# I came from AdTech. Someone had to. Navigating the AdTech jungle so you don't have to get lost. A guide from someone who's seen the cannibals. Page: Feed: --- ## [The Search Query Is Changing. Measurement Hasn’t Caught Up.](https://adtechshelley.substack.com/p/the-search-query-is-changing-measurement) _2026-08-18 · AdTech Shelley_ Search used to offer a straightforward trade. ## [Great Creative! Shame the Buyer was a Bot.](https://adtechshelley.substack.com/p/great-creative-shame-the-buyer-was) _2026-07-29 · AdTech Shelley_ Marketing has spent decades learning how to persuade people ... but now the buyer may not be an actual person. ## [New Things Have Come to Light. Your new Campaign doesn't have an AI Problem.](https://adtechshelley.substack.com/p/new-things-have-come-to-light-your) _2026-07-23 · AdTech Shelley_ It has a Math Problem ## [AI Didn’t Eliminate Ad Work. It Created 600 More Things to Check.](https://adtechshelley.substack.com/p/ai-didnt-eliminate-ad-work-it-created) _2026-07-20 · AdTech Shelley_ AI was supposed to eliminate all the tedious shit in advertising. ## [The House Always Wins: How Google Rebranded Corporate Extortion as "Efficiency"](https://adtechshelley.substack.com/p/the-house-always-wins-how-google) _2026-07-16 · AdTech Shelley_ It’s been a beautiful summer for corporate cognitive dissonance. ## [The Programmatic Wake](https://adtechshelley.substack.com/p/the-programmatic-wake) _2026-05-06 · AdTech Shelley_ A Eulogy for the "Spray and Pray" Era ## [Headline: The Two Faces of AI: Brilliant Consultant, Terrible Employee](https://adtechshelley.substack.com/p/headline-the-two-faces-of-ai-brilliant) _2026-01-30 · AdTech Shelley_ Why I trust the machine to write the strategy, but I won’t let it drive the bus. ## [The AI Divide: MarTech Built a Tesla, Ad Tech Built a Black Box](https://adtechshelley.substack.com/p/the-ai-divide-martech-built-a-tesla) _2025-10-26 · AdTech Shelley_ The Two AIs: Why MarTech is Building the Future While Ad Tech Is Still Pinging Your Grandma’s Desktop ## [AdTech's Pricey Gamble](https://adtechshelley.substack.com/p/adtechs-most-expensive-gamble) _2025-09-25 · AdTech Shelley_ Why AI is AdTech's Most Expensive Distraction ## [The Precision Playbook Series: Extinguishing Your Ad Spend Bonfire](https://adtechshelley.substack.com/p/the-precision-playbook-series-extinguishing) _2025-09-23 · AdTech Shelley_ Stop Burning Ads Like It’s a Bonfire ## [Save with community-voted codes (Sponsored)](https://crawlproof.com/a/nuXqUY8UiVDe) _2025-09-23 · **Sponsored**_ Search thousands of community-verified coupon codes — 100% free, no account needed. ## [The Great Programmatic Paradox](https://adtechshelley.substack.com/p/the-great-programmatic-paradox) _2025-09-15 · AdTech Shelley_ Why We Still Buy Crap ## [The Precision Playbook Series: Escaping the Win Rate Illusion](https://adtechshelley.substack.com/p/the-precision-playbook-series) _2025-09-08 · AdTech Shelley_ The Win Rate Illusion: Is a High Win Rate a Sign of Success or a Trap? ## [The Sinner Playbook](https://adtechshelley.substack.com/p/the-sinner-playbook) _2025-09-04 · AdTech Shelley_ What Ad Tech Can Learn from a US Open Masterclass in First Party Power ## [The Precision Playbook Series: A/B Testing Your Way to Profit](https://adtechshelley.substack.com/p/the-precision-playbook) _2025-09-02 · AdTech Shelley_ Win in the Amazon DSP. Is your investment working or are you overpaying for traffic? ## [An announcement from a remote, sandy office](https://adtechshelley.substack.com/p/an-announcement-from-a-remote-sandy) _2025-08-27 · AdTech Shelley_ A few changes, and no, I'm not selling out. (yet.) ## [Algorithmically Enhanced Absurdity: How AI is Systematically Amplifying Programmatic Waste](https://adtechshelley.substack.com/p/algorithmically-enhanced-absurdity) _2025-08-23 · AdTech Shelley_ Because what the digital ad space really needed was a faster, smarter way to burn money on bot traffic and MFA sites. ## [The Unlikely Romance](https://adtechshelley.substack.com/p/the-unlikely-romance) _2025-08-22 · AdTech Shelley_ Macy's is letting its biggest rival manage its ad platform, proving that when the numbers are right, even the fiercest competitors are willing to share a bed ... and maybe some data. ## [The AdTech Dating Scene's Latest Saga - Walmart's Open Relationship: The Trade Desk Gets The "It's Not You, It's the DSPs" Talk](https://adtechshelley.substack.com/p/the-adtech-dating-scenes-latest-saga) _2025-08-21 · AdTech Shelley_ The Retail Media dating scene just got complicated. Walmart's exploring new partners, leaving marketers to navigate the fallout and find their new match. ## [Yahoo's DSP: The Ad Tech Secret Sauce No One's Talking About](https://adtechshelley.substack.com/p/yahoos-dsp-the-ad-tech-secret-sauce) _2025-08-20 · AdTech Shelley_ The AdTech world is evolving, and Yahoo's DSP is quietly emerging as a key player. Learn how leveraging first-party data from retail giants is unlocking targeting precision and ROI. ## [The Trade Desk vs. Amazon: It's Not a Funeral, It's an Afterparty](https://adtechshelley.substack.com/p/the-trade-desk-vs-amazon-its-not) _2025-08-12 · AdTech Shelley_ How competition is forcing every player to sharpen their edge—and why that's a win for everyone. ## [Zero-Persistence E2EE (Sponsored)](https://crawlproof.com/a/HERJMsQmK9qT) _2025-08-12 · **Sponsored**_ End-to-end encryption with client-side WebCrypto and volatile memory. ## [The Return of the AdTech Bard](https://adtechshelley.substack.com/p/the-return-of-the-adtech-bard) _2025-08-11 · AdTech Shelley_ Hello, old friends (and a few new ones, I hope).