• by Laurie Sullivan , Staff Writer @lauriesullivan, January 22, 2014

BlueKai will announce Wednesday a business deal with digital media and commerce company POPSUGAR, but the crux of the partnership points to more publishers finding ways through data management platforms (DMP) that help target ads more accurately  to audiences across multiple screens. Some might think it's like searching for a needle in a haystack.

POPSUGAR, which boasts 22 million unique visitors, came to BlueKai looking for a data management platform to help find its audience and monetize its content sites through better ad targeting, according to Gina Kim, director of business development and strategic partnerships at BlueKai.

Marketers have learned not to seek out data about any one specific person, but rather scores of like-minded people. They don't want one specific profile; they want similar profiles in bulk to help find groups of people on desktop and mobile, and sometimes both. The technology identifies patterns of behaviors across multiple screens at any given time of day.

Kim said more publishers have become aware of DMPs like BlueKai because their readers visit their sites more often through  mobile devices. "They're seeing a shift in consumption and they need a more unified view," she said. "Mobile comes with its own challenges. You can't set third-party cookies on mobile devices."

POPSUGAR will tap BlueKai's DMP for its online and mobile properties to generate more compelling advertising packages that include retargeting, audience analytics and audience extension across POPSUGAR.com and ShopStyle.com. It will also support POPSUGAR's advertising campaign, "We Search, We Find, We ShopStyle," which covers broadcast, print, digital and outdoor channels.