Targeting Settings - Ad Control Help Center

Overview

Adrop SDK supports two types of targeting:

Audience Targeting: Target ads based on user attributes (gender, age, interests, etc.)
Contextual Targeting: Target ads based on content or screen context

By utilizing targeting, you can show more relevant ads to users, and advertisers can effectively deliver ads to their desired audience.

Audience Targeting

You can target ads based on user attributes.

1. Create Targeting

First, create audience targeting in the Ad Control console.

Create Targeting

Learn how to create audience targeting in the console

2. Set User ID

You must set the user identifier before rendering ads.

import AdropAds

// Set user ID after login
Adrop.setUID("user_id")

@import AdropAds;

// Set user ID after login
[Adrop setUID:@"user_id"];

Set the UID before entering the ad placement for targeting ads to work correctly.

3. Set User Properties

Setting user attributes enables more precise targeting.

import AdropAds

// Set built-in properties
AdropMetrics.setProperty(key: AdropKey.GENDER, value: AdropValue.AdropGender.MALE)
AdropMetrics.setProperty(key: AdropKey.AGE, value: 30)
AdropMetrics.setProperty(key: AdropKey.BIRTH, value: "19931225")

// Set custom properties (must be registered in console)
AdropMetrics.setProperty(key: "membership", value: "premium")
AdropMetrics.setProperty(key: "interest_tech", value: true)
AdropMetrics.setProperty(key: "last_purchase_date", value: "2024-01-15")

@import AdropAds;

// Set built-in properties
[AdropMetrics setPropertyWithKey:AdropKeyGENDER value:AdropValueAdropGenderMALE];
[AdropMetrics setPropertyWithKey:AdropKeyAGE value:@30];
[AdropMetrics setPropertyWithKey:AdropKeyBIRTH value:@"19931225"];

// Set custom properties (must be registered in console)
[AdropMetrics setPropertyWithKey:@"membership" value:@"premium"];
[AdropMetrics setPropertyWithKey:@"interest_tech" value:@YES];
[AdropMetrics setPropertyWithKey:@"last_purchase_date" value:@"2024-01-15"];

The setProperty() method may have limited availability in Objective-C due to its Encodable parameter type. Use Swift for property configuration when possible.

Property values only support single values (String, Int, Double, Bool). Arrays or dictionaries are not supported.

Built-in Properties

The SDK provides predefined keys for commonly used attributes.

AdropKey

Key	Description	Value Type
`AdropKey.GENDER`	Gender	AdropValue.AdropGender
`AdropKey.AGE`	Age	Int
`AdropKey.BIRTH`	Date of birth	String (YYYY, YYYYMM, YYYYMMDD)

AdropValue

Predefined values for gender:

Value	Description
`AdropValue.AdropGender.MALE`	Male
`AdropValue.AdropGender.FEMALE`	Female
`AdropValue.AdropGender.OTHER`	Other
`AdropValue.UNKNOWN`	Unknown

// Set gender
AdropMetrics.setProperty(key: AdropKey.GENDER, value: AdropValue.AdropGender.MALE)
AdropMetrics.setProperty(key: AdropKey.GENDER, value: AdropValue.AdropGender.FEMALE)
AdropMetrics.setProperty(key: AdropKey.GENDER, value: AdropValue.AdropGender.OTHER)

// Set age
AdropMetrics.setProperty(key: AdropKey.AGE, value: 25)

// Set date of birth
AdropMetrics.setProperty(key: AdropKey.BIRTH, value: "1999")         // Year only
AdropMetrics.setProperty(key: AdropKey.BIRTH, value: "199903")       // Year and month
AdropMetrics.setProperty(key: AdropKey.BIRTH, value: "19990315")     // Full date

// Set gender
[AdropMetrics setPropertyWithKey:AdropKeyGENDER value:AdropValueAdropGenderMALE];
[AdropMetrics setPropertyWithKey:AdropKeyGENDER value:AdropValueAdropGenderFEMALE];
[AdropMetrics setPropertyWithKey:AdropKeyGENDER value:AdropValueAdropGenderOTHER];

// Set age
[AdropMetrics setPropertyWithKey:AdropKeyAGE value:@25];

// Set date of birth
[AdropMetrics setPropertyWithKey:AdropKeyBIRTH value:@"1999"];       // Year only
[AdropMetrics setPropertyWithKey:AdropKeyBIRTH value:@"199903"];     // Year and month
[AdropMetrics setPropertyWithKey:AdropKeyBIRTH value:@"19990315"];   // Full date

Custom Properties

You can set additional properties registered in the console. All custom property keys are strings, and values support String, Int, Double, and Bool types.

