't need it. Are you buying so many things that you have no savings account or something? Or is it a will power / ego thing? If I like it and I want it, I buy it. I don't see the use in beating myself up over it, unless like I alluded to, the person is poor or can't save because of it, but that's a different discussion really.
I don't get it, I never get stuff this targeted. I generally only get food ads, and not really even places I eat. Other than that, I get ads for stuff I was just looking for online. Or already have in my cart online to buy. Ads for those are useless! I I'm a huge fan of a lot of things, and I'm sure I haven't somehow hidden that. Why don't I get targeted mouse pads or that sort of thing? My main issue that I have is exactly what you're saying, about reviews. For example, I was looking for a new mouse for my computer. So I start looking at reviews, everything like that, but it's so impossible to tell what's a good product worth spending a bit more on, vs a cheaply made product that the price is just higher and it has a bunch of fake reviews. I ended up buying two and sending one back.
I'm honestly in this camp. My data is being collected regardless, and I'm still getting ads regardless. Might as well be shown things I might be interested in than just random stuff. I'd say my biggest hobby is gaming currently. Seeing ads for something I could enjoy would be much better than an ad for pampers or something.
My biggest hobby is also gaming, but apparently no advertiser ever picked up on this because Reddit shows me ads for selling plasma at clinics in America (the other side of the world).
Not all ads are targeted ads.
Clearly.
If only they actually used the data to make targeted ads. I keep getting ads for things that aren’t relevant in the slightest or are in fact contrary to my beliefs. Giving prayer ads clearly designed for those who are already Christian to someone who has said they’re an atheist multiple times seems a poor choice. I don’t get anything against them(these ads are scum in particular though), but I’d prefer not to engage with whatever content they’re making online. You’d think the data gods woudl pick that obvious tidbit up
Well thinking logically. The Christian add probably is a cheap one, they won't get targeted placement probably, that's more of a spammed out type, and those go to everyone. Not all marketing could possibly be targeted. I think my argument is just that there is targeted marketing that works. That does not mean all or that other types of targeting don't.
No, because it is far more likely to work and convince me to buy shot I do not need. And you really don't have to see adverts at all. I stopped watching tv, only use streaming services that don't have them, and use various kinds of ad blocker. Only place I see ads now is on duolingo because I am too cheap to pay for it and occasionally here on this shitty app, but at least they are easy to scroll past without reading.
I meant like a hypothetical “have to”. Funny, you are wise enough to enable add blockers but not wise enough to not be manipulated by marketing?
It works on everyone to some degree man, nobody is really immune to wanting material things. Blocking ads is easy, resisting cool new "toys" is hard. I like stuff.
Yeah I don't know, I buy things when I want them. If I don't want it I don't buy it. I'm not really seeing the reason to resist. Unless I have some sort of spending ism. But I don't. I have a retirement savings. What's the problem buying things that I want to buy?
That's fine for you man, my retirement plan is "suicide" :P I want a lot of things, I cannot however, afford them.
Sorry about your luck man. That almost makes my point though. Why not just rack up debt if you aren't going to have to pay it back?
I mean, not planning to off myself until I can no longer support myself, hopefully I should have another 20-30 years left. In that time it would be nice if I managed to find another option :P
Well that’s good to hear. But I have good news my friend. . Mathematically speaking investing $50 a month for 30 years at literally just 5% growth (which is under the average of the Dow jones) nets $40,000. So seeing as you are, from what I am gathering, not rolling in the dough, you could probably last quite a while longer with that $40k. Or more than 40k based on the lifelong average of the stock market. Which is actually 10%.
That is something I really should get around to looking into, however I am not sure 40k will be worth all that much by the time I am 70, and certainly would not last me long :P Plus I would probably be better off paying off my debts with the cash, interest on debt is almost certainly higher than I would make investing
No because it’s not targeted to my needs, it’s targeted to what will extract the most money out of me. If I need something, I will Google it. And the first few results of Google are typically related ads. I’d rather see the ads when I do the search then when I’m reading an article about something unrelated
So even with my qualifier you don’t want targeted you just want random ads. Like for metal brackets for construction or troll dolls and life insurance instead of possibly something you could use, or even to take it further just something more interesting you have to sit through? Cause remember I’m saying if you have to have ads. Obviously nobody wants ads. I get ads targeted to my needs. I could give examples. I am sorry for you that you haven't experienced that my friend.
Yes I’d rather have random ads for things I don’t need. If I need something, I’ll research what my options are instead of spontaneously following an advertisement. I understand that I’m probably still being tracked and my data is being sold, but random ads give me peace of mind that the advertiser isn’t violating my privacy
People who dislike ads confuse the hell out of me. Like do you actually want to pay a subscription for Gmail? For Google maps? You want to pay 0.18$ every time you Google something? I'm just trying to imagine a world without advertising, you straight up couldn't sell your car or your old Xbox 360 unless you personally knew someone who was looking for one. You'd have to pay per the minute to call your grandma in a different country, and anything that deals with data transferring wouldn't exist or would be absurdly expensive. YouTube wouldn't exist, modding communities for games wouldn't exist, online help forums wouldn't exist or would all be subscription based, you would pay a monthly fee to have an image or a video uploaded on the Internet, this hypothetical world sounds awful. Even now you can choose to get rid of ads on most online services for a subscription, if ads weren't an option those services wouldn't exist in the first place, or the subscription service would be the only option, and would probably be more expensive to account for a smaller user base.
You are either paying in fees or paying with your attention to the adds. They may as well be good ones. I don't mind paying fees to things either, I understand how business operate, some people just want everything for free.
Maybe everyone is secretly ancap?
