Abstract: Processes and systems for tracking and utilizing interactions between users and advertisements within a social network are provided. An exemplary process includes receiving interaction data associated with interactions between users and advertisements and training an adaptive algorithm based on interaction data, user data, and advertisement data. Interaction data may include past interactions with an advertisement by a user, and along with associated user data (e.g., demographic data, social data, etc.), and advertisement data (e.g., advertisement details and targeting criteria), can be used by an adaptive algorithm to identify patterns between user data and advertising data to increase the chances of a desired interaction when placing advertisements to users. The adaptive algorithm may include one or more of an adaptive pattern matching algorithm, regression analysis algorithm, neural network algorithm, or genetic algorithm.

Abstract: Processes and systems for targeting advertisements to users within a social network are provided. In one example, a process includes receiving an advertisement request from a first user of a social networking system, the advertisement request including an advertisement and at least one social targeting criterion associated with the advertisement. The social targeting criterion may include an indication to target second users of the social networking system having a direct or first degree of connection to the first user. The process may further determine one or more attributes of the first users; for example, identifying one or more second users having a first degree of connection to the user. In other examples, the targeting criterion may include targeting second users having a second degree of connection relative to the first user, targeting second users of one or more social groups of the first user, or combinations thereof.