In 2002 we marketers cried of emotion watching Minority Report. When John Anderton (portrayed by Tom Cruise) walks in a commercial center, lasers scan his retina and display multimedia advertising custom made to his needs/behavior. We all loved the scene.
Targeted advertising has been the most sought after form of advertising since the early beginnings of Direct Marketing during the II World War. It’s a win-win situation: advertisers deliver the right message at the right time having better return and the target perceive more value out of the action, cutting through the noise and attracting his/her attention, thus generating action.
On the Internet that was the mantra since day zero. We all believed that by some time near now, we’d be surfing the web seeing ads that were “just perfect for me”. I’ve been a preacher of this Nirvana for quite some time, working at portals, search engines and social networks.
But why haven’t we reached yet this perfect scenario of targeted advertising? I believe in three deterrents for fulfilling this dream:
1) THE GROWING CONCERNS ABOUT PRIVACY
Regular folks are bombarded every day with menacing news that “someone is messing with your privacy, watch out! It’s the terror, it’s the terror!” It’s easy to simplify things, create some catchy news headlines in order to generate audience and mislead people.
There are many ways to control your privacy on the Internet, the most basic one is that watch what you post, upload, write, tweet, share, etc. We’re living in an age where everybody over share small stuff, the “Age of TMI”. In that scenario folks tend to share things without thinking twice. Then a little “embarrassing thing” slips here and there and bazinga: the Internet is evil! People produce this kind of content, not robots, so why blame the web? It’s easier and simple.
What we need to do is to create an environment where people understand that they’re the ultimate guardians of their privacy. Just like in the “real world”, if you want to keep a secret, just keep your mouth shut.
Moreover there’s a great exchange going on when you give away some of your privacy for better services such as smarter advertising and content tailored to your needs. Don’t fear touching these waters, the benefits are greater than the risks.
2) IT GENERATES A LOT OF WORK FOR ADVERTISERS
Every April 18th I keep checking my email and replying to friends wishing me a happy b-day. The funny fact is that I never get ONE SIMPLE message from an advertiser, even filling out thousands of registration forms where it’s mandatory to inform my birth date.
So, if advertisers can’t take care of a simple task such as congratulating me on my birthday, what do we expect when they have better targeting capabilities?
Every agency I’ve spoke in the last few years always mention that search and social media marketing is a pain in the back because it involves a lot of number crunching, deep analytics and actions for micro audiences. Easy were the days when you just showed a 30” spot on national broadcast and gone home to celebrate another victory.
But things have changed since the “Mad Men” days. As consumers we’re expecting more and more from our beloved brands, from advertising to consumption ending in post-sales relationships. We value our money, we have easy access to information and consumer reports, we trust our friends more and more when it comes to product/services recommendations, in summary: we take informed decisions. This is bad for the old mantra that “build and it’ll sell” from Henry Ford’s times.
Things will change only when brands view and follow us as individuals or segments that share tastes, likes and dislikes, providing a full-circle support to attract, transact and keep doing business with us.
But again, it takes a lot of work, brains and will to get there.
3) WE BECAME BORED WITH ADVERTISING IN GENERAL
That’s a fact. My 18-month baby boy already gets bored with Discovery Kids when there’s a break during his beloved LazyTown. And let me tell you that the breaks are short and fun, way better than other TV stations.
But the fact is that during so many decades we’ve been pushed right and left by advertising that interrupts our entertainment, pollutes our cities, annoy our dinners with phone calls, etc. So it’s easy to look into advertising with a negative feeling.
That’s why when targeted advertising comes along folks see it with a grain of salt. We’ve tried several experiments over the years and the initial response is of disdain or disbelief. But when consumers learn that the message was BUILT FOR THEM and that there’s something unique waiting at the end of the rainbow, they get excited as never before.
So, until advertising in general continues generating this feeling, the doors for targeted advertising will be closed for consumers.
But there are 2 caveats I want to make:
1) There’s no business generation without advertising
2) Smart marketers are moving more and more towards targeted advertising because they can have better ROI and smart consumers are taking note. Never before we seen search and social platforms growing so fast like these days.
Watch out. The waves are breaking.
