It’s an ongoing trend to see political ads on social media platforms and these ads are usually tailored to capture the attention of specific voter segments. Some of the ads target young people, others focus on single issues and a few aim at people within a certain geographic area. A recent shift in this trend has seen Republicans buying campaign ads on X with a different intention. It’s not primarily to attract voters to candidates and causes but rather to use the increasingly conservative-friendly platform as a hype machine.
The study conducted by Washington Post and AdImpact reveals that between March 6 and October 1, Republican accounts spent three times as much on X political ads as Democrats. Whereas Vice President Kamala Harris’s campaign has not purchased any ads on X.
It’s understandable why there’s a Republican-heavy advertising on X. Though X executives argue that the platform’s users are roughly divided evenly politically, the alterations that Elon Musk made in 2022 after purchasing the previously christened Twitter platform chased away some of the left or middle-of-the-spectrum ideological users.
Musk himself, former President Donald Trump’s endorsee, did away with much of the platform’s content moderation and restored accounts that had been suspended for spreading misinformation or conspiracy theories. Many X users are politically active conservatives who are in tune with many of the right-wing views propagated by Musk and other users. Putting political ads in front of this audience can drive fundraising and content sharing, even off of the platform.
Trump’s official X account is the leading political ad buyer on the platform, and Musk’s America PAC, established to back the former President, is also increasing its spending on the platform. On the flip side, Harris’s campaign is spending more outside of X. To demonstrate, the Harris Victory Fund has spent $33.6 million on Meta’s platforms in comparison to the Trump National Committee’s $8 million. On Google’s platforms, Harris’s campaign is the biggest spender with $53.1 million, more than doubling Trump’s spending of $23.1 million.
Considering the advertising dollars purely, Harris is working harder to broadcast her message across a wider range of voters. Conversely, Trump and his fellow Republicans are spending more to amplify their beliefs in a seclusive echo chamber. Both these strategies could bring fruitful results.
Harris’s widespread message could bring about a larger voter turnout, while Trump’s focused message could build a deeper customer base, leading to a loyal following in whatever comes after Election Day.
On another note, a profound effort is being made to acknowledge the contributions of the Hispanic community to the US. Currently making up around 20% of the country’s population and counting for about a $3.2 trillion in GDP, the Hispanic market is still not the prime target for many marketing campaigns.
There’s a substantive need for marketers to understand the nuances of the Hispanic community in terms of their norms, traditions, and potential consumer habits. Such an understanding is key to creating successful strategic marketing campaigns that can tap into the opportunities provided by this significant demographic group.
