how-to block ads
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| There's no such thing as a free lunch As an online marketer, I'd like to pose the question of how users expect to get free online content from portals such as MSN.com, Yahoo!, and AOL. These companies pay for the content that is provided to users (free of charge) through ad revenue. Much in the same way that network TV does. Without these ad dollars, you would not be able to read the news on your favorite site or watch your favorite network TV show for free. The only cost to you is that you view the ads that are served up, or not.
Much in the same way networks cannot force users to watch the commercials they broadcast (thanks to TiVo and DVRs), online advertisers do not expect that users will click on the ads they serve. Granted, its wonderful when they do, but its not a forced behavior. Users can choose to click or not.
The practice of behavioral targeting is a method that serves relevant ads or content to users based on their previous online behavior. I think much of the misconception here is that this practice violates privacy policies. The actions tracked are anonymous, based on cookies not individual users. Marketers do not know that Cookie123 is Susie Johnson in Seattle, WA or her three kids who use her computer. They only know that Cookie123 has visited page XYZ.
From that information they make assumptions as to what Cookie123 would like to see. So rather than seeing a "Lower my bills" ad for the millionth time, an advertiser might serve Cookie123 an ad for a vacation because that cookie previously visited the travel page on their site. Statistically speaking, since Cookie123 "showed interest" in vacations, the likelihood for that cookie to click on the vacation ad is higher because it was relevant to the previous behavior of that cookie.
Of course you can argue that your behavior on the net should be private. If that is how you feel, then cookie deletion/disabling is your solution. Currently advertisers are reliant on cookie technology to do any of this content targeting. I'd like to point out however, that without cookies, you will always have to sign into your favorite sites and you will always have to enter in search information to sites like Expedia or Amazon, etc. For some its an issue of privacy, for others its a matter of convenience.
I just wouldn't be surprised if down the road your favorite website requires that users enable cookies or will not allow users to view their free content unless ad blockers are disabled. Its like the title of my post, "There's no such thing as a free lunch." | |
 braynesPremium
join:2005-03-14
Waterville, ME
 ·Great Works Inte..
| "I just wouldn't be surprised if down the road your favorite website requires that users enable cookies or will not allow users to view their free content unless ad blockers are disabled. Its like the title of my post, "There's no such thing as a free lunch."
I think you and the nut who demands you read his adds went to the same school and both feel entitled to get something from anyone who visited your site. This is greed, yes greed I agree webmasters need to pay the freight, but to use ad-sens as your main source of revenue, and depend on getting every last cent every way you can from People who might have stumbled on your site by a search did not intend to get followed around by your cookie.
Bruce | |
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