Harneet Singh

Types of Facebook Political Ads in Canada

Types of Facebook Political Ads in Canada

Social Media and Politics

Meta’s Facebook & Instagram platforms represent Canada’s lion’s share of political advertising. On the one hand, their massive user base & engaged audiences offer a lucrative opportunity for political advertisers to engage with voters nationwide. On the other, restrictive Canadian government regulations and decisions by other popular social media platforms (such as TikTok & Snapchat) effectively leave Meta as the most accessible, viable, and scalable platform for political advertising in Canada. At EOK Consults, a leading Digital and Social Media Marketing Agency for Political Campaigns, we recognize how pivotal Meta has become for effective political advertising. New to the world of Facebook Political Advertising? Check out our Ultimate Guide to Facebook Political Ads in Canada here. This blog highlights the different types of Facebook political ads that are permissible in Canada as well as the variety of ad types, campaign objectives and ad formats available for political advertisers to leverage in their campaigns.  5 Types of Facebook Political Ads Common types of political advertising on Facebook include the following: Candidate Ads – These are sponsored posts that promote a specific candidate or individual running for public office across municipal, provincial or federal levels of government. These are typically done to promote brand awareness for a candidate, their background and profile, policies, platform/ideas as well as reasons to convince voters to elect them. Candidate Ads are generally run before and during an election cycle to ensure maximum reach and engagement with the voters in a specific riding or constituency. Issue Ads – Issue ads represent a form of political advertising which focuses on engagement and action related to a specific political issue. It could be a local issue like library funding or a provincial one like the building of a new public highway or mass transit service. It could even be a macro policy issue such as immigration or interest rates. These ads can be sponsored by individuals (including candidates) or organizations (including political parties) and these may advocate for or against a particular policy or stance on an issue. Advocacy Ads – These ads are similar to issue-based ads in that they promote a particular cause of advocacy group at a mass grassroots level. However, these aren’t always tied to an election cycle but may seek to influence public opinion on a certain matter over a longer-than-typical-election-campaign period. Common examples include massive public policy decisions such as urban planning, real estate development, and sale of restrictive goods such as tobacco & alcohol as well as transit decisions on ride-sharing and community driving.  Election Campaign Ads – All political advertising on Facebook during or just before an election cycle with information on the voting process, political parties, campaigns & their leaders fall under this category. When sponsored by parties or individuals, these ads encourage people to vote for them as well as provide voting information to make it easier for them to head to the polls. A major advertiser behind political ads that encourage more voter participation is regulatory bodies such as Elections Ontario or Elections Canada which use Facebook to engage the public en masse and encourage higher voter turnout.  Social Issue Ads – Social issue ads are a category that Facebook typically associates with issues of mass society or national importance. These are typically advertising on major social issues including race/identity, housing, social change as well as matters of general public safety and wellness amongst others.   Types of Facebook Political Campaign Objectives A successful political campaign connects with the most eligible voters in a defined region and then builds on that connection through engaging content that ultimately translates into votes and ballot decisions. Facebook advertising can help with every stage of a political campaign and offers a wide variety of campaign objectives to choose from, depending on the strategic goals of a political campaign. These include: Brand awareness: Advertising that aims to increase the visibility and recognition of a political candidate, party or idea/cause.  Reach: Campaigns that aim to maximize the number of people who see the political ads of a political advertiser. Reach campaigns are designed to deliver the highest number of ad impressions to as many unique users as possible within a specified target audience. Engagement: These political ads encourage user interaction with the ad content such as likes or comments. Engagement campaigns help create a buzz or viral effect around political campaigns that further help increase the organic reach for political content.  Traffic: Traffic ads drive users to a specific website or landing page set up by the political advertiser. These are useful to help people engage more in-depth with the candidate or the party and their platform, donate, sign up for communication or volunteer and join a campaign.  Video Views: Ads set up to boost views of video content fall under this category. Video is one of the most effective formats of political advertising and sponsored ads help increase the number of views and reach a larger audience for political campaigns. Lead generation: Political ads that aim to collect user information for possible support, as well as action items on key policy issues, are lead generation campaigns.  Messages: Any political ad that encourages people to initiate conversations via the unified Facebook messenger falls under this category. These ads help bridge the campaign and voters together.  Conversions: Any ad campaign that is focused on helping users take specific actions on a website such as donations, vote pledges or sign-ups are called conversion campaigns. These are measurable campaigns that can be very effective in voter engagement and momentum building. Event responses: Political advertisers use Facebook advertising to promote attendance at campaign events, fundraisers, town halls or other gatherings and these ads can help mobilize supporters and community engagement.    5 Popular Ad Formats for Facebook Political Ads in Canada To ensure that political advertisers have an effective and engaging way of communicating with potential voters on Facebook, a variety of ad formats are available. These are generally the same formats as available for other commercial advertising on the platform.

