Publishers demand openness in behavioural targeting

This figure was revealed in the second part of the 'New Rules of Revenue' survey undertaken by online advertising revenue specialist, Improve Digital.

In addition, 52.2 percent of respondents said that external parties should be able to use a publisher's audience data to better target advertising campaigns.

However, the transparency message continued with 90 percent of publishers saying that if digital marketing is to reach its potential, the sector must ensure that it provides comprehensive information that is easily understood by people outside the industry.

However, use of data must be balanced with privacy issues.  93.1 percent of publishers stated that the protection of their data was important or very important when working with multiple ad networks. 

Despite this, 77.5 percent of publishers agreed that it was a significant problem to monitor which third party is collecting what audience data through cookies.

“Behavioural targeting is a valuable tool for online advertisers and publishers alike because it enables relevant ads to be served to a pre-defined target audience, which increases the value of inventory,” explains Nic Peters, managing director of Improve Digital UK.  “Therefore it also significantly enhances the online experience for consumers, who see adverts that relate to their interests.  However, this is not well understood, with the result that behavioural targeting is often viewed in a negative light.  Organisations must therefore be rigourous about being transparent in their actions, as well as ensuring they use audience data to deliver tangible benefits back to consumers.”

Previously released findings from Improve Digital's survey focused on ad network optimisation. 

The key statistic was that 51.4 percent of European publishers believe that Real Time Bidding (RTB) will increase the potential of their unsold inventory. 

Source: www.improvedigital.com

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