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Kerry, John

Presidential Campaigns' Online Advertising Efforts Fall Short

Strategic Insights

— 2 min read

In the midst of the presidential election, both candidates' teams are leveraging the Internet to connect with voters and secure election wins. However, despite their efforts, the impact of online advertising by the campaigns is proving to be limited. According to a recent study by the Pew Internet & American Life Project, the presidential campaigns have spent a mere $2.6 million on online advertising between January and August, which is less than 1 percent of the estimated $330 million spent on TV ads over the same period. This paltry sum has led some to question the effectiveness of online advertising in the 2004 presidential election.

Key Takeaways:

  • The Pew Internet & American Life Project study found that President Bush's campaign spent $419,000 on online ads, while Kerry's campaign spent $1.3 million, with the Republican National Committee outspending its Democratic counterpart by $230,000.
  • The biggest online ad buys for Bush were at sites like KPTV Oregons12.tv.com, Parents.com, and KNVA-TV.com, while Kerry's biggest online ad buys were at sites like SFGate.com, Newsweek.com, and Village Voice.com.
  • The study's author, Michael Cornfield, noted that while presidential campaigns have stepped up their online fund-raising and voter-profiling efforts, they have not ventured aggressively into online advertising.
  • The presidential ad war online is beginning to look like a skirmish, with both candidates spending relatively little on online ads, totaling less than $1.8 million, which is a pittance compared to their television advertising budgets.
  • The ads were not noticeably more negative than ones found in traditional media, with the report saying that online political advertising has adhered to mass media standards of political discourse.
  • The Bush campaign aimed its online ads at middle-class women and voters in battleground states, while Kerry's campaign concentrated on raising money from progressive outlets in metropolitan areas.
  • The Democratic National Committee (DNC) spent around $400,000 on online ads after the first debate, buying ads on 50 sites, including USA Today, The Washington Post, MSNBC, and Salon.com, and plans to have another online media blitz after the second debate.

Statistics:

  • $2.6 million: The amount spent by presidential campaigns on online advertising between January and August.
  • $419,000: The amount spent by President Bush's campaign on online ads.
  • $1.3 million: The amount spent by Kerry's campaign on online ads.
  • $1.8 million: The total amount spent by both candidates on online ads.
  • $330 million: The estimated amount spent on TV ads by the campaigns in the top 100 media markets between January and August.
  • 62 million: The number of viewers who watched the first debate between President Bush and Sen. John Kerry.
  • 24 million: The number of viewers who watched Kerry's acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention.

Sources:

  • The Associated Press via The Philadelphia Inquirer: Campaigns Putting More Ads on Net, but Bulk Go to TV
  • The Washington Post: Campaigns Spending Little On Web Ads (Registration required)
  • CBS MarketWatch via Investor's Business Daily: Political Campaigns Ignore the Net as Ad Medium
  • Wired News: Kerry Campaign Dumps Cash on Web (Registration required)
  • The Chicago Tribune: Pitching a President (Registration required)
  • Wired News: Pinpointing Voters on a Map
  • CNET's News.com: Volcano Research Goes Hi-Tech
  • Knight Ridder Newspapers via Kansas City Star:Volcano Watchers Armed With New Tools, but Uncertainty Lingers
  • The Wall Street Journal: EarthLink to Offer Free Calling Between Computers Over the Web (Subscription required)

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