Recently, I had the opportunity to go on a Disney Cruise with my family. Leading up to the trip, I conducted copious research, which included finding details online, looking up cruise lines and online reviews, comparing itineraries, and cross-referencing prices for different packages. In this process, I couldn’t help but notice that many of the advertisements I would normally come across while surfing the web had all changed to vacation-related displays. Particularly, I began seeing more ads for competing cruise lines, ads from Disney themselves, and information on all-inclusive packages from many travel websites.
At the risk of sounding paranoid, these ads “followed” me across the Internet. Whether I was casually browsing funny pictures or researching articles on corporate social responsibility, I saw these ads on many of the websites I visited. It was actually hard to ignore these ads about Disney Cruises and hotel deals, since I was already actively looking for a deal in my spare time. The frequency of the ads made sure that the cruise was always at the forefront of my mind, no matter which website I was on or task I was trying to accomplish. There was no escape – it was like the world was pressuring me to finally decide on a cruise. Eventually, I did.
After securing the vacation package and eventually going on the cruise, I returned from a fantastic experience and even considered booking another cruise for next year. Disney had on-site salesmen on the cruise ship ready to secure your future booking at a discounted rate, but I was reluctant to take their offer.
Upon my return home, I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw that the advertisements were still targeting me to book a cruise – especially from Disney. Somehow, they were able to pinpoint me. Even after my enjoyable experience with their brand, their advertisements continued to chase me across the Internet.
I really noticed the marketing strategy of retargeting after an influx of advertisements from Disney for repeat cruises after my trip. Through retargeting my data and personal information, Disney was able to promote their messages to me after I had made my purchase decision to reinforce a positive experience or, perhaps, promote another sale. Through my data, Disney was able to influence my entire purchase experience from prospect to customer.
I also noticed the application of retargeting when cruise companies I was considering as alternatives repeated their advertisements to me after I had visited their websites, as if they were asking me to reconsider their services.
As far as I know, Disney hasn’t yet predicted my next cruise purchase. However, I was particularly taken aback when I then read about Target, who used predictive analysis to calculate a teenage girl was pregnant even before her father had found out. They were already aggressively sending her advertisements and deals for baby items, against the wishes of her parents.
It is apparent that the use of retargeting and predictive analysis has allowed advertisers to discover things about us or reinforce their messages in eerie and definitely creepy ways. Imagine the kinds of tools of analysis companies will have to reach out to us in the near future.
Is there any escape? While one could argue that the best tool is a reliable ad blocker – one that limits the activities of advertisers during your browsing experience – I don’t believe this solves the heart of the issue. At the end of the day, through brokerages or major service providers like Facebook and cell phone companies, it’s difficult to remain private and make purchasing decisions on your own.
The truth is, I depend on these service providers daily, and it’s difficult for me to stop depending on them. Since I can’t go off and live on an island in solitude, it’s tough to find a solution where I can remain private and also avoid being micro-targeted by ads.
With companies targeting you, retargeting you, monitoring you, and guessing your next move, it’s difficult to draw the line. So, I couldn’t help but wonder: Is it even my own purchase decision anymore? How can I determine how much of my decision making is influenced by the focused marketing activities of these advertisers? Is it possible to be too overwhelmed by ads, leading to irrational purchasing decisions? Where can one actually turn, besides their friends and family, for reliable, neutral third-party information?
In the near future, I plan on clearing my private browsing data more often, using an ad blocker, and remaining skeptical of any information presented to me for its validity. I will also stay aware of the chance that my data might wind up in the wrong hands, and perhaps be used by companies to exploit me.