My name is Jennifer Berk, and I’m an alum of MIT (math/computer science, minor in economics) and current MBA student at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business. Most recently I worked for Amplify Public Affairs in Washington, DC, as an Internet Strategist. My background is in development, but I enjoy working with human systems as well as computer ones so have moved away from coding toward user experience and online marketing. Whatever my job title, my goal is to use technology to improve communication, both between members of my team and between my clients and their audiences. More about me is available in my LinkedIn profile or on Google.
At the moment I’m focusing on data-driven marketing and specifically on internet advertising. People hate ads that are irrelevant to them, and targeted, pinpoint marketing (using behavioral and profile information) offers the chance to make ads useful instead. Of course, along with the ability to target precisely goes a significant reduction in privacy. What can we do now, and how specific is too specific? What is legal, and what should be? Career advice talks about the passive job market; how do you figure out what audiences would be interested in something and reach passive markets in general?
