What if you could target an ad to a specific URL on the web? Not a website, not a domain, but, let's say, a specific article in USA Today about something that is related to the product or services that you offer? That's what you can do with contextual targeting.
Contextual targeting is a powerful tool that exists within demand side platforms (DSPs). It allows the marketer to pinpoint ads based on the content and context of a page.
So, I'll give you an example: I'm a Dodgers fan, and you'd know that I'm a Dodgers fan because I'm on a page reading about the latest news from the Dodgers. I'm on a page from Barstool Sports or ESPN reading about the Dodgers. If you know nothing else about me, you know that I'm interested in the Dodgers and therefore you have a really valuable data signal about me. You know that because I'm interested in the Dodgers, I might be interested in buying a Dodgers cap or shirt or a jacket. That's the power of contextual targeting.
You could go very broad with this and target people based on their fan affinities, the products that they're searching for, etc. You can also go very narrow. You can serve ads on pages that are about something very specific to your business, something specific to your industry, or keywords that are basically jargon that only makes sense to you because of the work that you do.
Contextual targeting is just one of the things you can do within a whole slew of DSPs. You are enabled to really focus on context and serve ads to people based on the type of information they're consuming at this very moment.
See our YouTube channel for an additional video about contextual targeting.
