2020 is going to be a big year for political campaigns! It is both a presidential election year, combined with many other high-profile senate and congressional races. And that’s just at the national level. When you break it down by state, you are sure to run into countless other heated political campaigns this coming year, both in the primary and general election.

So how will this impact your business’s advertising strategy in 2020?

All of these political campaigns will be using media, to some degree, to communicate their message. We’re talking television, radio, digital, outdoor billboards and signage, direct mail, and much more. The general public, which includes members of your target audience, will be inundated with these ads, making it all the harder to grab their attention. Not to mention how this will impact media inventory and prices.

Regardless of your political views, there are a few very important things you need to know about advertising during a political cycle. If you are a business that plans to use paid media of any type this year, take note.

Space will be limited.

The closer and closer we get to Election Day, the harder it will be to find open media spots. This applies to both the primary election this spring, and the general election in November. You better believe media spots are already being purchased right now, even as far back as last fall – 6 months out!

The lesson to be learned here is to act now if you know there is a certain media spot your business really wants to have as part of their advertising strategy. Prime placement is likely to get scooped up sooner. Unless you’re guaranteed it in your current contract with your media rep, the same ad spot you’ve had for years could be sold out from under you. With 2020 being a prime election year, this just means you need to stay on your toes and act quickly.

Prices will increase.

That’s right, the same ad spot you had last season could cost you exponentially more money to run during a political cycle. It’s the simple concept of supply and demand. Plus political campaigns often have large budgets dedicated to advertising which means they can afford to dump a healthy chunk of change into prime advertising spots.

Your business needs to become smart and flexible with your advertising strategy. If you’re priced out of your go-to ad spots, look for comparable options that will fit within your budget. Or maybe you need to change courses completely, for example shifting more toward social media advertising over the traditional billboards you used to do.

While having to change up your strategy due to political advertising may be frustrating and cause you a little more work in the short-term, think of it as an opportunity to explore alternate forms of advertising you might not have otherwise. You might learn that some of these alternatives better meet your goals!

You need a professional.

Before you get frustrated navigating the changing landscape of advertising during a big political election year, make sure you get an experienced media buyer on your team to help. We have the experience of working through this before, and can give you the best course of action to make your strategy work for you, despite any changes that may be necessary.

We can also help to negotiate better pricing and placement. Best of all, for media firms with a business model like Mid-Atlantic Media Hub, you don’t pay a penny more for your advertising – not to us or the media outlets! In fact, you often pay less for the same or better placement. We work as the advertising arm of your business, but we are not a line-item in your budget!

For a quick refresher of these important points, take a look at the Mid-Atlantic Media Hub’s Media Minute on this very topic. In just 60 seconds we’ll brief you on everything you need to consider when competing against political ad placement in 2020. Click on the video below!

Do you have additional questions related to this topic? Let us help to navigate the challenging landscape of media buying in 2020. Contact us today so we can help you and your business make the most of your advertising strategy this year!