How brands and agencies are mastering the political advertising war for the 2024 elections

In the US, the 2024 election cycle is expected to be record-breaking from a media spending perspective, and in a highly polarized society, every vote counts. As in previous election cycles, expect a rise in misinformation, fake news, ad fraud, and the unethical use of data. This year, marketers will also have to contend with AI.

In these unpredictable environments, advertisers run the risk of inadvertently associating their brands with undesirable content. At the same time, brands and agencies are influential players in this industry – and how they spend their media dollars is more important than ever.

While exiting is not an option for most advertisers, agencies and brands are finding ways to build resilience and prepare for a turbulent media cycle. In addition to understanding the challenges of 2024, brands and agencies are working to secure their media buys, which will be critical for responsible advertising and mitigating reputational risk.

Recognizing the impact of political issues helps guide ad exposure

It’s important for marketers to monitor their brands’ position in relation to global issues and news cycles. For some, politics and social events are an integral part of their customer propositions, for others, less so.

It is important to understand how active a company should be, as this will impact how and where media dollars ultimately flow.

For example, while it may be tempting to avoid advertising around news content this year for brand safety reasons, cutting funding to reputable news outlets is not necessarily the right way to build a stronger media landscape for the future. Brands need to grapple with difficult issues.

Testing strategies, geographic locations and voter preferences is critical to the success of a campaign

Before September, brands and agencies can test their creative and tuning preferences across different geographies to find out what works and what doesn’t and create targeted campaigns.

Once the official election cycle is in full swing, it may no longer be possible to be creative or try new things, so summer is an ideal time to see how campaigns are performing. Talking to partners about true transparency in media placements at a granular level provides an invaluable opportunity for brands and agencies.

Brand-safe, scalable environments such as TV and DOOH provide additional security

Associations like the ANA and OAAA are encouraging brands and agencies to seek brand-safe environments in spaces like TV and DOOH this year. It’s also important to closely monitor how different advertising platforms are responding to the election. While platforms can’t ban discourse around the election, some have banned election-related ads and others have implemented safety protocols and tools to combat misinformation. While there’s likely no fail-safe guarantee, the right partners can provide visibility and expertise to brands and agencies.

Planning takes short-term ad price increases into account to achieve the best ROI for campaigns

If all brands and agencies follow the ANA’s advice and jump on brand-safe opportunities, costs will rise – in some cases significantly – just as they do in key swing states in the all-important six weeks before the election.

By planning now and allocating their budgets according to expected timelines and to account for costs during these potentially higher-cost periods, while prioritizing channels and tactics with the highest return on investment, brands and agencies can ensure the most bang for their buck.

The media industry can be a challenging one, and now is the time to make plans and build key partnerships to navigate this industry. Brands and agencies that prepare now to run their campaigns for a turbulent—and consequential—election cycle in 2024 will maximize their media investments while minimizing risks.

Sponsored by Digilant

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