Gary’s Q&A

Listener question & Gary’s response · Transcript passage

Seth Louviere from the Facebook group asks, Do you have control over which ads are shared on the podcast, or are they decided by others?

There seems to be a lot of interest in this question so I figure I’ll answer it. If I am reading the ad, then I had control over doing it. These are known as host read ads. In most cases, unless it is a highly regulated industry, I often have broad leeway in creating the copy for the ad.

However, there are also ads that some of you hear that are not read by me. These are known as programmatic ads.I have no clue what programmatic ads are running. If you live outside the United States, you might hear ads that are not in English. There are a few broad categories, like political ads, that I ban, but that’s about it. The ads you hear might be totally different than those someone else hears depending on your location. Some ads are delivered based on your location.

I will sometimes get people who complain about an ad, but they only generically complain about advertising, and I have no clue what to do with that information.