Commentary

Top Brands Data-Hungry For Online Ad Targeting

Five of the top Fortune 15 companies now use data management services from BlueKai for online ad targeting. That's how company executives describe its growth during the past six months, though they decline to name the actual companies involved (which could be, perhaps, corporate giants like Wal-Mart Stores, Exxon Mobile,General Electric, Berkshire Hathaway, General Motors, AT&T -- all part of the Fortune 15).

BlueKai on Tuesday announced in a release that its public exchange's data coverage in the past year has grown an additional 100 million unique consumers, bringing the total potential audience to 300 million. The release said BlueKai processes more than one billion data events daily. The branded audience data comes from Acxiom, Bizo, Datalogix, IXI, Nielsen, Polk, and TargusInfo.

Brands have been trying for years to thread together the Web pages and ads consumers stop or click on as they make buying online decisions. Companies offering ad targeting or behavioral tracking services can't do it without "coverage" or "reach," meaning the amount of potential content consumers might see.

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For example, consumers in the market to buy a tablet may also be in the market to purchase eyeglasses with an antiglare coating. While that hypothetical example might not have data behind it, real-world insights suggest consumers in the market for a luxury SUV might also sport a Nike sweat suit, and yap all the way across the Hudson, hands-free, via their Bluetooth-enabled phone."

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