// String values
AdropMetrics.setProperty(key: "membership", value: "premium")
AdropMetrics.setProperty(key: "favorite_category", value: "electronics")

// Integer values
AdropMetrics.setProperty(key: "purchase_count", value: 5)
AdropMetrics.setProperty(key: "loyalty_points", value: 1500)

// Double values
AdropMetrics.setProperty(key: "average_purchase", value: 49.99)

// Boolean values
AdropMetrics.setProperty(key: "is_subscribed", value: true)
AdropMetrics.setProperty(key: "newsletter_opt_in", value: false)

// Remove a property by passing nil
AdropMetrics.setProperty(key: "membership", value: nil)

// String values
[AdropMetrics setPropertyWithKey:@"membership" value:@"premium"];
[AdropMetrics setPropertyWithKey:@"favorite_category" value:@"electronics"];

// Integer values
[AdropMetrics setPropertyWithKey:@"purchase_count" value:@5];
[AdropMetrics setPropertyWithKey:@"loyalty_points" value:@1500];

// Double values
[AdropMetrics setPropertyWithKey:@"average_purchase" value:@49.99];

// Boolean values
[AdropMetrics setPropertyWithKey:@"is_subscribed" value:@YES];
[AdropMetrics setPropertyWithKey:@"newsletter_opt_in" value:@NO];

// Remove a property by passing nil
[AdropMetrics setPropertyWithKey:@"membership" value:nil];

Custom properties must be registered in the console before use.

Constraints

Note the following constraints when setting properties:

Single values only: Arrays ([String], [Int]) or dictionaries ([String: Any]) are not supported.
Supported types: Only String, Int, Double, and Bool are available.
Key length: Up to 64 characters.
Value length: String values up to 256 characters.
Max properties: Up to 256 properties per user.
Pre-registration required: Custom properties must be registered in the console first.

// ❌ Wrong usage (arrays/dictionaries)
AdropMetrics.setProperty(key: "interests", value: ["tech", "gaming"])  // Not supported
AdropMetrics.setProperty(key: "profile", value: ["age": 25])          // Not supported

// ✅ Correct usage
AdropMetrics.setProperty(key: "interest_tech", value: true)
AdropMetrics.setProperty(key: "interest_gaming", value: true)
AdropMetrics.setProperty(key: "age", value: 25)

Event Tracking

Track user behavior events to build audiences based on user actions. Use AdropMetrics.sendEvent() to send events.

logEvent() is deprecated. Use sendEvent() instead.

Sending Events

import AdropAds

// Simple event (no parameters)
AdropMetrics.sendEvent(name: "app_open")

// Event with parameters
AdropMetrics.sendEvent(name: "view_item", params: [
    "item_id": "SKU-123",
    "item_name": "Widget",
    "item_category": "Electronics",
    "price": 29.99
])

@import AdropAds;

// Simple event (no parameters)
[AdropMetrics sendEventWithName:@"app_open" params:nil];

// Event with parameters
[AdropMetrics sendEventWithName:@"view_item"
                         params:@{
                             @"item_id": @"SKU-123",
                             @"item_name": @"Widget",
                             @"item_category": @"Electronics",
                             @"price": @29.99
                         }];

Multi-Item Events

For events involving multiple items (e.g., purchase, begin_checkout), pass an array of dictionaries under the "items" key.

import AdropAds

AdropMetrics.sendEvent(name: "purchase", params: [
    "tx_id": "tx_123",
    "currency": "KRW",
    "items": [
        ["item_id": "A", "item_name": "Product A", "price": 100, "quantity": 1],
        ["item_id": "B", "item_name": "Product B", "price": 200, "quantity": 2]
    ]
])

@import AdropAds;

[AdropMetrics sendEventWithName:@"purchase"
                         params:@{
                             @"tx_id": @"tx_123",
                             @"currency": @"KRW",
                             @"items": @[
                                 @{@"item_id": @"A", @"item_name": @"Product A", @"price": @100, @"quantity": @1},
                                 @{@"item_id": @"B", @"item_name": @"Product B", @"price": @200, @"quantity": @2}
                             ]
                         }];

Supported Event Examples

Event Name	Description	Common Parameters
`app_open`	App opened	—
`sign_up`	User signed up	`method`
`view_item`	Viewed item	`item_id`, `item_name`, `price`
`add_to_cart`	Added to cart	`item_id`, `item_name`, `price`, `quantity`
`add_to_wishlist`	Added to wishlist	`item_id`, `item_name`, `price`
`begin_checkout`	Began checkout	`currency`, `items`
`purchase`	Purchase completed	`tx_id`, `currency`, `items`
`page_view`	Page viewed	`page_id`, `page_category`
`click`	Element clicked	`element_id`, `element_type`

Event name must be 1–64 characters.
Parameter key must be 1–64 characters.
String parameter values are limited to 1024 characters.
Duplicate events with the same name and parameters are throttled within a 500ms window.

