Winning the Vote With OTT & CTV

Political ad spending is set to crush records, with midterm spending expected to be at an all-time high. The latest projection from AdImpact considers that nearly $9.7 billion will be spent on political ads during this year’s election cycle. When it comes to the media mix, while TV continues to dominate, CTV is projected to account for more than 15% of all political ad budgets, approaching $1.5 billion. Whereas eMarketer is predicting $9.1 billion in political ad spending, with $1.5 billion going to CTV, Kantar’s taking a more conservative approach, estimating an ad spend of $7.8 billion—with $1.2 billion being spent on OTT and CTV ads. While everyone has their own forecasts, one thing is certain: A vast amount of money will be spent on political advertising in the coming weeks.

The 2022 midterm elections include 435 seats in the U.S. House of Representatives, 35 out of 100 seats in the Senate, 39 State and Local gubernatorial races, a third of big city Mayors, and many ballot initiatives. With so much at stake and as Election Day draws closer, political ads will become inescapable.

The rise of CTV and OTT is no longer a new phenomenon for political advertising. eMarketer predicts 84% of U.S. households in 2022 will be Connected TV households, and that number will continue to grow.

Election Voters are OTT Viewers

73% of Election Voters are watching Ad-supported OTT (147 million people), as found by MRI-Simmons. 36% of Election Voters enjoy streaming TV shows that have ads or commercials, and more voters overall prefer streaming free content with ads instead of paying for a subscription. Recent data shows that this audience considers ads seen on OTT relevant and memorable.

As the political season heats up, it becomes highly important to engage with voters, run your ads on quality content, and reach your desired audiences. It’s also crucial for political campaigns to deliver to plan. Political ads are time-sensitive, and with such a tight ad window, there’s no time for makegoods. The time is now.

Political advertisers need a trusted partner who has shown that they can provide the content and audience desired and have also proven they can reliably deliver to plan in each specific market.

With OTT becoming a key component of the media plan for candidates, it’s imperative that campaigns find the right OTT partner that will deliver results. To learn more about how we can help you drive results for your campaign click here.