Ep 9: Contextual targeting without IDs

One number, two fifteen, sells your page without user data.

The IAB Content Taxonomy is a shared list of page topics, each with a number.

Say recipes.example posts a brisket guide. A contextual tool reads the page and maps it to category two fifteen, barbecues and grilling, under two ten, food and drink. Your stack puts two fifteen in the bid request’s page category field, plus a code for the taxonomy version. Nine means three point one, the latest. A grill brand’s DSP targets two fifteen and bids, whether the reader is logged in, opted out, or on Safari. The topic describes the page, not the person. Version three added video, CTV, podcast and gaming topics, and dropped old codes, so it isn’t backwards compatible.

Today, ask your SSP or contextual vendor which taxonomy version you send. If it’s two point x, plan the move.

Next… PAIR and clean rooms.