Ad networks are not just a place to buy cheap clicks and sales leads. Despite our misgivings about the ability of networks to provide robust vertical content targeting, we are far more optimistic about the possibility to do effective behavioral targeting.

The behavioral targeting model has evolved greatly in the past few years.

For example, Tacoda has built an ad network that specializes in behaviorally targeted inventory and also offers marketers the same advantages they find in ad networks overall: reach and scale. In a recent campaign for Panasonic across its network, Tacoda found a 63.1 percent lift in unaided brand awareness versus contextual targeting, and a 168 percent advantage over run-of-network in increasing the likelihood of a consumer buying a Panasonic plasma television.

Marketers should experiment with behavioral targeting to reach consumers they may not be able to effectively message to in other areas of their media buys, particularly in categories where inventory is tight and clutter is high.