Once upon a time, some singing, dancing elves trespassed upon an old shoemaker’s shop, to set him up with some sellable shoes. In a similar sense, data mining has provided advertisers and their clients an opportunity to sell products. In the tale of shoemaker, it seemed like an invasion of privacy when the elves let themselves in and took over the shop. The shoemaker never appeared to feel violated, as he was overwhelmed with joy when
he awoke to the opportunity they created for him. In the case of data mining, tracking cookies allow an open door for the elves, but they’re not breaking into the marketer’s business so much as they are the consumer’s space.
Consumer data is a gold mine for the advertising industry, as it not only assists advertising companies with online
ad placement, but also allows them to personalize it for the individuals they target, so they can effectively market their clients’ product. Data mining is the way of the future, marketers can avoid focusing too much of their efforts on consumers who didn’t know they needed what the ad was selling. The placement of an ad is most effective when it’s in the view of a consumer who doesn’t have to be sold on the idea that they need the product, but just reminded the product’s available when they’re ready to purchase.
Omnicom and Publicis, two of the industry leaders in the advertising world, are taking the path of a merger to create the world’s largest marketing company. (Vega, 2013) They don’t foresee there to be a conflict of interest by them representing various competitors once they merge. There will be networks under their giant firm, representing the competitors, and who would know which networks to place with which clients better than the marketer that processed the data.
Consumers may not be as overjoyed as the poor old shoemaker regarding the invasion of their space. If major marketers weren’t constantly processing the personal information of individual consumers for the sole purpose of selling a product, consumers wouldn’t see all their previously viewed products popping up on Google and Facebook as a reminder that these products are still available to purchase. Through data mining, the advertiser can decipher not only a consumer’s wants, but also whether or not they can afford it. A day is soon to come when the consumer see’s the product they can’t live without, but the advertisement appears for the used version that individual can afford. Don’t be insulted, only a great marketer knows what’s best for you.
Works Cited
Publicis Grupe: Maurice Lévy's end of year greeting video. (12, 12 10). Retrieved 07 31, 13, from Ads of the World: http://adsoftheworld.com/media/online/publicis_grupe_maurice_levys_end_of_year_greeting_video
Vega, T. (2013, 07 28). Two Ad Giants Chasing Google in Merger Deal. Retrieved 07 31, 2013, from The New York Times: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/07/29/business/media/two-ad-giants-in-merger-deal-chasing-google.html?pagewanted=1&_r=0&smid=tw-share