Glossary/Audience data/Audience targeting
What is audience targeting in advertising?
The main types of audience targeting, how publishers build and sell audiences, and how it compares to targeting by content.
Written by Samhub with the help of AI·Updated 13 Oct 2026·3 min readAudience targeting is showing ads to a chosen group of people, based on data about them, such as interests, age, location or behavior, rather than on the page they are reading.
Types of audience targeting
| Type | Based on | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Demographic | Age, gender, household | Families with children |
| Interest | What people read and do | Car enthusiasts |
| Intent | Signs of a coming purchase | Home buyers |
| Geographic | Location | Readers in one region |
Audience vs contextual targeting
Contextual targeting follows the page. Audience targeting follows the person. Used together, an advertiser can reach car buyers on any page and car readers on car pages.
16 pages for publishers, with a checklist for data, programmatic and direct sales.
How publishers offer it
Recognize readers
Logins and consent make readers known.
Build audiences
Ready-made segments named in the buyer’s language.
Activate everywhere
Direct campaigns, deals and the open auction.
Addressability at Stampen Media after moving its reader data into one layer with Samhub.
Frequently asked questions
Yes, in Europe it usually relies on consent for personalized advertising.
Big enough to run a campaign, often tens of thousands of people or more.
Usually, because buyers pay more for impressions they can target.
Yes, through deal IDs and audience signals in bid requests.
Related terms
Grouping readers so advertisers can reach them.
Targeting ads based on what readers have done before.
Targeting ads based on the content of the page.
Targeting ads by location.
Targeting by age, gender, income or household.
Ads based on inferred interests.
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