The Infinite Dial

I was on the Website for an Active Rock station in a small midwest market this morning. Suddenly, the banner ad changed and there was an ad for a Latin music concert. At first I thought it was a local show in that market --which has a considerable Hispanic population, and where there used to be a Latin station in this same cluster. Then I realized it was for a New York area show, co-sponsored by Univision's WQBU and WADO.

Individually targeted ads are a fact of life on the Web, of course. Sometimes they can get a little creepy (e.g., sending a condolence note on Gmail and having an ad for a florist materialize). But even if you're used to customized ads, seeing a New York-targeted ad on a station site 2,000 miles away is still a violation of expectations. (If I wanted a New York experience, I would have gone to a local station, right?) And, like the florist ad, it's a more overt reminder that you are being directly targeted.