Digital media has taken on unprecedented importance in 2024, and the presidential candidates are taking notice. Donald Trump and Joe Biden are fighting to persuade voters online first and foremost, with billions of dollars projected to be spent on digital advertising — a 156 percent jump from 2020.
Digital media’s role in advertising has evolved from underestimated to indispensable. For many years, I sat in meetings and on calls listening to traditional television consultants disparage digital media. Here’s a sampling of what I would hear:
“The numbers will never be there.”
“No one will ever watch video on a phone.”
“This is all just a passing trend.”
Now, these same consultants have reversed their stance, claiming that all digital video is actually television and that “digital” merely pertains to fundraising and daily social media posts. They even argue that CTV has TV in the name, implying it belongs in the television domain. Well, a peanut isn’t a nut, a jellyfish isn’t a fish, and a koala bear isn’t a bear. Similarly, CTV isn’t traditional TV.
Understanding why CTV aligns more closely with digital media than traditional linear television is crucial for an effective political campaign. After all, political CTV ad spending is expected to balloon by 600 percent this election cycle.
At my firm, we believe this so strongly that it’s stated in every contract, and we do not take on clients without it being agreed that we handle CTV. Here’s why:
1. Internet Connectivity
CTV devices, including smart TVs and streaming devices, rely on the internet to deliver content. They don’t depend on TV stations. This connectivity places them firmly within the digital ecosystem.
2. Non-Television Devices
CTV content can be viewed on various devices, including smartphones, tablets, and computers, not just traditional televisions.
3. Targeted Advertising
CTV leverages data-driven advertising, enabling precise targeting based on viewer behavior, voting history, interests, preferences, and demographics. This capability is a hallmark of digital advertising, contrasting with the broad, less targeted approach of linear TV ads.
4. Performance Metrics
Digital media is known for its robust measurement and analytics capabilities. CTV continues this tradition, offering detailed metrics on viewer engagement, ad performance, and content consumption, allowing for more effective campaign optimization. This isn’t true with linear TV.
5. Cross-Platform Integration
Ads delivered on CTV are typically integrated with other digital platforms. We use the same targeting parameters and audience segments across CTV, OTT, social media, and all other video platforms, ensuring a consistent and cohesive campaign strategy.
6. Combined Measurement Approach
The only way to accurately measure reach and frequency across different audience segments is through a combined digital approach. By aggregating data from CTV and other digital platforms, we can gain a comprehensive view of campaign performance, ensuring optimal frequency without wasting dollars.
7. Campaign Savings
As the digital agency, we place more digital ads for clients across the board than the TV vendor, thus securing cheaper programmatic rates that we can pass on to the client.
The only argument for why CTV and other digital videos should belong in the camp of the TV vendor is that the TV guys created the ad. But placing an ad created for TV on digital channels is forcing a square peg into a round hole. It’s also quite lazy. When we have the ability to use data to drive targeted messages to segmented audiences, why would you use the same ad targeting an entire DMA? One message rarely moves all voters.
The best campaigns don’t have this internal conflict. The television and digital teams work seamlessly to coordinate messages and buying strategies, both broadly and targeted. This collaborative effort ensures that the strengths of both mediums are utilized to their fullest potential, creating a campaign that is both wide-reaching and precisely targeted.
The bottom line for 2024 is this: Embrace a digital-first approach and integrate that with traditional methods. This will pave the way for more innovative advertising outcomes for your campaign.
Wesley Donehue serves as founding partner and CEO at Push Digital Group.
