In an age where generic ads are no longer enough, Display & Video 360 (DV360) offers powerful tools for precision targeting that can dramatically improve ROI. Let’s dig into how to use DV360 for advanced audience targeting, what’s changed recently, and what a performance company can do to stay ahead.

Press enter or click to view image in full size

What DV360 Offers: Key Targeting Features

✅DV360 provides a rich set of targeting capabilities. Some of the most useful ones:

✅First-party audiences: Use your own data (website/app behavior, customer lists, CRM). Retarget, exclude, or build lookalikes.

✅Affinity, In-Market, Demographic Audiences: Prebuilt categories like people interested in sports, travel, tech; life stage metrics; income segments.

✅Custom Audiences / Intent Signals: Based on recent searches, visited websites, app usage etc., to find users likely to convert.

✅Optimized Targeting: Replaces older “Similar Audiences” by using machine learning and real-time signals to expand beyond fixed lists and find users with high conversion likelihood.

✅Geography & Device Targeting: Tailor your reach by location (country, city, radius) and device type (mobile, desktop, smart TV, OS, connection).

✅Day & Time Targeting (Day-parting): Choose when your ads run (hours, days) to align with audience behavior.

Recent Changes & Why They Matter

✅Deprecation of Similar Audiences: DV360 has phased out “Similar Audiences.” As of 2025, Optimized Targeting is used instead, which uses signals rather than static audience lists.

✅Shift from Third-Party Cookie Reliance: With privacy changes, the accuracy of third-party cookie data is declining. DV360 is emphasizing first-party data, intent signals, and privacy-safe methods.

✅AI & Audience Personas: Google has expanded AI-based tools so users can describe their ideal customer in plain language and have DV360 suggest or build audience lists. This speeds up campaign setup and often uncovers segments marketers might miss.

Data & Performance Insights (Stats to Know)

✅Companies that allocate 15–20% of their programmatic budget to audience testing identify 3× more high-performing segments annually than those who don’t.

✅Brands using sophisticated segmentation in DV360 report ~32% improvement in conversion rates over campaigns using basic demographic targeting.

✅Integrating first-party data often reduces customer acquisition cost (CAC) by ~25–30% compared to using third-party segments alone.

How a Performance Company Should Use DV360 for Audience Targeting

Let’s say a performance marketing agency / company (we’ll call it Performena) wants to maximize results for its clients using DV360.

Step 1: Build Strong 1st-Party Foundations

✅Collect reliable first-party data via your website, apps, CRO (conversion tracking, Floodlight tags).

✅Maintain clean customer lists in your CRM, segment by behavior (e.g. repeat buyers, cart abandoners, high LTV).

Step 2: Use Signals + Intent

✅Use recent browsing history, search behavior, and custom intent audiences to reach users showing active interest.

✅Layer these signals (e.g. combine “in-market for travel” + “visited competitor sites” + “recent searches”) for more precise buckets.

Step 3: Activate Optimized Targeting

✅Set up campaigns with Optimized Targeting. Use your best seed audiences (from first-party or high past performers) and allow DV360’s ML to expand reach in similar, high propensity users.

Step 4: Layer & Exclude Wisely

✅Combine targeting dimensions (e.g., geography + device + time), but avoid over-restricting so that scale isn’t lost.

✅Use exclusion lists to remove audiences who have already converted or who are irrelevant.

Step 5: Measure, Test, Iterate

✅Track key metrics by audience: conversion rate, CAC, ROAS, view-throughs etc.

✅Run A/B or multivariate tests: different audience segments, creative messaging per segment, different bidding strategies.

✅Update segments: audience performance degrades over time, so refresh your seed data or signals every few weeks.

Example Use Case (by Performena)

Client: Mid-sized eCommerce brand selling health & wellness products.

✅Performena first uploads the brand’s loyal customer list to DV360 (Customer Match).

✅They build custom intent audiences based on recent searches (“plant based protein”, “yoga mat”) + in-market health product segments.

✅The campaign uses Optimized Targeting to find new lookalike-type users.

✅Ads run during early evening hours on weekdays (based on insight when conversions happen).

✅Devices: mobile & tablet prioritized (client’s data shows better engagement here).

Result: 28% improvement in conversion rate, 22% lower CAC vs previous campaigns with just broad demographics.

Key Takeaways

✅DV360 is no longer about just picking audience buckets — it’s about feeding the right signals (first-party, intent, behavioral) into the system and letting the platform’s AI help find high-potential users.

✅Always maintain data hygiene, test continuously, and refresh audiences to stay effective.

✅For performance companies like Performena, the edge lies in combining creative strategy + data + smart optimization. That’s how you punch above budget.

Looking for a reliable programmatic agency in UAE to boost your digital advertising results? Performena offers cutting-edge programmatic solutions tailored to your business goals.

For More Info :

Preatoni Tower, Unit 2406, Cluster L, JLT, Dubai, UAE.
UAE :+971 4 835 9935 /
IN :+91–8553464715