[Neikius]

Biggest issue with this is the modern web ads don't even work.

You get ads for fridge AFTER you bought one since they now know you browsed them.

What works is content based advertising - so advertise a power drill on a woodworking hobbyist site. No tracking required there. Conversion can be obtained when user clicks a link via redirect. Like in the good ol times.

But this modern approach that massively invades privacy has been sold to businesses and now they require it even though it is probably ineffectual.

[debazel]

> What works is content based advertising - so advertise a power drill on a woodworking hobbyist site. No tracking required there. Conversion can be obtained when user clicks a link via redirect. Like in the good ol times.

This still requires tracking to follow the user through the whole flow, which is required unless you want to be defrauded with fake users at the very least, but also very important to track the actual performance of each ad source.

[AlexandrB]

Why do things that are important to the advertiser trump what's important to the user? I don't care how hard it is for you to track the performance of your ad sources, I just want you to stop tracking me.

[Neikius]

I guess you have a point there.

I am trying to imagine a scenario where you just track the actual conversions (sales) and the only datapoint is where your customer originated from, something akin to podcasts/youtube giving affiliate links. That could work right? Or maybe I am missing something. If I am not it feels like the current model only benefits the middle man and is detrimental to everybody else.

[cm2012]

It does work, I have seen enormous and well designed tests to show it.