Ad fail

Big brother is definitely watching me. Or at least, he’s tracking my typing and site visits online in an attempt to get me to buy what I seem to be interested in. But he doesn’t always get it right—either that or I’m sending some very strange signals out into cyberspace.

I am referring to the “targeted” ads that appear in the side panels of my e-mail client dashboard. How strange that right after I make a purchase at J.Jill, J.Jill ads suddenly appear in that space. I recently bought Cathy a ceramic pie plate, and tons of housewares ads started appearing. I have no idea why the debt solutions ads come up every once in a while, because I have no needs in that area. Nor do I need fibromyalgia drugs or school loans. I try hard to ignore these things, but once in a while something so strange comes up I can’t. The latest example is from an ineptly named men’s sportswear company:

I guess all men are bonobos at heart?

I’m not sure why hip young guys would want to be associated with chimps, but that was the association that came up for me immediately:

The real deal, sans madras shorts and aviator sunglasses. Can you see the resemblance?

I tried to find out some more information about the company, and apparently their claim to fame is the fit of their pants, but I have no other details. Perhaps their pants are shorter than most, have ultra-articulated knees, and are friendly to bowleggedness. Then the name would make sense…

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