political digital marketing in 2024 trends and predictions

Political Digital Marketing in 2024: Top Trends & Predictions

Political Digital Strategy

https://youtu.be/hBk69EDpRdU Looking back to the developments in 2023, some large industry-defining trends emerged in the political digital marketing industry globally. From record-breaking spending on online advertising to the rise of short-form video content to AI to the need for enhanced cybersecurity, there are a lot of takeaways for the industry going forward into 2024. At EOK Consults, a Digital and Social Media Marketing Agency for Political Campaigns, we witnessed these shifts firsthand at the recent Campaign Tech Innovation Summit in Washington, DC. Here’s a quick summary of the top trends and predictions that will shape the future of political digital marketing in 2024: Record-breaking political advertising to continue Recent reports project that the total spending on political advertising in the US for the upcoming presidential election cycle will cross $16 billion. While the Canadian share of online political advertising is very humble, the shift towards digital platforms and increased online advertising follows similar patterns here at home. More and more political stakeholders across Canada are realizing that digital media isn’t a checkbox in their plans but an actual strategic piece of the political campaign puzzle. With record-breaking population increase, increased penetration of connected devices (smartphones, TVs) and growing access to broadband internet, we can bet that increased preference for digital channels in political campaigning will be a highlight for the scheduled federal elections in 2025 (or earlier, depending on how the political climate evolves).   Video Content rules the airwaves From non-skippable video format to reels to live streams to catchy sponsored video ads on Facebook and Instagram feeds, video emerged as the most popular content format for political advertising in the last couple of years and is here to stay. Social media users crave authentic, personal and engaging content and video ads (when done right) check all the boxes. Whether it’s a personal story behind a candidate or an attack ad against an incumbent, video ads can hook the audience and help create a viral aspect in political advertising that is otherwise hard to generate.  Pierre Poilievre’s recent housing crisis video was a novel 15-minute long documentary-style take on political content and its viral status highlighted how video’s effectiveness when it comes to political content.   Connected TV is the one to watch for The regulatory environment for political advertising on social media channels has been restrictive, to say the least from company-wide bans (like Snapchat, and TikTok) to regulatory hurdles (Bill C-76). However, one increasingly dominant channel for advertising is the world of Connected TV (CTV) – video ads on digital TV sets connected to the internet.  CTV offers political advertisers the ability to target their ads in a hyper-specific manner to voters with certain interests and behaviours beyond the traditional demographic indicators on social media channels.    Tapping into influencers and content creators via TikTok While TikTok doesn’t allow political advertising of any kind in Canada or the US, its importance due to its massive user base cannot be underestimated. Political campaigns that invest time and effort into the real/platform-native content creation systems on TikTok and the ability to tap into some influencers can certainly reap the benefits over the long term. Given how strong its user-led algorithm is, TikTok also has the unique ability to verify the resonance and virality of content or key political messages for campaigns, almost serving as a unique A/B test platform.   AI will change everything (cliché) – Soon AI is expected to transform almost every aspect of human life in the next decade and political advertising is no different. While many believe the future is here, for most political campaigners and strategists, AI (for now) is a way to supercharge their workflows, processes, decision-making and creative outputs. From video editing, captioning, image improvements, and A/B testing to script writing, AI is increasingly being used in almost every aspect of a political campaign and it is expected to continue to transform the way we run and manage political advertising.   Online threat management and cybersecurity will become critical From malicious actors (state/non-state) to phishing/hacking attempts on campaigns to cyber security threats with the potential loss of sensitive voter data, political campaigns will have to level up their cyber security game as we head into the next presidential and federal election cycles across the US and Canada. Bot armies, trolls, deep fakes – the threats just keep on increasing and warnings from secret agencies reiterate the importance of keeping sensitive data safe from landing in the wrong hands.   Authenticity and creativity will make a difference In the hyper-connected realities of today, voters are becoming more discerning and audience fatigue is endemic. Political campaigns will need to present an authentic and creative voice that cuts through the noise to make an impact. While the tools and channels for online advertising will continue to evolve and one needs to leverage all the advancements, the bottom line for the success of any future political campaign will be offering truthfulness in an exciting, engaging and trust-building manner.    Transform your political digital marketing campaign in 2024  Political digital marketing is here to stay and grow in Canada and beyond. While the opportunities are endless, you need a trusted partner to help you build, manage and grow your online presence and profile to match your political ambitions. EOK Consults, a leading Digital and Social Media Marketing Agency for Political Campaigns, has a proven track record of helping clients stay ahead of the curve. Contact us today and let’s deliver winning campaigns, together. 

