Topic Proposal: Two Perspectives on Targeted Advertising: The Consumer v. The Advertiser

For my final project I wish to explore the world of targeted advertising within the social media world.  I became interested in this when I was applying for a job within the Leo Burnett Advertising company.  On part of the application I was required to write a short essay on the use of targeted advertising in social media and why I believed it to be important and where I saw it going in the future.   I didn’t have an answer and I still don’t have an answer, and this is why I am very interested in writing on this topic. 

It’s scary to think that Google, Yahoo, Facebook, Twitter, and many other search engines and social media outlets are tracking every little thing you do.  Every time you sign up for a social media outlet and provide your name, age, email, gender and geographic location, you are essentially profiling yourself to companies who can then target you with their ads.  Search engines, such as Google, will track anything you search, even key words in your personal emails, anything they think might be valuable that they can then sell to advertisers to target you with ads.  They do this in hopes that the ads they have selected to place on your sidebar will be a product or service that you will want.  Advertisers no longer have to waste their time and money trying to advertise to the larger population.  Now, advertisers can specifically target a smaller sample of people that are more likely to spend their money on the products and services.

For my research I want to look at both the consumer and the advertiser’s perspectives of the issues concerning targeted advertising.  I want to focus on the rise of targeted advertising within the various social media outlets and how companies are legally or illegally tracking consumers’ information.  What legislation is being made to limit consumer tracking and help ensure consumer privacy?  I also want to explore how much companies are profiting over new targeted ads in comparison with older techniques of marketing and advertising.  Do the benefits of targeted advertising outweigh the potential risks to consumer privacy? 

Personally, I am frightened by the idea of my every move being tracked on the internet.  However, from an advertiser’s perspective, targeted advertising is a gold mine.  I don’t believe that targeted advertising is a threat to personal safety and privacy as long as the information taken is solely used for the purpose of advertising and isn’t distributed further to any outside third parties.  The business of targeted advertising is complicated and must be examined through both the lens of a consumer and the lens of the advertiser in order to truly understand both sides of the issue.   

Topic Proposal: Target Advertising on Facebook

For my topic proposal I want to explore the rise in popularity of digital advertisements, specifically targeted advertisements. Digital advertisements are estimated to pass all other forms of advertisements in revenue by 2016 and continue to adapt to new technological platforms. The optimization of digital advertising is allowing for advertisements to only specifically target those of interest. These ads can be seen on Facebook, mobile applications and Google and are continuing to gain popularity amongst advertisers. Directly targeting consumers based on their past internet use and the information they share, advertisers can now be selective in advertising to those who will engage with their product. I will analyze the specific use on Facebook and the economic and technological conditions that have allowed for the target advertising on the website.

                  In order to analyze the increasing preference of digital advertisements amongst advertisers, I will look at the technological conditions that have allowed for targeted advertisements online and on digital devices. In addition I will consider the economic implications of having advertisements that target only those who fill specific criteria as consumers. In addition to the technological and economic conditions, I will also look at the increasing focus on the accusations against these digital advertisements and the invasion of privacy that occurs. For advertisers, the digital ads allow for advertisements that are reaching those direct targeted audiences. However, for audiences the increasing tracking of cookies and online searches to specifically target individuals is seen as an internet privacy concern.  

Internet Freedom: can privacy be ensured?

On the internet nobody knows you’re a dog. Or at least, that’s how it used to be. With the rise of social networks like Facebook and Google+ the age of internet anonymity is quickly becoming extinct. People are voluntarily sharing personal information through these websites more and more each day. Although it seems relatively harmless, sharing one’s likes and dislikes in exchange for user-targeted ads, it’s just the start of a new era in online communication.

What if the government issued a centralized ID login system for the internet much like the required driver’s license to drive a car? This would allow them to keep tabs on all of your internet activity, ensuring that dogs wont be able to pass as humans. We run the risk of sacrificing our personal freedom & right to privacy in favor of corporate advertisements. Cookies, Flash cookies, and zombie cookies collect user information and sell it to others; similarly, search engine logs help to improve searches and also target their (eg. Google) advertising results. Some companies/sites allow users to opt out of being tracked; however, if you don't know who they are, that's not going to happen. Further, many sites don't function properly unless the user accepts cookies, some opt-outs don't work as promised, and others are only temporary.

What if we crafted a constitution of internet rights, similar to our actual constitution, ensuring our rights to privacy online? In the book I Know Who You Are and I Saw What You Did author Lori Andrews proposes such a constitution. This “Social Network Constitution,” comprised of just ten articles, ensures the user’s “right to connect” meaning that “no government shall abridge the right to connect, nor shall a government monitor exchanges over the Internet or code them as to sources or content.” It also ensures that “each individual shall have control over his or her image from a social network, including over the image created by data aggregation.” Although it seems a bit extreme as of now with bills like SOPA surfacing our right to the internet is threaten and must be ensured.