A new kind of target marketing...

My girlfriend and I broke up earlier this year, and though it may have been a difficult crossroads in my little college life, I was cheered on by none other than the advertisements of Facebook.

Almost every time I’ve logged in, after changing my relationship status from taken to single, a new pair of “Singles” ads pop up to greet me with some pretty girl and a hyperlink.

While I don’t take them up on the offer, I do take note of how targeted advertising has become. The “demographic” is no longer a trait or two you might possess. It’s you, down to the last detail they can squeeze out of you.

Facebook and other social networking sites are well primed and well aware of this kind of marketing, and the door is open. I’m a straight, single, 21-year-old college male, with a full list of my studies, my interests, and what I like to do with my spare time.

The Pros and Cons of Showing Your Cards…

On the one hand, I can’t complain. Deleting my account is a matter of a few mouse-clicks, and I volunteer all of the information that I put up.

But on the other hand, it’s just kind of creepy. If nothing else, it’s a wake-up call to the consequences of displaying your personal information online. The Internet has taken the blindfold off advertisers, shooting darts at the prospective public.

According to Facebook:

The core of the Facebook brand is our user experience, and this experience is continually reinforced by our product’s distinct look & feel, functionality, personality, and utility.

This also pressures the products of advertising to become more and more specific and compelling, which may serve the consumer with better options that better provide exactly what they’re looking for.

In conclusion…

While the benefits of highly targeted online ads may be a benefit to consumers and advertisers alike, our priority for privacy should come before that of shopping opportunities.