Every four years, U.S. businesses brace for an inevitable disruption in their digital marketing efforts: the final 30 days of a presidential election. As the political noise reaches its peak, brands across industries—from retail to real estate—face a perfect storm of engagement drop-offs, sky rocketing ad costs, and fierce competition for attention. Even if your brand has nothing to do with politics, the election cycle can significantly impact your digital campaigns. Here’s how to prepare for the challenges ahead and keep your marketing efforts on track.
1. Increased Competition and Skyrocketing Ad Costs
During a presidential election, political campaigns dominate digital ad space. Google Ads, Facebook, and YouTube are flooded with high-budget political campaigns. As a result, the average cost-per-click (CPC) and cost-per-thousand-impressions (CPM) can skyrocket, even for businesses that have nothing to do with politics. The last 30 days are especially brutal, with campaigns pulling out all the stops to reach voters.
What to Expect:
• Higher CPC: Expect CPC rates to increase, sometimes drastically, especially if you’re targeting the same demographics as political advertisers.
• Ad Saturation: Ads across all channels can become oversaturated with political content, making it harder for your business ads to stand out.
What to Do:
• Adjust Budgets: Allocate a higher ad spend for this period, especially if you rely heavily on PPC campaigns. Alternatively, consider pausing or reducing spend and reallocating budgets to non-peak election periods.
• Refine Targeting: Narrow your targeting to specific niche audiences less likely to be targeted by political campaigns. Use negative keywords to filter out election-related content.
2. Diminished Engagement
The final 30 days of a U.S. election tend to see an overall decline in engagement on social platforms and even in email marketing efforts. People are bombarded with news, political ads, and heated debates, making them less receptive to branded content.
What to Expect:
• Lower Click-Through Rates (CTR): With attention directed towards political news and social media chatter, CTRs for non-political content typically take a nosedive.
• Content Fatigue: Users may experience content fatigue, overwhelmed by the sheer volume of information about the election. This often leads to lower engagement with non-political content.
What to Do:
• Increase Organic Engagement: Since paid efforts may underperform, focusing on organic social media strategies can help. Engage your audience with relatable, non-intrusive content that offers value or a temporary distraction from the political noise.
• Interactive Content: Polls, quizzes, and other forms of interactive content can grab attention and foster engagement during this time.
3. Disrupted Conversion Rates
Conversions often decline during the election cycle, especially in the last 30 days. The national focus shifts away from purchasing decisions to political discourse, and even businesses that aren’t politically involved may feel the squeeze.
What to Expect:
• Lower Purchase Intent: Consumers may delay non-essential purchases due to economic uncertainty or stress caused by the political climate.
• Weaker Conversion Funnels: The emotional and mental toll of the election may cause potential customers to drop off at various stages of the conversion funnel, even if your campaigns are strong.
What to Do:
• Time-Sensitive Offers: Create urgency with flash sales or limited-time promotions to combat lower purchase intent. Incentives like free shipping or exclusive offers can help push users through the conversion funnel.
• Optimize Landing Pages: During this period, your landing pages must work harder to convert visitors. Use clear, concise messaging and streamlined checkout processes to reduce friction.
4. Ad Approval Delays and Restrictions
Many ad platforms, especially Facebook, impose stricter rules around political and social issue advertising during the election period. Even if your business isn’t political, there’s a risk that your ads may get flagged or experience longer approval times.
What to Expect:
• Stricter Ad Scrutiny: Keywords or creative elements that inadvertently relate to election topics could cause your ads to be flagged, delaying approval or leading to disapprovals.
• Approval Delays: The influx of political ads can result in slower review times, even for non-political campaigns.
What to Do:
• Plan Ahead: Submit ads earlier than usual to account for potential delays in approval.
• Review Ad Copy and Creative: Avoid any language or imagery that could be construed as political or related to social issues. Double-check that your ads comply with each platform’s updated guidelines for this period.
5. Customer Sentiment and Trust Shifts
Election cycles often bring heightened sensitivities, with consumers more aware of the stances businesses take—or don’t take—on political issues. While this is more prevalent for brands that engage in corporate social responsibility (CSR), even non-political brands may experience shifts in customer sentiment based on how they communicate during the election season.
What to Expect:
• Increased Scrutiny: Consumers might scrutinize your messaging and branding more during this time, even if it’s unrelated to the election. The risk of being unintentionally linked to political conversations is higher.
• Shifts in Trust: People are hyper-aware of biases during election time, which can sometimes spill over into how they view brands and businesses.
What to Do:
• Stay Neutral (If Applicable): If your brand has no political stance, maintain neutrality in your messaging to avoid alienating customers. Use this time to focus on your core values and how you support your community or industry.
• Monitor Sentiment Closely: Use social listening tools to gauge customer sentiment and respond to any potential issues proactively.
Conclusion: Preparing for the Home Stretch
The final 30 days of a U.S. presidential election are a whirlwind of political noise, skyrocketing ad costs, and shifting consumer behaviors. But with careful planning, strategic budget adjustments, and refined targeting, your business can weather the storm and continue driving engagement and conversions—even amid the chaos.
Start preparing early, stay agile, and consider reallocating some of your ad spend until after election day if performance dips too dramatically. With these tactics, you can maintain a strong digital presence without getting lost in the election shuffle.