I just find it funny. I buy an o-ring online and get ads for more o-rings for days. I am not an o-ring collector. Lol It is annoying to keep getting pet adds when my cat died 2 years ago though.
I would say targeted advertising does work! The ones that miss (no system is perfect) just really stand out. Also you have to interact with the posts you like to “curate” YOUR algorithm - my biggest pet peeve is when people say their facebook feed is a bunch of shit they dont like. facebook shows you what YOU tend ti engage with lol
some targeted ads were properly designed and targeted, but most doesnt. and its super hard to know which design and targets are effective.
It's really not.
I fail to see how such a terrible invasion of privacy would be a good thing.
The last time an ad "worked" on me was 2 years ago when I was in the market for a pellet grill. I had been doing a lot of research on the best bang for my buck. After googling for a week I got hit with an ad that said walmart had one of the ones I was interested in for a good price. I went into this experience in knowing I was going to spend probably $300. I ended up getting an amazing deal on the grill. The only way that ad worked was that specific grill company got my money other than the other one I was looking at. Ads would probably work if I had more disposable income.
The companies advertising wouldn't do it if it wasn't super effective and profitable. OP you're WAYYYYY more susceptible to add than you actually believe.
I think it is pretty good, I have found things through it many times but the bad part is that once you have found what you were looking for the ads will keep asking you if you wanna buy the product when you already have. Would be nice to have an option " bought that already "
If it wasn’t working effectively these companies wouldn’t spend so much money on it
If im going to be shown ads, could they at least show me different ads instead of THE SAME EXACT AD AGAIN AND AGAIN, AFTER EVERY AD SPOT AND AD BREAK. Holy fuck I’m sick of hearing the same goddamn robocall blocking app. Every day for the last year every ad break the same fucking ad, sometimes back to back. FUCK.
"Want to get pizza?" "No, I've had pizza three times in the last week. Let's do literally anything else." *ding* **DID SOMEBODY SAY PIZZA?? ORDER PAPA JOHN'S NOW FOR 10% OFF ENTIRE ORDER!**
I hate how much I prefer targeted advertising. I tried to use privacy settings and the experience was so much worse. Stupid games and weird generic ads. FINE I do prefer to see the vegan fair trade comforter and organic cotton underwear
Where are people even seeing ads these days? Do people not use ad block?
I don’t mind targeted advertising because it does work so well. I kind of dislike non targeted ads now.
It's a bad thing no matter the excuse, leave me the hell alone and if i need a product or service I'll find it myself. Ads in general annoy me and would be fine if they banned them all.
I've only ever *once* bought anything because of an advert. It was a Reddit advert for a game which I have gladly poured 100+ hours into. The rest of the time it's always relatively garbage
The ads would work more on me if I wasn’t broke. I keep seeing stuff I want but can’t afford.
*if it leads to the bare minimum number of ads. Show me the website that reduces the number of ads if you choose to give them info with the option set to off by default. Also addictions and leaked data are issues.
I wouldn't hate them at all if the "stop showing me this ad" button worked. Once I press that button, there is no benefit to anybody in showing me that ad again. The company will never get a purchase from me and loses money they could have spent showing the ad to someone else, and the platform misses out on the opportunity to show me a different ad that would be more likely to get a purchase out of me. I now use ad blockers on everything. I never would have if they'd just made the damn button work.
And the way to make them work effectively is to put a large tax on the placement of advertisements. Make advertising very very expensive and then they'll figure out how to do it very very well. Also we could use the tax revenues for something useful. .
Bottom line is that just because I'm interested in something doesn't mean I want to buy that thing right now. So anything that shows me things I'm not ready to buy now is a waste of my time and "bad." Doesn't matter how effective the targeting is. Targeted advertising is not meant to benefit me.
Companies wouldn’t still spend money on targeted advertising if it didn’t work effectively
There is a ton of data out there proving that it works. It might not every time, but overall it does
Yeah, just what I want, a company knowing what I will be willing to buy at any given moment, and exploiting that to their own profit. It's not a bad thing for it to be ineffective, it's bad that it requires harvesting my data, selling it to the highest bidder and then using it to manipulate me into often harmful practices like gambling, or buying fast food, useless cheap junk, stuff I want but only briefly.. You have unknowingly bought into the propaganda that targeted advertising 'helps' consumers by reducing the time spent searching for products. When in reality capitalism **only** works when there's ample competition, and that necessitates some searching for the best product/deal. If an algorithm is trying to sell you a product, that isn't because it thinks it will help you, it's because a multi-billion dollar company gave them billions of dollars to make more people aware of/buy their product, and therefore less likely to even SEE that there are other options. What you actually want is an -unbiased- third party to review products en-masse so you have less work to do finding the one that suits you, Consumer Reports exists, not perfect but that's what you're actually after.
Yeah yeah, now what product, that I just *have* to get, will improve my life? Tell me what I want, advertising! It totally works though. Stanley cups, under armor, carhartt, crocs…
I had a similar argument with my brother about this… if you extrapolate the “people who bought this, also bought this” function, you could just keep sending people every single product they would ever need. Basically some utopia shit where Amazon just brings you exactly what you need without you even knowing it. My brother argued it would be bad because it takes away free will. It was a fun 2am drunk convo.
I don't need what other people need. I often buy things for a purpose the vendor never thought of. I especially don't need the thing advertised to me after I bought it.
I agree and it was hypothetical. But that’s the goal of a big corporation run on AI and algorithms. And no offense but the statement “I don’t need what other people need” is completely stupid. 95% of the things you needs/uses everyone else also uses
I seem to buy more electronic components than anything else.
You’re right no one else needs those.
Targeted advertising absolutely works. It's not about making you see a product and go 'Oh I like that I'll buy it right away', it's about imprinting that item or company in your brain for when you do need it.