You can control whether user data is sent to the server using userDataConsent. When set to false, property data is stored locally only, and events are not transmitted.

// Check current consent status
let hasConsent = AdropMetrics.userDataConsent

// Set consent status
AdropMetrics.setUserDataConsent(true)

When userDataConsent is false, targeting and event tracking will not function. Ensure consent is set to true before using setProperty() or sendEvent().

Contextual Targeting

You can target ads based on content or screen context.

1. Create Targeting

First, create contextual targeting in the Ad Control console.

Create Contextual Targeting

Learn how to create contextual targeting in the console

2. Set Value on Ad Placement

Pass the Context ID set in the console when loading ads.

import AdropAds

// contextId is set via initializer (read-only property)
let banner = AdropBanner(unitId: "YOUR_UNIT_ID", contextId: "sport")
banner.load()

@import AdropAds;

// contextId is set via initializer
AdropBanner *banner = [[AdropBanner alloc] initWithUnitId:@"YOUR_UNIT_ID" contextId:@"sport"];
[banner load];

Native Ads

import AdropAds

class ViewController: UIViewController {
    private var nativeAd: AdropNativeAd?

    func loadAd() {
        // contextId is set via initializer
        nativeAd = AdropNativeAd(unitId: "YOUR_UNIT_ID", contextId: "tech")
        nativeAd?.delegate = self
        nativeAd?.load()
    }
}

@import AdropAds;

@interface ViewController ()
@property (nonatomic, strong) AdropNativeAd *nativeAd;
@end

@implementation ViewController

- (void)loadAd {
    // contextId is set via initializer
    self.nativeAd = [[AdropNativeAd alloc] initWithUnitId:@"YOUR_UNIT_ID" contextId:@"tech"];
    self.nativeAd.delegate = self;
    [self.nativeAd load];
}

@end

Other Ad Formats

Context targeting applies only to banner and native ad requests that include a Context ID (banner and native ads in the Android and iOS SDKs, the Web SDK, and the REST API). Interstitial, rewarded, popup, and splash ads, as well as the Flutter and React Native SDKs, do not send a Context ID. If an ad product that contains these placements uses context targeting, campaigns that include context options are not shown in those placements, and context exclusions are not applied there.

Dynamic Context Setting

You can set context dynamically based on the screen or content.

import UIKit
import AdropAds

class ArticleViewController: UIViewController {
    private var banner: AdropBanner?
    var articleCategory: String?  // Article category

    override func viewDidLoad() {
        super.viewDidLoad()

        // contextId is set via initializer (read-only property)
        let contextId = articleCategory ?? ""
        banner = AdropBanner(unitId: "YOUR_UNIT_ID", contextId: contextId)

        banner?.delegate = self
        view.addSubview(banner!)
        banner?.load()
    }
}

// Usage example
let sportArticle = ArticleViewController()
sportArticle.articleCategory = "sport"

let techArticle = ArticleViewController()
techArticle.articleCategory = "tech"

Context Setting in SwiftUI

import SwiftUI
import AdropAds

struct ArticleView: View {
    let category: String

    var body: some View {
        VStack {
            Text("Article Content")

            // Set context dynamically based on category
            AdropBannerRepresented(
                unitId: "YOUR_UNIT_ID",
                contextId: category
            )
            .frame(width: 320, height: 100)
        }
    }
}

// Usage example
struct ContentView: View {
    var body: some View {
        TabView {
            ArticleView(category: "sport")
                .tabItem { Label("Sports", systemImage: "sportscourt") }

            ArticleView(category: "tech")
                .tabItem { Label("Tech", systemImage: "cpu") }

            ArticleView(category: "business")
                .tabItem { Label("Business", systemImage: "chart.line.uptrend.xyaxis") }
        }
    }
}

