Orwell would probably appreciate the irony...
A pit stop at a motorway service station with a friend the other day got me thinking about advertising and how it’s targeted. On the back of the doors in the women’s toilets were ads for a charity that supplies tampons and basic sanitary items to vulnerable women in refugee camps and other dangerous places. I drive a fair bit, so see this particular ad quite often.
As we bought ourselves a coffee before continuing the journey, my friend started telling me about the ads on the back of the doors in the men’s toilets. They were for flatulence control pants called My Shreddies. Seriously. There’s an entire range of pants and jeans for men that help stop farts polluting the atmosphere.
Interesting that advertising can be targeted so very differently depending on who you are, even in this very basic gender divide – and it’s so clever. But once advertisers start using algorithms to target you online, it gets really up close and personal.
You'll probably have encountered all the age related advertising that comes up on social media platforms. If you’re anything over 45, whether you like it or not, ads will pop up telling you how to pay for your funeral in advance (supposedly this gives you peace of mind – mostly it makes me wonder if they know something I don’t) along with ads about Alzheimer’s care and denture fixadents.
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