Facebook unveils new ad-targeting features
Advertisers will now be able to expand the radius of their target, as well as tailor ads to specific languages instead of just countries.
Corrected at 9 p.m. PDT: An earlier version of this story mischaracterized Nick O'Neill's relationship with Facebook. O'Neill works for AllFacebook.com, which has no official relationship with the social network.
Facebook has announced new ad-targeting features that allow advertisers to expand their target location radius.
Facebook told advertisers Wednesday that they will be allowed to expand the radius of their target audience by a specific number of miles. Whereas advertisers could target Washington, D.C., now they will be able to expand their sphere by adding 10, 25, or 50 miles to their target radius.
"Previously if I targeted Washington, D.C., I would use ads that included Arlington, Virginia, Bethesda, Maryland, and other local cities," AllFacebook's Nick O'Neill wrote in a blog, adding that he hopes the social-networking site will soon add the ability to target based on ZIP code.
Facebook also added the ability to target audience members based on language instead of just by country, which comes in handy when dealing with countries that have more than one major spoken language.
Facebook's announcement comes as Google says it will show ads to people based on their habits. This behavioral targeting is designed to make ads more "interesting," according to Google.
O'Neill addressed that move in his posting:
This move clearly reduced the value gap provided by Facebook advertising and other social networks like MySpace who offer targeting by interest. Facebook still has advertising advantages in that you can target based on an individual's job position, age, location, and gender.
O'Neill also reported that social-networking site also it had reached 190 million active users, however, this is a stat a Facebook representative denied to CNET News.