It finally happened.

After years of running campaigns, writing captions, and explaining the word “algorithm” to at least five different clients, I got caught. By my own kind.

Last week, I was scrolling through Instagram (a.k.a. the unofficial workplace of every digital marketer) when I saw an ad for a “minimal productivity app that helps you stay focused”.
Cute font. Soft beige background. Smooth voiceover saying, “Designed for people who overthink but still get things done.”

I clicked. I downloaded. I signed up.
Then it hit me.

I had literally helped write a campaign just like that last month. I wasn’t just the marketer anymore — I was the target audience.

The Internet Knows Me Too Well

There’s something terrifyingly accurate about how these algorithms work now. I could just think about needing new earphones, and boom — a Myntra ad for “noise-cancelling, stylish, and under ₹999” follows me everywhere.

Last month, I searched for “healthy snacks for late-night work” (because deadlines). Within an hour, my entire feed turned into a nutritionist’s paradise ; protein chips, seed mixes, sugar-free cookies, an d of course, that one influencer saying, “I swear by this energy bar during long work hours.”

I’m like, “Same, bro. Except I’m the one promoting you.”

We talk so much about consumer targeting and personalised content in digital marketing, but when you see it happening to you, it’s both impressive and slightly creepy.
It’s like watching a magician pull off a trick you taught them — but still being amazed anyway.

The Irony of Being a Digital Marketer

The funny part is I know every trick in the book: the retargeting pixel, the urgency copy, the “offer ends tonight” line, and yet, I fall for it.

There was this one time during the Amazon Great Indian Festival when I told myself I’d “just browse”. Two hours later, I was comparing smartwatch prices like my life depended on it.
Meanwhile, Flipkart’s app kept politely reminding me: “Only 3 left in stock!”

I teach brands how to do this.
And somehow, they’re teaching me back.

Sometimes I wonder if this is karma for all those “Don’t miss out” captions I’ve written at 2 a.m.

Even Swiggy Instamart knows me too well now. It’s like, “Hey, you usually order chips around this time.”
Relax, Swiggy. I don’t need that kind of accountability in my life.

When You Realize You’re the Persona

You know how we build buyer personas in our campaigns? “ Meet Hiba, 22, a great digital marketer from Calicut, who loves coffee, binge-watches Netflix, and uses her phone 9 hours a day.”

Yeah. Hi, that’s me.

It’s kind of humbling to realise you’ve become the exact person your campaign decks are describing. You can almost hear your own creative brief reading your mind —

“Target audience: young professionals who are always online, slightly tired, and definitely over-caffeinated.”

Every ad I see now feels like it was made by someone who’s been following my Google searches around. Oh wait; they kind of have.

This whole journey made me realize how digital marketing psychology in India has evolved,  we’ve built a world where even the marketers get marketed to.

The Moment I Accepted My Fate

It’s not like I didn’t try to resist.
Once, I saw a YouTube pre-roll ad that said, “Stop scrolling. You’ve been looking for this course.”
And I was like, ‘No, I haven’t!’ (as I clicked on it anyway).

Cut to me 15 minutes later, watching a webinar on “How to write irresistible ad copy.”
The irony was suffocating.

At this point, I think I’ve accepted my fate. I am both the hunter and the hunted — the marketer and the mark.
If there’s ever a new marketing trend about “self-targeting”, I’m the case study.

The Silver Lining (Because We Marketers Love a Takeaway)

But you know what? It’s not all bad.
Being your own target audience actually teaches you something valuable: empathy.

When I click on an ad now, I pay attention.
What made me stop scrolling?
Was it the colour, the copy, or the way it felt personal?

I realised the best digital marketing campaigns aren’t about hard selling; they’re about soft understanding.
It’s that little human insight – the “I get you” moment – that makes people click, buy, and stay.

It’s why some campaigns feel like therapy, while others feel like spam.

The Campaign That Got Me (Again)

The latest one?
An ad for an ergonomic chair that said, “Because your back deserves a promotion too.”

I didn’t even think twice. Added to cart. Done.
The marketer in me was like, “Brilliant copy.”
The human in me was like, “Ouch, my spine.”

And that’s the beauty of it, isn’t it? Good marketing doesn’t feel like marketing. It feels like someone just understood you better than you understand yourself.

Final Thoughts (If You Can Call Them That)

So yeah, if you ever find yourself clicking on an ad you know was built using the same audience segmentation and emotional triggers you used last week, don’t feel bad.

It just means your kind is winning.

Maybe we digital marketers are the most targetable people on the internet, but we’re also the ones who know what good marketing looks like when we see it.

And if I’m falling for it?
That’s just proof that the strategy works.

Now excuse me, I just got an email that says, “Your abandoned cart misses you.”
Guess it’s time for another lesson in self-awareness