WSJ.com Launches Highly Targeted Ad Program

WSJ.com, the subscription-based interactive edition of the Wall Street Journal, has added its own proprietary demographic slant for advertisers seeking to target their messages to an increasingly specific audience.

“This is the first offering of its kind and it is sure to raise the bar for other ad sellers, which must quickly become more adept at qualifying their own audiences” Jupiter Communications said about the development.

Starting March 1, The Wall Street Journal Interactive Edition began to offer advertisers the ability to target ads demographically by gender, date of birth, various types of professional information, and stock transaction volume. The site has a subscriber base of 265,000.

Advertisers already using the new demographics (which come at a premium CPM) include Sprint Communications.

“Since we launched as a paid site in April of ’96, we have been collecting the same demographic information on subscribers, said a WSJ Interactive spokesman. “We have now managed to integrate our DoubleClick DART abilities with that database, and can therefore serve ads based on any of those criteria. Company size targeting is already popular, as is title. I think the real potential lies in being able to target by geography with 100 percent accuracy (as opposed to the many-flawed IP method).”

“The ability to offer targeted ad inventory involves significant investments in both technology infrastructure and technical expertise,” Jupiter said. “With each site requiring a custom solution, major time investments are also necessary. However, time and dollar investments can be recouped through higher CPMs and an increased advertiser base.”

Jupiter said WSJ.com is charging its highest CPM for demographic targeting — a 31 percent premium over subscriber-area run of site.