reasons to use facebook ads for political campaign in Canada

5 Reasons to Use Facebook Ads for Your Next Political Campaign in Canada

Social Media and Politics

From nomination to voter engagement to mass advocacy, Meta’s Facebook and Instagram ads offer an unmatched channel for individuals and organizations to leverage when it comes to online political advertising. As a leading Digital and Social Media Marketing Agency for Political Campaigns, we understand the critical role these platforms play in modern campaigning. Here are the top 5 reasons why you should use Facebook ads for your next political campaign in Canada: Facebook Political Ads are Popular Facebook is one of the most popular social media platforms in Canada with a user base that is unmatched when it comes to diversity of audience and intense level of engagement. When it comes to political campaigns, candidates and organizations thrive on platforms that allow them a chance to connect directly with the voters. Meta, utilizing its cross-platform integration of Facebook and Instagram offers this exact opportunity to political advertisers. It’s the best of all (social) worlds when it comes to political campaigning. The numbers speak for themselves. A typical Federal election cycle sees over $10 million in direct ad spending on Facebook and Instagram in Canada. As a Digital and Social Media Marketing Agency for Political Campaigns, we can help you navigate this landscape effectively.  Facebook Offers Targeted Advertising Unlike traditional mass advertising channels that offer little flexibility when it comes to audience selection, Facebook’s robust advertising platform offers precise targeting options. This allows political campaigns to reach specific voter groups and demographics crucial for their success as well as the ability to customize their message to make the most impact. From geolocation to interests to behaviours, Facebook has a deep understanding of its user base in Canada. The same is offered to political advertisers, in compliance with local laws and regulations. Facebook Political Ads Utilize Innovative Content Formats Today’s social media user has many options to choose from when it comes to the platforms and type of content they wish to engage with. Video is a dominating format when it comes to social media content. Additionally, social media companies constantly tune their algorithm to ensure their users stick around for longer. As a result, these platforms consistently prefer engaging, mobile-friendly content that sparks conversations and reactions.  For advertisers on Facebook and Instagram, there’s a lot of flexibility for political campaigns to leverage short and long-form content including graphic ads, reels, wide-frame videos and more to woo their audience. The benefit of having a Facebook ads manager that offers creative as well as distribution capabilities makes it an even more attractive platform for political advertising. Facebook’s strength as a two-way communication platform between advertisers and voters encourages likes, shares, and organic virality of content that creates the possibility for a sense of community and momentum around a political campaign. Facebook Political Ads Offer Unmatched Return-on-Investment (ROI) Print, TV, and radio