Snapchat Targeted Advertising: How To Opt Out Of Ads On Snapchat

As it heads toward its initial public offering, Snapchat has signed an agreement with Oracle Data Cloud to allow marketers to use third-party data pertaining to its users’ offline activity, according to a report from The Wall Street Journal.

With the new arrangement, marketers looking to advertise on the popular media-driven messaging app will be able to better target consumers with relevant ads by incorporating information gathered from offline purchases, such as credit cards or supermarket loyalty cards.

The information is collected by Oracle Data Cloud, formerly known as Datalogix. The company also has agreements with Google and Facebook—the latter of which came under fire late last year from a ProPublica report claiming the social network failed to completely disclose how much third-party data it purchases on users and where it acquires that information from.

According to information provided to TechCrunch by Snapchat’s parent company Snap Inc., the app will allow targeting of users with 100 different customer demographics. Examples of the classifications included “cosmetics shopper” or “consumer tech shopper.”

The move marks the first time Snapchat has allowed for ad targeting initiatives using third-party data—a program other major players in digital advertising like Google, Facebook and Twitter have long subscribed to.

It also follows the introduction of another advertiser-centric feature, Snap Audience Match, released in September 2016. The feature allowed marketers to use their existing lists of email addresses and known mobile devices to target ads to users.

While the move will likely be a welcome one for investors who would like to see Snapchat increase its profits, it also marks a considerable change of heart from company leadership when it comes to advertising practices.

At the Cannes Lions marketing festival in 2015, Snapchat CEO Evan Spiegel said the company cared about “not being creepy” when it came to advertising. “I got an ad this morning for something I was thinking about buying yesterday,” he said at the event. “And it’s really annoying.”

Now his company will be partaking in that very type of advertising, although Snapchat has retained the ability for users to opt out of the more targeted methods from marketers.

How To Block Ads On Snapchat

Snapchat users can opt out of some of the targeted advertising practices by opening the app and pulling down on the screen or tapping the Snapchat ghost icon at the top of the screen.

From there, tap the gear located at the top right to open profile settings. Under the Additional Services header, tap on Manage Preferences.

An option called Ad Preferences should appear. Tap it and it will present an option regarding Snap Audience Match, one of Snapchat’s targeted advertising program. Untoggle the option or uncheck the box next to it to opt out of the program.