Honors Theses and Capstones

Date of Award

Spring 2016

Project Type

Senior Honors Thesis

College or School

PAUL

Department

Marketing

Program or Major

Business Administration

Degree Name

Bachelor of Science

First Advisor

Billur Akdeniz

Abstract

Abstract

The concept of big data has influenced the marketing field in numerous ways. By having access to more information about their consumers than ever before, marketers are presented with a unique opportunity to make the marketing process more streamlined and effective than ever; however, this also creates a challenge in understanding how this targeted advertising affects the brand’s perception by consumers. This study looks at the concepts of data marketing and re-targeted ads from three aspects. First, are marketers being as effective as possible to ensure they are sending the right advertisement, to the right customer, at the right time? Second, are marketers being as efficient as possible when choosing the correct platform to reach their target customers? Third, are companies remembering the ethical components of collecting this information on consumers, and ensuring they understand when consumers feel specialized advertising becomes an invasion of their privacy? To answer these questions, I first performed secondary research in the form of a literature review. From surveying the scope of the subject, I then performed primary research by conducting in-depth interviews and a survey. The results show that there are two distinct type of consumers: one group who is accepting of these re-targeted advertisements and welcoming of the specialized marketing, and a second group who is skeptical of this form of marketing and concerned over privacy issues. Marketers must be aware of these two distinct types of consumers and ensure they are choosing their advertising methods carefully to ensure an efficient utilization of resources and to make sure they are not presenting a detriment to their brand for the consumers who do not want catered advertisements.

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