This newsletter, coming to you at the beginning of the earnest and chaotic political buying cycle, comes with some good news.
A recent survey by Centro, a Chicago and Toronto-based programmatic ad buying firm, says that political ad buyers are worried about a range of issues facing this political year. The know there are landmines out there, they’re just not sure when they’re going to go off.
To which Spot-On says, “d’uh”.
Regular readers know most of this but to re-cap (and kinda humble brag) here are the results with links to our earlier newsletters on the topics.
Worried about changes platforms have made for political ads (81% say this is a big problem) and corresponding concerns about the ability to target voters on the minds of most buyers (66%).
Getting clients to pay attention to digital (64%) or increase budgets (55%).
Covid-19 as a distraction for voters (53%). We actually don’t think this is as big a deal because Covid-related news is driving the surge in online searches for information.
Brand safety and ad fraud worries (40% each).
Changing state and federal regulation (38%).
If you open this newsletter even semi-regularly, there’s no news here. So bear with us while we repeat ourselves.
Buy your political ads directly from publishers. It’s not just good business, it’s good politics. Publisher are paying more attention to their website than ever before. Your ads will be seen – and appreciated.
A well-run online ad buy can avoid waste – without voter targeting. Advertising on trusted news sites reaches voters. Look for ways to target by geographic and zip, not just voter lists. And use high-impact ads that can generate attention both inside and outside the newsroom.
Spot-On knows the local news market. We have a database of more than 4500 trusted local sites in cities and town across the country. We can tell you who serves your district and advise you on options and buying strategies.
Want more? Drop us a line and let us show how our new platform makes your ad buying easier, clearer and more secure.