Demographic Targeting in Display Advertising

Written by Ted Dhanik

When you increase the ad spend for a particular campaign, it tends to push more traffic, whether you want those visits or not. Demographic targeting solves this problem for those who want more clicks without the irrelevant audience members. Learning the basics of targeting by demographic can be a huge boon to your display advertising.

Geographic Targeting

Targeting users by geographic location can help focus on higher value targets. Say that you are running a mortgage campaign: chances are strong that your users in New York will have more value than users in Delaware. You can cut down on those low paying leads by targeting the major cities first.

By Interest

Some banner advertising networks allow marketers to purchase traffic based on the interest of their audience. If you know how old your typical prospect is, or can define some category they are interested in, you automatically increase the relevance of your ad without changing a single word of copy. Interest targeting may also help define the webpages that your ads will target, dictating which placements will show your ads so that you don’t end up on an off-topic website.

Social Networks

Social networks typically do the legwork of categorizing users, like interests in Facebook, so that marketers can pick and choose their audience. You may have more control over which demographics you choose, or more precision on the age group you select. Social media might be best for brand awareness, but the right ads can close deals if you know who to target.

Bio: Ted Dhanik is a display advertising expert. As the president and co-founder of engage:BDR, Ted Dhanik has worked with marketers and businesses to increase leads. With over fifteen years of experience, Ted Dhanik can show you how to grow your business effectively.