Behavioral Targeters Need to Find a Balance Between Helpful and Creepy

Author:

Meghan Keane

Source:

Zappos knows what you did last summer. Or maybe what you did last time you were on the Zappos website. The shoe seller is just one of many companies that tracks customer activity online to serve more relevant advertising.
 
Such tools have has the ability to make product searches much easier online. But they also creep some people out. And behavioral targeters need to figure out the difference before regulators really start paying attention.
 
Zappos ads are so smart that they remember past searches and offer similar product images to consumers as they surf the web. For instance, if you go on Zappos searching for black patent pumps, Zappos will then taunt you on various websites with ads featuring glittering heels you probably shouldn't be purchasing right now (not that I know this from personal experience).
 
That can get frustrating for writers trying not to spend money. But others don't like Zappos keeping tabs on them at all. Like Michael Learmonth, who was searching for short pants recently (aren't those shorts? I don't know). Learmonth writes at AdAge:
 
"I abandoned the search and did something else. That's when the weirdness started....