advertising have long been key components of political advertising in Canada. A common concern for advertisers on these traditional mass advertising tools is the limited measurability of return on investment (ROI). In contrast, Facebook allows advertisers to set clear goals in terms of their marketing objectives and track performance against those goals. Whether that’s mass reach, brand awareness, website traffic, post engagement, video views or other objectives, advertisers can get the best bang for their buck on Facebook & Instagram social media advertising. Analyzing hundreds of campaigns that we at EOK Consults have managed, we can see successful advertisers connect with 100+ voters for just $5 in digital ad spend. We have managed campaigns where supporters have been identified for specific causes and advocacy issues for as low as 50 cents to $3 per supporter!  In summary, a typical Facebook campaign can easily provide 10x ROI vs traditional forms of political advertising. In addition to advertiser verification, all political ads are required to carry a “Paid for by” disclaimer that identifies the organization, campaign, or individual funding the ad campaign. This further helps in establishing transparency when it comes to political advertising online. Transparency & Real-Time Analytics Are Added Bonus Political advertising is governed by laws and guidelines of the appropriate regulatory organization (municipal, provincial or federal). Facebook provides compliance and transparency tools to ensure that users know who is behind a particular political ad. It also maintains a publicly searchable directory of all political/social issues ads for 7 years on its ads library. These actions help build trust and transparency when it comes to political campaigns and highlight the importance of these elements in a democratic process. For campaign managers and staff members, Facebook’s real-time analytics on ad performance is a true game-changer. Campaigns can track important metrics such as ad reach, engagement, and conversions for real-time assessment and optimization of advertising strategy.  The possibility of real-time A/B testing campaign messaging, graphics and other elements is something traditional political advertising platforms just can’t offer.  In addition to advertiser verification, all political ads are required to carry a “Paid for by” disclaimer that identifies the organization, campaign, or individual funding the ad campaign. This further helps in establishing transparency when it comes to political advertising online. In summary, Meta offers Facebook and Instagram as comprehensive & integrated advertising platforms that are popular, targeted, innovative, measurable and most importantly, effective in reaching Canadian political and advocacy audiences. You just can’t run or manage a winning political campaign in today’s times without these in your toolkit. Launch Winning Political Campaigns on Facebook in Canada Interested in learning more about political advertising on Facebook? Check out our ultimate guide. If you’re running for public office or managing a political or advocacy organization, get in touch to learn how we can deliver winning campaigns to meet your objectives. Learn more by contacting us for a free consultation today.