Full Examples

Audience Targeting Full Example

import UIKit
import AdropAds

class AppDelegate: UIResponder, UIApplicationDelegate {
    func application(
        _ application: UIApplication,
        didFinishLaunchingWithOptions launchOptions: [UIApplication.LaunchOptionsKey: Any]?
    ) -> Bool {
        // Initialize SDK
        Adrop.initialize(production: false)

        // Set UID after user login
        Adrop.setUID("user_12345")

        // Set basic user properties
        AdropMetrics.setProperty(key: AdropKey.GENDER, value: AdropValue.AdropGender.MALE)
        AdropMetrics.setProperty(key: AdropKey.AGE, value: 28)
        AdropMetrics.setProperty(key: AdropKey.BIRTH, value: "19960315")

        // Set custom properties
        AdropMetrics.setProperty(key: "membership", value: "premium")
        AdropMetrics.setProperty(key: "interest_tech", value: true)
        AdropMetrics.setProperty(key: "interest_sports", value: true)
        AdropMetrics.setProperty(key: "purchase_count", value: 15)

        // Send app start event
        AdropMetrics.sendEvent(name: "app_open")

        return true
    }
}

class ProductViewController: UIViewController {
    override func viewDidLoad() {
        super.viewDidLoad()

        // Product view event
        AdropMetrics.sendEvent(
            name: "view_item",
            params: [
                "item_id": "PROD_123",
                "category": "electronics",
                "price": 299.99
            ]
        )
    }

    @IBAction func addToCartTapped(_ sender: UIButton) {
        // Add to cart event
        AdropMetrics.sendEvent(
            name: "add_to_cart",
            params: [
                "item_id": "PROD_123",
                "quantity": 1,
                "price": 299.99
            ]
        )
    }

    func completePurchase() {
        // Purchase complete event
        AdropMetrics.sendEvent(
            name: "purchase",
            params: [
                "transaction_id": "T67890",
                "value": 299.99,
                "currency": "USD"
            ]
        )

        // Update purchase count
        let newPurchaseCount = 16
        AdropMetrics.setProperty(key: "purchase_count", value: newPurchaseCount)
    }
}

Contextual Targeting Full Example

import UIKit
import AdropAds

// News app example: Display different ads based on article category
class NewsArticleViewController: UIViewController {
    private var banner: AdropBanner?

    // Article info
    var article: Article?

    struct Article {
        let id: String
        let title: String
        let category: String  // "sport", "tech", "business", "entertainment"
    }

    override func viewDidLoad() {
        super.viewDidLoad()

        setupBanner()
        loadArticle()
    }

    private func setupBanner() {
        // contextId is read-only — set via initializer
        let contextId = article?.category ?? ""
        banner = AdropBanner(unitId: "YOUR_UNIT_ID", contextId: contextId)

        banner?.delegate = self

        if let bannerView = banner {
            view.addSubview(bannerView)
            bannerView.translatesAutoresizingMaskIntoConstraints = false
            NSLayoutConstraint.activate([
                bannerView.centerXAnchor.constraint(equalTo: view.centerXAnchor),
                bannerView.bottomAnchor.constraint(equalTo: view.safeAreaLayoutGuide.bottomAnchor),
                bannerView.widthAnchor.constraint(equalToConstant: 320),
                bannerView.heightAnchor.constraint(equalToConstant: 100)
            ])
        }

        banner?.load()
    }

    private func loadArticle() {
        // Send article view event
        if let article = article {
            AdropMetrics.sendEvent(
                name: "view_article",
                params: [
                    "article_id": article.id,
                    "category": article.category
                ]
            )
        }
    }
}

extension NewsArticleViewController: AdropBannerDelegate {
    func onAdReceived(_ banner: AdropBanner) {
        print("Category '\(article?.category ?? "")' targeted ad loaded successfully")
    }

    func onAdFailedToReceive(_ banner: AdropBanner, _ errorCode: AdropErrorCode) {
        print("Ad load failed: \(errorCode)")
    }

    func onAdImpression(_ banner: AdropBanner) {
        print("Ad impression")
    }

    func onAdClicked(_ banner: AdropBanner) {
        print("Ad clicked")
    }
}

// Usage example
let sportArticle = NewsArticleViewController()
sportArticle.article = NewsArticleViewController.Article(
    id: "A123",
    title: "Premier League Match Results",
    category: "sport"
)

let techArticle = NewsArticleViewController()
techArticle.article = NewsArticleViewController.Article(
    id: "A124",
    title: "New AI Technology Announced",
    category: "tech"
)

Best Practices

1. UID Setting Timing

Set the UID as soon as the user logs in.

