With the increasing popularity of Google AdSense, contextualized advertising has become a commonly used term. So what is it, exactly? In its simplest form, contextual advertising is advertising that is related to the content of the webpage on which a user views it. In this way, it is put in context with its surroundings and has a much higher chance of being applicable to users. For example, if you were viewing a hunting website, contextualized ads on the webpage might include ads for hunting rifles, scopes, camouflage clothing and game processing. Search engines often use contextualized ads as well, meaning that if you searched for the phrase “deer hunting,” you might see the same ads as given in the previous example.

While early models of contextualized advertising utilized cookies and were considered invasive by many users, PMI Coaching has noted that modern versions are instead based on website content. In addition to being more socially acceptable, modern contextualized advertising is also highly effective. Google AdSense is one of the most well-known services, though there are many other options. Smaller companies include Overture, Kanoodle and Quigo.

Entrepreneurs who want to get the most bang for their buck are increasingly gravitating toward contextualized advertising. Rather than just throwing an idea out there and hoping it sticks, contextualized advertising allows you to provide users with information directly tied to their interests, resulting in higher returns for advertisers and fewer irrelevant ads for website users. In this way, both advertisers and consumers win.