The Ultimate Guide to Facebook Political Ads in Canada

The Ultimate Guide to Facebook Political Ads in Canada

Social Media and Politics

Facebook political ads offer a modern and engaging way for political candidates & advocacy organizations to connect with their supporters. As a Digital and Social Media Marketing Agency for Political Campaigns, we’re here to provide insights into the basics, examples, and strategies in our ultimate guide. What are Facebook Political ads? Any advertisement on the social media platform Facebook, Instagram, or its network of online publishers that is related to a political campaign, social issue, advocacy group, or a candidate for public office is collectively and commonly known as Facebook Political ads. Such ads represent a popular form of digital political advertising in Canada to engage with the millions of Canadians who use Facebook and its affiliate networks daily.  From politicians promoting their vision and priorities to political parties and special interest groups rallying support for their ideological platforms and ideas, a broad spectrum of messages can be promoted or advertised on Facebook and related social media platforms. Types of Facebook Political Ads Meta Platforms, Inc. (parent company of Facebook & Instagram) offers a variety of content types that can be leveraged for political and advocacy marketing in Canada. This includes short and long-form videos, graphics, and lead-generation or web traffic ads. Multiple formats of political ads available on Facebook & Instagram include sponsored posts on user homepage/news feeds, stories, reels, and video feeds. Does Facebook Allow Political Ads in Canada? The short answer is Yes!  Political sponsored posts and advertisements are allowed in Canada. The same is true for many other countries worldwide, including the US.  However, like most traditional & digital advertising platforms, there are rules and regulations that all advertisers have to abide by and Facebook is no different.  What is important to note is that given the regulations surrounding political digital marketing in Canada, not all Facebook promotional tools and challenges are available for political marketing. There are, however, restrictions that apply to the nature of ads that can be run, targeting options, and the placements available to political ads on Facebook and Instagram.  What do you need to run Facebook Political Ads in Canada? To run political ads on Facebook and Instagram in Canada, advertisers are required to follow an authorization process that verifies their identity and disclosure in terms of responsibility for running and paying for the ads. In addition to advertiser verification, all political ads are required to carry a “Paid for by” disclaimer that identifies the organization, campaign, or individual funding the ad campaign. This further helps in establishing transparency when it comes to political advertising online. What are the rules for Facebook Political Ads in Canada? When it comes to the legal considerations for Facebook political ads in Canada, the Canada Elections Act (CEA) is the defining law that lays out the rules and obligations for advertisers and social media platforms. The flagship rule as part of that act is the requirement for an “ad library” – a searchable archive of all political, social, or issue-based ads that are run in Canada. This showcases the ads, and their disclaimers and provides high-level information on budgets and ad targeting options chosen by the respective campaigns. Any political ad that is activated in Canada is archived in that library for a period of seven years from the launch date. In addition to the ad library and advertiser-level requirements noted above, Facebook has additional community standards and policies that advertisers need to adhere to. These cover the nature and content of ads, the placements available for political ads, targeting options, transparency, and compliance guidelines.  How Popular are Facebook Political Ads in Canada? Facebook ads are extremely popular in Canadian politics. In fact, it is by far the most popular social media platform that supports advertising for political and social issues in Canada. In the last federal elections in 2021, the combined spending on Facebook ads by the three leading political parties exceeded $6 million. In the 2022 Ontario Elections, Facebook political ad spending exceeded $2 million with the Liberal Party in Ontario accounting for more than 50% of the total amount. As a Digital and Social Media Marketing Agency for Political Campaigns, we can help you make the most of these opportunities for engagement. How much does Facebook Political Ads cost? When it comes to budgeting and costs for Facebook political ads, there are a couple of considerations. While the actual spending limit on a campaign is governed by respective campaign laws (municipal, provincial, or federal), Facebook ads have no defined limit. Advertisers can begin political or advocacy marketing for as low as $5 per day. Facebook’s bidding system allows advertisers to turn up or down their spending as per their campaign needs. The beauty of digital ads is the scale, reach, engagement, and flexibility when it comes to campaign management and the same is true for political ads. If your campaign is connecting with the voters, you can add to its budget with a couple of clicks. On the contrary, if you’re not happy with the performance of another political ad, you can shut it down in one click! You can’t say the same for more traditional forms of political advertising. What we have seen in our experience with a wide spectrum of clients across all levels of the government is that, at the end of the day, a combination of the campaign’s overall budget, the candidate or party’s brand image, and strategic priorities influence the budget process for Facebook ads.   What are some of the latest trends in Facebook political advertising in Canada?  Facebook’s advertising platform is constantly evolving to ensure alignment with changing user interests as well as compliance with regulatory requirements.  Some of the latest trends in Canadian political advertising on Facebook & Instagram include: Consistent increase in political ad spending on Facebook by candidates, political parties and third-party organizations The rise of video content as the most popular ad format Reels and stories dominate short-form video content, especially among young voters (18-30 years) Changes in geographic targeting guidelines on Facebook that restrict ads

