EP16: Exclusions and Negative Targeting

“We talk so much about targeting what you want. But you
need to go a little further and add a layer of  what you
don’t want or doesn’t make sense.”

Timothy Dick (11:51-12:10)


Exclusion and negative targeting are strategies that business
owners often overlook when trying to grow and scale. But they can
influence the results you achieve on any online ad platform
you’re using to get the highest return on your ad spending.


It takes time to figure out who you want to target with their
messages with any advertising network or campaign. Targeting lets
you determine who will see your ad and where you want them to
appear. Common strategies include the use of customer lists and
lookalike audiences.



“You don’t want video ads showing up in gaming apps. You’re
interrupting someone, and the odds of them looking at your offer
is very low.” - Timothy Dick (3:23-3:51)


Traditional targeting strategies can give businesses the results
they need. But marketers may find that the costs of their ad
campaigns are still too high. Exclusions and negative targeting
can help trim the fat off your ad spending. Best of all, these
features exist on almost all of the major ad networks available
today.


Facebook lookalike campaigns let you create groups that are
similar to an existing group you’ve marketed to in the past. But
you can use this same feature to create a group of non-buyers
that you negatively target. This essentially tells Facebook,
“Don’t show my ads to this group.”


Being more specific in your targeting can allow you to exclude
certain users based on factors such as:


Apps

Category

Age group

Genres

Desktop vs. Mobile Devices

Wi-Fi vs. Cellular Connection



Ads that appear in gaming apps interrupt players, making it less
likely that they’ll stop to look at your offer. For brick and
mortar businesses, displaying ads in locations that aren’t
relative to their target audience results in advertising to a
larger audience than they can serve.


Combine Targeting With Negative Targeting and
Exclusion


The best approach to combining both targeting and negative
targeting is to target people in your area while also adding a
negative targeting function that excludes users in other
locations. Negative targeting prevents a user who lives in your
target area from seeing your ad if they’re somewhere else. It
doesn’t make sense for them to see your ad when they’re not in
the location where they can take action.  



“Excluding the opposite of the audience you want enhances your
targeting results.” - Timothy Dick (8:17-8:24)


Most of the ad networks can display your ad in as many places
that meet the criteria you’ve given them. But many default to
including your ad in campaigns that reach people outside of those
you want to target. It’s up to marketers to understand when those
defaults are in place so they can disable them.


Context Matters in Online Advertising and
Targeting


Online users are in different states of mind depending on the
platform they’re on. Instagram and Facebook users may be standing
in line somewhere scrolling through their feeds. Someone
searching on Google may be actively looking for a product or
service like yours, so they’re more likely to learn about your
offer.


Exclusion and negative targeting work best when you understand
the context of the ad networks you choose and identify who you
want to see your ads and who you should leave out.


When you optimize your advertising and exclude specific targets,
you prevent unnecessary wasting of limited advertising dollars.
Negative targeting and exclusion strategies trim the fat off your
marketing campaigns. Your marketing becomes more efficient,
cost-effective, and reliable, leading to consistent results that
grow your business.  



How to get involvedIf you
would like more information about Timothy Dick, and the success
businesses have gained through work with him, please visit his
website.

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