← Back to glossary
Audiences & Targeting
3 min read
Custom audiences are targeting lists you build from your own data — customers, site visitors, app users or subscribers — and upload to an ad platform to reach exactly those people. They are the workhorse of first-party targeting and the seed for finding more people like your best customers.
Start with your data. A customer list, pixel data or app events.
Match to the platform. The platform finds those users among its own.
Target or exclude. Reach them, or deliberately leave them out.
Seed lookalikes. Use them as the basis for finding similar people.
Customer lists. Emails or phone numbers you already hold.
Site visitors. People captured by your pixel.
App users. Those who took actions in your app.
Engagers. People who interacted with your content or ads.
Precision. You target people you actually know.
First-party strength. It leans on data you own, not third-party cookies.
Efficiency. Exclusions stop you paying to reach existing customers.
Match rates. Not every record finds a match.
Consent. Uploaded data must be lawfully collected.
List decay. Contacts go stale and need refreshing.
Size limits. Very small lists target poorly.
Keep exploring
Browse all 61 advertising terms
→
OpenAds connects your assistant to every major ad platform, so you can plan, launch and optimise campaigns in plain language — approving the moves that matter.
Explore OpenAds