The Ultimate Guide to Facebook Political Ads in Canada

Everything You Need to Know About Facebook Political Ads in Canada

Social Media and Politics

Political campaigning and advertising has undergone significant transformation around the world with digital media playing an increasingly critical role. The Canadian political landscape is not an exception to this trend. Facebook, being one of the most popular social media platforms in the country, has emerged as a potent tool for political advertising. As a Digital and Social Media Marketing Agency for Political Campaigns, we empower civic and political campaigners to reach and engage millions of Canadians. In this post, we’ll cover everything you need to know about Facebook political ads in Canada. What are Facebook political ads? Facebook political ads are one of the most effective ways to put your campaign message in front of voters. These paid promotions feature text, images, slideshows, and or videos as content types. These elements can be served as ads to a variety of audiences based on their demographic indicators, location, interests, online behaviours, and a combination of these profile characteristics. Users can see Facebook political ads in their news feeds, stories or on the advertising sidebar, which gives a political campaign maximum visibility. While Facebook traditionally offers its advertisers a variety of ad formats (types and sizes) and inventory – all the places where advertising can be shown, the options are a bit limited when it comes to political ads. This is primarily due to Facebook’s political ad guidelines and the need to comply with laws made across different parts of the world. Currently, Facebook can show political ads in the following formats across mobile, desktop, and other devices in Canada: Facebook’s vast understanding of its user base and its capable online platform offers a mix of ad placements and content types. Political campaigns can leverage this to reach voters in a measurable, effective and affordable manner. Whether you’re promoting a candidate, a party, or raising awareness on a social/civil or political issue, Facebook political ads are a valuable tool. These ad campaigns can help you connect with potential voters and make a lasting impression. Does Facebook allow political ads in Canada? The answer is yes – but there are a few important things to keep in mind. To comply with Bill C-76 requirements and Facebook’s guidelines, all political ads must include a “paid for by” disclaimer. Additionally, these ads must be managed by a person or organization authorized to run political ads in Canada. It’s also important to note that Facebook has a zero-tolerance policy for ads that contain false information or violate community standards. Most importantly, any such ads in violation are removed or suspended by Facebook. By following these rules, you can ensure that your campaign stays in compliance and your ads reach your intended audience. What do you need to run Facebook political ads? Running Facebook political ads in Canada requires a bit of setup, but with the right tools and know-how, it can be a highly effective way to reach potential voters. To get started, you’ll need a publicly-visible Facebook page and a Facebook Ads account. Additionally, you also need identity verification and authorization to run political ads. This includes providing a government-issued ID, proof of residence, and proof of authorization to run ads on behalf of a political entity.  Mastering the know-how of online advertising is crucial, especially in complex and budget-conscious environments like a political campaign.   How popular are Facebook political ads in Canada? With the rise of social media, Facebook political ads have become a popular way for political parties to reach voters in Canada. In fact, during the latest Federal elections in Canada, Facebook was the most popular platform for political ads. The total spending on Facebook advertising by all political parties combined exceeded C$6.7 million between June 17th and September 14th, 2021. As a Digital and Social Media Marketing Agency for Political Campaigns, we help political candidates and organizations leverage Facebook’s massive user base and targeted advertising capabilities to engage voters effectively. With Twitter and Tiktok taking a stance against political advertising and Google allowing restricted advertising in Canada, Facebook remains one of the only major social media platforms readily available for running such ads. This further cements its role in the realm of digital politics. What about cost and budget? If you’re considering using Facebook ads for your political campaign in Canada, costs and budgets are important factors. The cost of Facebook political ads can vary widely depending on factors like your target audience, the duration of the ad, and how much competition there is for ad space. But the good news is, you don’t need a huge budget to get started. In fact, you can set a budget for your campaign for as little as $5 per day. Facebook uses a bidding system to determine the cost of ads, so it’s up to you to decide how much you want to spend.  Other critical factors that influence the cost are the size of the target audience in a given riding and the level of government the election campaign is for. For instance, in a municipal election with fewer candidates, the cost may be lower than in a federal election with more competition for the same voter base. Ultimately, it’s important to keep in mind that the cost of Facebook political ads can be influenced by various factors. However, with careful planning and budgeting, you can reach your target audience without breaking the bank. What are the must-know rules and guidelines? Facebook takes political advertising in Canada very seriously and has established clear rules and guidelines to ensure transparency and integrity in the process. Before running any political ads, advertisers must comply with Facebook’s community standards and advertising policies. Additionally, advertisers must disclose who paid for and authorized the ad. To help maintain transparency, Facebook also maintains a searchable ad library where users can view all political ads that use its platform. It’s essential to stay up-to-date on Facebook’s rules and policies regarding political ads to ensure compliance and avoid any penalties or removal of ads. Facebook political ads can be a powerful tool to reach potential

