By now we are well aware of how search engine algorithm are engineered to present us with what they think we want, based on our previous searches.

Jeff Bezos has become the richest man in the world perfecting the precision of  hyper focused, personalized advertising.  Anytime you do a search, especially for something you might buy,  pretty soon ads for that or similar products pop up everywhere. 

Newspaper advertising, by comparison, can never be that precise.Print ads, unlike search engine algorithms, cannot control readers attention.

Where an ad is placed, certain design elements and colors play a role in catching the reader’s attention.Equally important are the reader’s constantly changing needs, interests and mood at the moment.  

For advertisers,  this  precision and the ability of search engine’s to profile or “know” potential customers definitely increases the likelihood of a sale.

But here’s what we lose:

When I go to the public library to pick up a book, I often stop to look at the librarian’s recommendations. I also glance at the shelves around the book, above or below and often a title I wasn’t looking for, catches my eye.

The library, like the newspaper does not force my attention.  I am offered new information, new possible interests, things I didn’t know about because I wasn’t searching for them, but nevertheless I found them.

The precision of targeted advertising delivers what we want, but not necessarily what we need: the possibility of growth, expansion and discovering something new.