Steven Wright’s old joke about the non-functioning light switch still makes me laugh: “In my house there’s this light switch that doesn’t do anything. For years I’d flick it on and off just to check. Yesterday, I got a call from a woman in Germany. She said, ‘Cut it out.'”
This week’s release of the new Firefox browser’s Do Not Track feature might do something eventually, but for today, it’s just a checkbox you can flick on or off. From Mozilla’s Do Not Track press release…
In theory, the Firefox Do Not Track feature is supposed to communicate the user’s desire to opt out from behavioral ad tracking by advertising networks. Mozilla’s Security & Privacy Guy, Sid Stamm says, “Servers don’t know about this yet, so it won’t have immediate effect on tracking…”
The self-regulatory program, AboutAds is already in place, allowing consumers to opt out of behavioral ad tracking from about 60 ad networks. So, it’s doubtful these networks are going to be in any big hurry to implement yet another system to decrease their income opportunities.
And, on a related note… Remarketing is pretty remarkable for advertisers
A recent comScore white paper on digital display advertising strategies states, “Retargeting far surpassed every other strategy for delivering impacts, and it provided a moderate level of reach, indicating this is a must-do for every marketer.”
And, here’s how online display ad remarketing fits into the mix:
- Pay-per-click search advertising — Google AdWords — helps you connect with shoppers when they begin their shopping process.
- Remarketing display advertising helps keep your company top-of-mind when consumers are making their purchase decisions.
- Well-designed landing pages help deliver the shopper to your dealer’s cash register to complete the sale.