Social Media in Canadian Politics

Social Media in Canadian Politics: The Future of Campaigning

Social Media and Politics

1. Overview of Social Media and Politics in Canada Social media and digital channels have influenced almost every area of human life and endeavor so political campaigns are no different. More than 85% of the Canadian population uses social media on a daily basis, making it a critical piece of the political campaigning jigsaw puzzle. Consequently, social media in Canadian politics has seen a staggering growth over the past few years. From municipal to federal elections, candidates and political organizations have taken to popular platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Google, TikTok and Twitter amongst others to engage and woo voters, especially those aged 18-30 and first-time voters. 2. Rise of Facebook Advertising in Canadian Politics Since 2008, social media has been a standard fixture in political campaigns around the world as evident from Barack Obama’s highly innovative campaign which brought the use of Facebook in the limelight. Аt home, in Canada, Facebook advertising has been a mainstay of Canadian political campaigning for quite some time as well. Over the last few years, it has seen increased investments and interest from all parties, especially after its compliance with the bill C-76 (when Google, Twitter, Snapchat and many others backed out). At EOK Consults, a leading Digital and Social Media Marketing Agency for Political Campaigns, we have seen firsthand how political parties in Canada have subsequently invested record amounts in online advertising during the 2021 federal elections. Facebook remains a vital tool in reaching voters, especially as other platforms restrict political advertising. 3. Pandemic Boost to Social Media in Campaigning The use of social media in Canadian politics was clearly on the rise, however, the pandemic accelerated the growth to unprecendented levels. In the wake of Covid-19 stay-at-home orders, internet and social media use skyrocketed. The health regulations and guidelines further restricted traditional campaign strategies like door-knocking and meet-and-greets forcing politicians and political organizations to adapt. With most people staying home and utilizing social media to stay connected, political campaign spending moved mostly online in a strategic pivot. This led to a boom in spending and focus on social media for campaigning.  Over $2.7 million was spent by all federal parties during the first half of the 2021 Federal Elections campaign, only on Facebook and Instagram!  As per publicly available data, the total spending on Facebook advertising by all parties combined was more than C$6.7 million in the final 3-month period up to the election. In the context of other online platforms (news outlets & media conglomerates), the online political advertising estimates for Canada’s 2021 Federal election range from $10-15million highlighting the massive growth over the past few years. In addition, Pierre Poiliever’s campaign during the Conservative Party Leadership elections in 2022 had an impressive digital media advertising strategy. A solid grassroots campaign complimented by a well-thought out digital direct-to-the-public media strategy with over 33K of ad spending on Facebook helped him secure a thumping victory over his competitors. As evident, political candidates and organizations are increasingly establishing an online presence on a continuous basis. Given the high engagement levels and measurable return-on-investment of digital platforms, we might reasonably assume that those numbers will increase in future elections.  4. Social Media in Canadian Politics – Is This The Future of Political Campaigning? One thing is clear – digital political campaigning is here to stay and grow as people are more social than ever. Canada’s political parties have embraced the Internet and social media; the online world is now a critical part of any political campaign. The variety in media formats, the congregation of voters and most importantly, the scalability and measurability of social media political campaigns make them a preferred choice for any political operative and campaign team. Heading into the future, the ground rules for a successful social media political campaign include consistent messaging, brand building and focus on offering valuable and engaging content. With the help of EOK Consults, a top-tier Digital and Social Media Marketing Agency for Political Campaigns, political candidates can create well-thought-out campaign strategies that resonate with voters and drive measurable results. Stay in touch with our blog or get in touch today for a free consultation on how we can help add the winning touch to your political campaign.

