One of the major value propositions of advertising online is the ability to target users with relevant messages. The problem is, algorithms used to do such targeting are not humans. Therefore. there are often issues with algorithms being to literal.

I just returned from a behavioral targeting summit where I heard such comments as, “help, my computer thinks I am a 40 year old female” (from a 30 year old male of course).

So how far have we come in our quest to be hyper relevant marketers and advertisers?

It is my contention that we have come a long way, but when I see examples like the ones below, I realize that there is still a long way to go.

This morning I saw another example on CNN of contextaul gone wrong. The article spoke of how ads from John McCain appeared on sites that vilified Barack Obama.Needless to say this is less than political and the ads were pulled (I am sure the media buyers had a great night).

If you are a media buyer purchasing ads on networks to save time, you may want to rething your strategy!

Those of us in the business know there are efficiencies to be gained from networks, but I can tell you from personal experience that there is a lot of danger out there for advertisers.

As an agency executive, it is your job to protect your clients from such dangers!