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Google Lets Users Limit Ads About Dating And Weight Loss

In the world of online dating, the options (and the ads) seem endless.

If you’re tired of seeing endless ads for personal events in your life, there’s good news ahead.

Google is now expanding the categories of “sensitive ads” on YouTube and the Display Network, specifically.

What does this mean for users?

So far, Google’s sensitive categories on YouTube have been limited in terms of frequency of advertising for addictive gambling or alcoholic products.

Now, Google is looking to limit ad serving to more personal, sometimes painful topics.

Expanded category options on YouTube and screen now include:

  • Acquaintance
  • Pregnancy and parenting
  • Weight loss
  • alcohol (previously added)
  • Gambling (previously added)
Image credit: Google.com, May 2022

If you choose to display fewer of these ads, your settings will automatically apply to the Display Network as well. For reference, the Display Network consists of more than 2 million websites, videos, and apps.

How to identify sensitive groups

First, you’ll want to go toAd settingsAnd scroll to “YouTube Sensitive Ad Categories.”

Google's personalized ads settings.Image credit: Google.com, screenshot by author, May 2022

Next, you’ll click on “See Fewer” for any of the categories you want to select.

You have the option to allow these choices again at any time on your ad settings page.

Pro tip: As you review sensitive categories, you can view all the ways your ads are personalized based on categories.

If you don’t want to fit into a particular category or interest anymore, you can simply tap on the category and then choose “Off”.

An example of how your ads can be tailored to you.Image credit: Screenshot taken by the author, May 2022
You can turn off assignment for any category it's listed in.Image credit: Screenshot taken by the author, May 2022

Guaranteed solution?

While Google does its best to limit these types of ads for a better user experience, this option does not mean that you will never see these topics in an ad.

For example, file Policy It states, “No advertisers allowed Ad personalization based on certain topics, such as alcohol and gambling, but you may see ads about these things based on relevant interests.”

To break it down, limiting these features will not allow advertisers to customize ads on these topics for you.

If you choose to watch fewer weight loss ads, for example, you won’t get ads for Weight Watchers, gyms, etc.

However, you might see an advertisement for a product that has nothing to do with weight loss, but the picture might show someone going for a long walk or doing some kind of fitness, for example.

What does this mean for advertisers?

If your company is in one of these sensitive categories, don’t panic.

Although Google allows users to limit this type of content, it does not mean that you are not allowed to show ads to anyone.

On the plus side, this change will help you reach a better, more receptive target audience since they didn’t restrict these ad categories.


Featured image: New Africa / Shutterstock

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