---
id: "quote-the-donut"
type: "quote"
source_timestamps: ["§ Distance has a U-shaped impact", "¶13"]
tags: ["spatial-analytics", "targeting-optimization"]
related: ["concept-inverted-u-shape"]
speaker: "Bowen Luo and Bhoomija Ranjan"
speakers: ["Bowen Luo", "Bhoomija Ranjan"]
sources: ["tail1"]
sourceVaultSlug: "hbr-seg-tail1"
originDay: 1
articleStem: "hbr-tail-115-location-based-advertising"
sourceUrl: "https://hbr.org/2026/03/a-better-strategy-for-location-based-advertising"
sourceTitle: "A Better Strategy for Location-Based Advertising"
---
# The Donut Targeting Zone

> "The optimal targeting zone may not be a circle but something more like a donut, excluding the innermost ring where ads are redundant and focusing on the moderate-distance band where they change behavior."

— [[entity-bowen-luo]] and [[entity-bhoomija-ranjan]] (¶13)

The defining image of [[concept-inverted-u-shape]]. "Innermost ring where ads are redundant" = the [[concept-billboard-effect]] zone; "moderate-distance band" ≈ 4–14 miles.