Targeting Intention: Reshaping Performance Marketing with Custom Intent Audiences

In a world where privacy reshapes how we measure and connect, digital advertising is undergoing a quiet but fundamental shift. The traditional approach of identifying users and following them around the web is giving way to something more precise, more respectful, and ultimately more effective: targeting intention.

At the center of this evolution are custom intent audiences. Unlike demographic or interest-based segments, these audiences are built around real-time purpose. They don't rely on who users are, but on what users are trying to do in the moment. For advertisers navigating a post-cookie landscape and rising expectations for both relevance and privacy, the change to intent-based marketing couldn't be more timely.

1. Custom Intent Audiences vs. Traditional Segments: What Makes the Difference?
2. From Identity to Intention: Privacy-First Precision.
3. Aligning Creative with Intention.
4. The Case for Rethinking Audience Strategy.
5. Where to Begin: Turning Strategy Into Skill.
6. Enroll in the Seedtag Academy Certification.

Custom Intent Audiences vs. Traditional Segments: What Makes the Difference?

Traditional audience segments work by assigning users to broad groups based on past behavior or assumed interests. A user who once browsed for electric cars might continue receiving related ads for weeks, even if their focus has shifted elsewhere. Custom intent audiences, by contrast, start with the present. They identify users based on the content they are actively consuming (articles, product comparisons, search behaviors…) and match that with the user’s likely intention.

This present-tense approach makes custom intent audiences inherently more relevant. It’s the difference between assuming someone is interested in fitness because they follow a sports brand on social media, and recognizing they’re ready to buy running shoes because they’re comparing prices on review pages.

The outcome? More qualified impressions, less wasted spend, and a clearer path to performance.

From Identity to Intention: Privacy-First Precision

One of the main advantages of custom intent audiences is how well they fit within today’s privacy-first advertising landscape. 

Unlike identity-based models that depend on cookies or device IDs, intention-based targeting doesn’t need to know who a user is. It only needs to understand what they’re doing.

This difference isn’t just technical but philosophical. Instead of building user profiles based on long-term surveillance, advertisers are focusing on real-time, in-the-moment signals. These include the depth and structure of content, the tone and sentiment of the page, and the user’s position in their decision-making journey.

By using AI models trained to read these signals in real time, advertisers can detect not just interest, but readiness. And they can do so without compromising user privacy.

The Metrics That Matter

Performance is still the goal. And here, the numbers speak for themselves. When global automotive brand Nissan adopted Seedtag’s intention-based strategy to promote its C-SUV category, the results were substantial:

• A 67% reduction in Cost Per Qualified Visit (CPQV).
• A 34% drop in Cost Per Lead (CPL).
• A threefold increase in qualified visits against target.
  
  

What made the difference was simple. Ads were served only when users were showing active signals of intent; not just reading about cars, but comparing models, evaluating financing, or locating dealerships. In doing so, Nissan avoided mid-funnel waste and focused their investment where it had the most impact.

Across industries, similar results are emerging. Campaigns that embrace custom intent audiences consistently outperform those relying on static segments, particularly when it comes to mid- and lower-funnel outcomes.

Aligning Creative with Intention

Reaching the right user in the right moment is only part of the equation. The creative needs to match that moment too. When advertisers target based on intention, the creative strategy must follow suit. Messaging that resonates in a high-intent context looks different than messaging designed for awareness or passive browsing.

For example, a user reading general reviews about smartphones might respond well to informative, value-driven creative. But a user comparing two models side-by-side, looking at specifications or price breakdowns, is further along the journey. In that context, the ad should be clear, action-oriented, and directly aligned with the decision at hand.

This is where Seedtag’s AI intention models play a dual role. Not only do they assess the user’s intent, they also measure how relevant the campaign’s messaging is for that moment. By calculating both an Intention Score and a Campaign Relevance Score, Seedtag’s system ensures that ads appear not just when users are ready to act, but when the message is most likely to land.

This alignment between content, mindset, and creative is what turns impressions into outcomes.

The Case for Rethinking Audience Strategy

Marketers have spent years optimizing for attention by measuring viewability, maximizing impressions, and expanding reach. But attention alone doesn’t drive performance. Without intention, attention is passive. It doesn’t necessarily signal interest, and it rarely signals readiness.

Custom intent audiences offer a way to bridge that gap. They allow advertisers to:

• Replace volume with precision.
• Move beyond proxy metrics to actionable insight.
• Increase qualified engagement without relying on personal data.

In short, they bring intentionality into targeting, in a move that’s both ethically sound and commercially effective.

Where to Begin: Turning Strategy Into Skill

Custom intent audiences are a feature that represents a mindset shift. One that requires new ways of planning, measuring, and creating. For advertisers looking to make that shift, knowledge is the first step.

That’s why Seedtag has launched a new certification through Seedtag Academy: “Targeting Intention.” This program unpacks everything from the foundations of intent-based targeting to the role of AI in modeling user mindset in real time.

It’s designed for marketers who want to:

• Understand how intention works across the funnel.
• Activate privacy-first strategies that don’t sacrifice performance.
• Build creative that speaks to purpose, not just persona.

Whether you're in strategy, media, creative, or analytics, the course provides a practical framework for applying intention in real campaigns.

You’ll learn why performance now depends on understanding not who users are, but what they’re trying to do,  and how you can meet them there.

Enroll in the Seedtag Academy Certification

If you're ready to move beyond identity and start targeting real-time purpose, the new Seedtag Academy certification on “Targeting Intention” is now open. Learn how to activate campaigns that perform better, cost less, and respect your audience. Discover the full course and enroll today.