How to Use Context in Your Ad Buys to Reach Better Customers

The right ad seen at the right time can make all the difference when it comes to generating sales. There’s a reason pizza delivery companies spend millions of dollars for a 30-second spot at the Super Bowl! But even small and medium advertisers can take advantage of the right context targeting to reach their ideal customers at the perfect time.
In fact, it’s more important than ever for marketers to invest in tools that help them identify the context of the content they might want to run ads against. As behavioral targeting based on third-party cookies becomes obsolete, marketers need to understand how context targeting works, identify their ideal content (and content to be avoided), and put today’s smarter-than-ever tools to work.
What is behavioral vs. contextual targeting?
Behavioral targeting relies on third-party cookies, which track a user as they go from site to site on the internet. This gives advertisers a profile view of a consumer, so they can target that user regardless of what type of page they’re on. However, third-party cookies, the technology used to deploy this kind of targeting, are being currently depreciated in favor of other technologies. Apple’s Safari browser already blocks third-party cookies by default, and Google has announced that the Chrome browser will follow suit in 2023.
Contextual targeting, on the other hand, uses clues from the content of the page to target specific readers. You’re more likely to find an audience for kids’ clothes on a parenting tips article, or someone more likely to buy the latest AAA video game on an article about the Top 10 Playstation 5 games.
What is an example of contextual targeting?
Contextual targeting uses clues from the content of a page to tell you what it’s about, and the overall sentiment or emotion of a page. A good contextual targeting system can tell you the difference between an article about Apple, the technology company, and a page about the best recipes for your autumn apple haul.
A business selling apple presses might be more inclined to buy ads on the recipe page than on a page talking about the latest technology trends. If they’re using a sophisticated contextual targeting system, they’ll be able to do exactly that–and ensure their ads only run next to cooking content. With the right technology platform, they can even decide to buy or bid on articles that are specific to apples if they decide to target certain keywords.
The technology can even get even more specific. Tools like Peer 39 give marketers insight into on-page signals such as likes, comments, social media activity, the number of ads on a page, and the presence of video, which can be used to determine whether or not it’s a good spot for your ads to appear. The sentiment or brand safety of a page can also be analyzed–ensuring your travel brand doesn’t end up alongside an article about cancelled flights! You can even target based on the weather in the user’s specific city; perfect for a mosquito repellent brand to advertise during hot, muggy days.
What is a contextual targeting system and how does it work?
Today’s natural language processors scan pages of written content and immediately relay to a marketer the nuances and sentiment on the page to inform whether or not to bid for an ad placement. These tools give marketers the ability to assess, in real-time, the context of media on webpages, mobile apps and other forms of digital content.
The page or app’s content can then be targeted or avoided. For instance, if you wanted to target business content, a contextual targeting system would send back information on a specific page, deciding whether it was about business or not. If it was, you might want to set a higher bid for a reader of that specific page. If it wasn’t, you might want to bid lower, or not bid at all.
How do I get started using contextual technology?How do I get started using contextual technology?
Logiq recently partnered with Peer39 to provide small and medium-sized businesses and the agencies that serve them, with the industry’s largest and most scaled pre-bid keyword, contextual, and brand safety solutions for modern marketers. Fully integrated into Logiq Digital Marketing’s platform, these powerful context tools can be accessed and implemented with a few easy clicks, making contextual ad buying easier than ever.
Ready to get started or schedule a demo to see these features? Reach out to us today at [email protected].
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