I suspect our friends at Google have updated the algorithm that decides what ads I should be shown on the internet.
Previously, I was bombarded with tricks for white teeth and flat stomachs. But in the last month, they have disappeared. Now I see the same google-hosted ads for flights to Australia and expensive bicycles, on numerous websites. Which, surprise, surprise, is something I have been looking at online.
But here is the interesting thing, I have not googled “flights to Australia” or “expensive bicycles”. I have been browsing the Air NZ and Qantas websites recently, but I go to those sites directly, not via google. Similarly, I do not google “expensive bikes”, rather I have sites like cyclingnews.com bookmarked on my browser.
I am sure there is some high-tech trickery going on here that is beyond my intellect. I don’t mind though, these websites that I visit need to make an income and I sure as hell was not clicking through to the ‘teeth whitening’ sites.
But, the question begs to be asked, why do I also see occasional ads for Russian mail-order brides? Mrs TFC uses this computer sometimes too. Is there something she is not telling me?
Thomas the Think Engine 
Google probably knows what site you’re on when it sends you the ads. I don’t know if Air NZ or Qantas have ads on their webpage—I assume not—but if you hit up a lot of Aussie blogs (Blogger/Blogspot is Google…) and news sites, it’s probably easy to sell you a ticket to Oz even if you aren’t planning on going next month.
Microsoft evil? Google’s the one I worry about. Is there anything about me they *don’t* want to know?
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If Mrs TFC is browsing for Russian mail-order brides, you should just order one as a present for her. Christmas is only 110 sleeps away – which is about how long it should take for a shipping container from Moscow to reach San Francisco.
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I also find this new frontier of marketing somewhat intriguing. Have you noticed now that Facebook and the some news websites give you the opportunity to “choose” the ads you “want” to watch? Are we now savvy consumers of consumer information? Will we soon be buying ads in an effort not to have the ads we don’t want to see rammed down our throats.
What happens if you search google with google?
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