// On successful login
func didLoginSuccessfully(userId: String) {
    Adrop.setUID(userId)

    // Also set user properties
    AdropMetrics.setProperty(key: "is_logged_in", value: true)
}

// On logout
func didLogout() {
    Adrop.setUID("")  // Reset UID
    AdropMetrics.setProperty(key: "is_logged_in", value: false)
}

2. Maintain Property Consistency

Set user properties at app launch or whenever values change.

class UserManager {
    func updateUserProfile(profile: UserProfile) {
        // Sync properties when profile info updates
        AdropMetrics.setProperty(key: AdropKey.AGE, value: profile.age)
        AdropMetrics.setProperty(key: "membership", value: profile.membershipLevel)
        AdropMetrics.setProperty(key: "interest_\(profile.mainInterest)", value: true)
    }
}

3. Send Meaningful Events

Only send important user actions as events.

// ✅ Good examples: Meaningful actions
AdropMetrics.sendEvent(name: "purchase", params: ["value": 99.99])
AdropMetrics.sendEvent(name: "level_complete", params: ["level": 10])
AdropMetrics.sendEvent(name: "tutorial_complete")

// ❌ Bad examples: Excessive events
AdropMetrics.sendEvent(name: "button_tapped")  // Too generic
AdropMetrics.sendEvent(name: "scroll")         // Too frequent

4. Context ID Consistency

Context IDs must exactly match the values registered in the console.

// ✅ Good examples: Clear and consistent IDs (set via initializer)
let sportBanner = AdropBanner(unitId: "YOUR_UNIT_ID", contextId: "sport")
let techBanner = AdropBanner(unitId: "YOUR_UNIT_ID", contextId: "tech")
let bizBanner = AdropBanner(unitId: "YOUR_UNIT_ID", contextId: "business")

// ❌ Bad examples: Inconsistent or ambiguous IDs
let banner1 = AdropBanner(unitId: "YOUR_UNIT_ID", contextId: "Sport")  // Case mismatch
let banner2 = AdropBanner(unitId: "YOUR_UNIT_ID", contextId: "technology")  // Different from console value
let banner3 = AdropBanner(unitId: "YOUR_UNIT_ID", contextId: "category_1")  // Unclear meaning

Do not use commas (,) in Context IDs, because a comma separates multiple values both in the console and in an ad request. When requesting ads, pass the value exactly as entered in the console, without leading or trailing spaces.
To match more than one context in a single request, pass a comma-separated value such as hiking,outdoor. The first 5 IDs are used, and exclusion takes precedence over inclusion. See Passing Multiple Context IDs.
If you don’t pass a Context ID, or pass a value that isn’t registered in the console, no error occurs. Only campaigns with context targeting are excluded, and other ads can still be served.

Next Steps

Banner Ads

Apply targeting to banner ads

Native Ads

Apply targeting to native ads

Create Audience Targeting

Create audience targeting in the console

Create Contextual Targeting

Create contextual targeting in the console

​Overview

​Audience Targeting

​1. Create Targeting

Create Targeting

​2. Set User ID

​3. Set User Properties

​Built-in Properties

​AdropKey

​AdropValue

​Custom Properties

​Constraints

​Event Tracking

​Sending Events

​Multi-Item Events

​Supported Event Examples

​User Data Consent

​Contextual Targeting

​1. Create Targeting

Create Contextual Targeting

​2. Set Value on Ad Placement

​Banner Ads

​Native Ads

​Other Ad Formats

​Dynamic Context Setting

​Context Setting in SwiftUI

​Full Examples

​Audience Targeting Full Example

​Contextual Targeting Full Example

​Best Practices

​1. UID Setting Timing

​2. Maintain Property Consistency

​3. Send Meaningful Events

​4. Context ID Consistency

​Next Steps

Banner Ads

Native Ads

Create Audience Targeting

Create Contextual Targeting

Overview

Audience Targeting

1. Create Targeting

2. Set User ID

3. Set User Properties

Built-in Properties

AdropKey

AdropValue

Custom Properties

Constraints

Event Tracking

Sending Events

Multi-Item Events

Supported Event Examples

User Data Consent

Contextual Targeting

1. Create Targeting

2. Set Value on Ad Placement

Banner Ads

Native Ads

Other Ad Formats

Dynamic Context Setting

Context Setting in SwiftUI

Full Examples

Audience Targeting Full Example

Contextual Targeting Full Example

Best Practices

1. UID Setting Timing

2. Maintain Property Consistency

3. Send Meaningful Events

4. Context ID Consistency

Next Steps