Ad Retargeting
How do you feel about companies tracking your online behavior to target ads?
Surprisingly, nearly 1 in 11 people like ad retargeting. However, over 3 in 5 people dislike it.
| response | All (1250) |
|---|---|
| I dislike it because it feels creepy | 62.3% (+3.1 / -3.3) |
| I don't care either way | 29.3% (+3.1 / -2.9) |
| I like more relevant ads | 8.3% (+2.3 / -1.9) |
Women tend to think being stalked by ads is creepier than men do.
| vote | Men (822) | Women (428) |
|---|---|---|
| I dislike it because it feels creepy | 60.6% (+3.7 / -3.8) | 64.1% (+5.0 / -5.3) |
| I don't care either way | 30.0% (+3.6 / -3.4) | 28.7% (+5.1 / -4.6) |
| I like more relevant ads | 9.5% (+2.6 / -2.1) | 7.2% (+4.2 / -2.7) |
Younger people who are old enough to be starting families tend to be more financially stressed than most other age groups, so they are likely more appreciative of relevant ads tied to discounts & such. Younger people have also used the web for so much of their lives that they are not as creeped out by tracking & privacy issues as older people are. People in retirement also like relevant ads, perhaps in part because they are feeling the Ben "printing press gone wild but no inflation" Bernake pinch & see their fixed income retirements collapse under artificially low interest rates tied to money printing game.
| age | 18-24 year-olds (372) | 25-34 year-olds (270) | 35-44 year-olds (150) | 45-54 year-olds (217) | 55-64 year-olds (164) | 65+ year-olds (77) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| I dislike it because it feels creepy | 60.2% (+4.8 / -5.0) | 52.3% (+6.3 / -6.4) | 65.1% (+7.2 / -8.0) | 66.0% (+6.1 / -6.6) | 66.6% (+6.9 / -7.7) | 55.7% (+11.2 / -11.8) |
| I don't care either way | 33.6% (+4.9 / -4.6) | 35.0% (+6.4 / -5.9) | 25.5% (+7.6 / -6.3) | 27.9% (+6.4 / -5.6) | 26.9% (+7.5 / -6.3) | 33.5% (+11.9 / -10.1) |
| I like more relevant ads | 6.2% (+2.9 / -2.0) | 12.7% (+5.1 / -3.8) | 9.5% (+5.9 / -3.8) | 6.1% (+3.9 / -2.5) | 6.4% (+5.2 / -2.9) | 10.7% (+9.1 / -5.2) |
People from the west coast are perhaps slightly more aware of the risks of online tracking. People from the south couldn't care either way. In the midwest the stereotype of the mom who clips coupons is shown in the data (though the sample size is small).
| vote | The US Midwest (259) | The US Northeast (340) | The US South (404) | The US West (247) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| I dislike it because it feels creepy | 58.5% (+6.5 / -6.9) | 61.8% (+5.9 / -6.3) | 61.6% (+5.7 / -6.0) | 67.2% (+6.2 / -6.8) |
| I don't care either way | 29.9% (+6.6 / -5.9) | 29.1% (+5.8 / -5.2) | 32.4% (+5.9 / -5.4) | 24.6% (+6.7 / -5.6) |
| I like more relevant ads | 11.6% (+5.6 / -4.0) | 9.1% (+5.0 / -3.3) | 6.0% (+4.6 / -2.7) | 8.2% (+5.7 / -3.5) |
On everything outside of disliking online tracking the margin of error is wide enough that it is somewhat hard to notice any strong patterns based on population data.
| vote | Urban areas (636) | Rural areas (108) | Suburban areas (480) |
|---|---|---|---|
| I dislike it because it feels creepy | 58.9% (+5.0 / -5.1) | 61.1% (+9.0 / -9.8) | 62.6% (+4.5 / -4.7) |
| I don't care either way | 32.3% (+5.1 / -4.7) | 33.9% (+9.9 / -8.6) | 27.6% (+4.5 / -4.1) |
| I like more relevant ads | 8.8% (+4.4 / -3.0) | 5.0% (+8.7 / -3.3) | 9.8% (+3.6 / -2.7) |
It is also hard to see much of a broad pattern based on income levels.
| vote | People earning $0-24K (150) | People earning $25-49K (691) | People earning $50-74K (304) | People earning $75-99K (88) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| I dislike it because it feels creepy | 62.2% (+8.4 / -9.1) | 60.2% (+4.2 / -4.4) | 66.5% (+5.8 / -6.4) | 55.1% (+10.2 / -10.6) |
| I don't care either way | 30.0% (+9.2 / -7.8) | 30.8% (+4.3 / -4.0) | 25.9% (+6.1 / -5.3) | 35.8% (+10.4 / -9.2) |
| I like more relevant ads | 7.9% (+8.6 / -4.3) | 9.0% (+3.7 / -2.7) | 7.5% (+5.5 / -3.3) | 9.2% (+9.0 / -4.8) |
Comments
I don't object to retargeting, in theory, but Google's implementation needs a lot of work.
I am _constantly_ seeing the same ad for the same low-quality company. I don't click the ad. I will never click the ad. After tens of thousands of impressions, Google should bloody well realize that and stop showing me the same boorish ad.
On some ads they have a little "X" on them so that you can vote against them following you around.
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