Facebook is Removing Some "Detailed Targeting" Options for Ads

Several targeting options will be removed in mid January, such as targeting according to religion, political belief, or sexual orientation.

Officially announced in November, the change is largely a response to the negative ways that this type of targeting can be (and has been) used to influence certain groups in negative ways.

According to the announcement from Meta, the ad targeting options that are being removed include:

• Health causes (e.g., “Lung cancer awareness”, “World Diabetes Day”, “Chemotherapy”)

• Sexual orientation (such as LGBT)

• Religious practices and groups (e.g., “Catholic Church” and “Jewish holidays”)

• Political beliefs, social issues, causes, organizations, and figures

• Race

Why it Matters

To some companies, these may challenging changes. But they are likely a net positive for society. According to The Verge, these now-removed targeting options had included features allowing advertisers to “target ads to anti-Semitic categories and pseudoscience. It also let companies target housing, job, and credit ads by “multicultural affinity” that could exclude certain races.”

For those who might be struggling to adjust to this new normal, there are a few tools that may help you adapt your ad strategy:

• Engagement Custom Audiences allow you to reach people who have already shown direct interest in your content.

• Lookalike Audiences help you reach people similar to one of your currently defined audience lists.

• Website Custom Audiences help you reach those who have already engaged with a website or product.

• Location Targeting can still be used, including to reach people in the vicinity of a store or within the radius of your shipping capabilities.

• The customer lists from a custom audience works well if you have a list of people who have opted into targeting.

• And of course, you can continue to use broad targeting based on information such as gender and age.

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