$9 billion is being spent this election year and 12% of will be spent online - the highest amount in history. Some may quibble about that amount. Given the importance of digital and, particularly, mobility in contemporary life that seems to under-represent the potential impact. The reality, however, is that it mirror - and even somewhat exceeds - the amounts being dedicated to digital by business. The reason is that data about impact is still sparse and most marketers - from whose ranks many political campaign advisers are drawn - tend to stick to the tried-and-true.
As the following article explains, campaigns are tracking their candidates - and spouses - likes, twitter followers and related ephemera. At this stage this may amount to nothing more than morale-boosting irrelevance, but as the associated reportage makes clear, the web generally and social media especially are acting as an echo chamber for the advertising and traditional marketing or PR efforts that may well amplify their impact. For instance, it is being posited that the reason Twitter was the more popular platform during the first debate, but Facebook surpassed it during the second because the nature of the two exchanges lent themselves to either monologue or dialogue. That sort of nuance may become significant as marketers become more adept at interpreting the information and then applying it.
The debate about pride of place may already be beside the point. Digital has muscled its way into the mix. TV, print, radio and the web all have their uses. The campaign that wins will probably be the one that weaves them all together most effectively. JL
Devon Glenn reports in Social Times, as does Alex Fitzpatrick in Mashable):
Out of the projected $9 billion that will be spent on political campaigns for the 2012 presidential elections, 12 percent of the funds will be devoted to digital media Social networks offer candidates a chance for social validation and word of mouth marketing, at least in theory. According to iProspect, 38 percent of people who use social networks said that they learned things about their friends’ political leanings that they didn’t know before, and not necessarily good things – 10 percent of them have blocked, unfriended or hidden a friend because he or she posted too frequently about political topics.
But awareness is important, especially in the swing states.
Take a look at two people who are often overlooked in these types of analyses: the prospective first ladies. While Governor Mitt Romney has a solid follower base of 1.5 million people on Twitter, Ann Romney is trailing behind him at 133,000 followers. Michelle Obama, by comparison, has 1.8 million followers – more than Ann Romney and Governor Romney combined. President Barack Obama has the most followers by far at 20.9 million.
While the first presidential debate between Barack Obama and Mitt Romney set a new politics record on Twitter, the second only saw a fraction of the tweets sent during the first: 7.2 million for Tuesday’s town hall event to the first debate’s 10.3 million.
One might argue that Twitter’s numbers going down might be a sign that Tuesday’s debate wasn’t as popular overall on social media than the first debate.
However, according to an analysis from Attention, powered by Tracx, engagement across social networks during the second debate was at 31% — a high since Attention began tracking the debate on social media in March. For reference, engagement during the first debate was rated at 20%.
If the conversation wasn’t happening on Twitter, where did it all go? Facebook.
Nearly 40% of the online conversations about Tuesday’s debate happened on Facebook, while an equal percentage was seen on Twitter. During the first debate, those percentages were 77% — 6% in Twitter’s favor.
What does that trend show? Possibly, more two-way conversations and less broadcasting.
“Since messages on Twitter tend to be one-sided and immediate, it is harder to engage with in a meaningful way,” argues Attention’s analysis. “The increased mentions on Facebook indicates conversations and, accordingly, debates.”
The data may also reflect the instant popularity of the “Binders Full of Women” Facebook page, which got more than 260,000 “likes” overnight. A similar Tumblr account and plenty of parody Twitter accounts also gained some traction, but didn’t receive the same traction as the Facebook page.
Attention includes Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr, YouTube, blogs, forums and news websites in its analysis of conversation on the social web
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