The recent backlash against Facebook and the controversy around the Google trucks tapping into public wi-fi highlight the extremes corporations are going to to track our behaviour.
Why? …Personalised Advertising …But does it work? and is the gain worth the ethical soul searching that is going on at these internet giants.
I for one really don’t care for personalised advertising. I can honestly say I have never engaged in any sort of transaction from a web-side advertisement. Sure when I’m on Google search I will go onto paid advertising, but I see a difference.
When I buy something it will fall into one of the following four markets:
- What you need and you know you need – Google search
- What you don't need, but you think you do – still Google search, probably a bit of Ebay
- What you need, but you don't know you do – Where Facebook wants to be
- What you don't need, and you don't want it – Where Facebook is
No.1 & No.2 have always been around and are enhanced by technology.
No.3 & No.4 thanks to technology has become a significantly bigger market than just chewing gum near the front counter.
As a consumer I want No.3 to be a reality…but I don’t think it is.
Or at least so much of advertising falls into No.4 that I am missing when it hits No.3
There is a limit to the role of advertising. The internet is bringing demand and supply closer together.
What we want is a supplier that actually knows us, has a relationship with us and knows what we want.
I don’t think consumers want this relationship to come from an intermediary like Google and Facebook... but I don’t think they would agree.
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