Conservative Party Leadership Race -2022; Facebook Advertising

The Conservative Party’s Leadership Race and Facebook Advertising – What we learned? 

Campaign Advertising Insights

The race to elect the new leader of the Conservative Party of Canada just ended. We saw that Pierre Poilievre won decisively with an overwhelming margin over his opponents. As seen in previous federal and provincial elections across Canada, digital media played a prominent role and that was the case in this election cycle as well. What follows is a brief analysis of the conservative party’s leadership race and Facebook advertising. We’ll focus on the key candidates’ social media presence as well as their advertising strategy and spending on Meta (Facebook) ad platform to uncover if social media played a key role in the results or not. Researchers at the Media Ecosystem Observatory found that Facebook remains the No. 1 source of Canadian political news online, YouTube ranks second, and Twitter ranks third. A prominent feature of Pierre Poilievre’s campaign was his extensive use of online video on platforms such as YouTube. That way, he bypasses the traditional media and reaches out directly to voters. Digital media experts believe that Poilievre’s extensive use of the platform could have had a significant impact on the leadership campaign in several ways – including perceived credibility, fundraising, and influencing which issues candidates choose to emphasize with. Social Media Presence of the 6 Candidates: Poilievre has more than 248,000 YouTube subscribers, surpassing his rivals for the Conservative leadership. Leslyn Lewis is closest with more than 4,000 subscribers, followed by independent Ontario MPP Roman Baber with more than 3,000. Conservative MP Scott Aitchison has a little over 300 subscribers, while Charest is not on the platform, having chosen instead to focus on other mediums such as Twitter.  Interestingly, Poilievre also leads the way on Twitter, with over 435,000 followers, compared to Lewis (over 100,000), Baber (over 89,000), Charest (over 26,000), and Aitchison (over 11,000). Additionally, he leads his competitors on both Facebook and Instagram – the two most common platforms for Canadian voters between 18-40. It is only on TikTok that Baber exceeds Poilievre in terms of followers, and even that margin is narrowing. The closest rival of Pierre Poilievre in terms of votes, Jean Charest, does not have a large social media presence. Facebook Advertising (Apr 1, 2022 – Sept 9, 2022) : Not only do we see the gap between the candidates when we consider their social media presence, but also how much they have spent on social media advertising. By analyzing the publicly available data for the period between April 1st and September 9th from Facebook’s Ad Library, we can clearly see that Pierre Poilievre was in the lead with more than $33K. He is followed by Leslyn Lewis with $16K spent on Facebook advertising during that period. Scott Aitchison, on the other side has spent close to $8K, while Roman Baber and Jean Charest are at the bottom of the ranking with $4K and almost $3K respectively. At EOK Consults, a leading Digital and Social Media Marketing Agency for Political Campaigns, we specialize in optimizing ad spend to ensure campaigns maximize their reach while staying within budget. Poilievre’s strategy of utilizing video ads on social platforms illustrates how digital strategies can dominate modern election cycles. Furthermore, it is worthwhile to examine how many advertisements each candidate ran during that time frame, as well as the content of those advertisements. Pierre Poilievre has run more than 100 ads in that same period. The use of video has been a go-to format for most of his advertising campaigns, since it offers a more engaging method of wooing potential voters and party members. Leslyn Lewis has only created 24 ad campaigns, while Scott Aitchison has done 64. This distinction shows that Aitchison has done more ad variations with less money spent compared to Lewis. The same can be said for Jean Charest who has ran 62 ads but has also spent much less than Lewis. Roman Baber’s strategy was apparently different as he has done only 2 ads while spending $4K. In Summary, we can see that Pierre Poiliever’s campaign not only had an impressive grassroots campaign in play but its digital strategy was on-point as well. Extensive use of well-established social media profiles, leading spending on Facebook and Instagram advertising, and employing a variety of ad formats (including video) worked in their favour and helped ensure a thumping victory over the other candidates in the 2022 Conservative Party of Canada leadership race. Running for office or managing an election campaign in Canada, get in touch with EOK Consults Inc – one of the fastest growing digital and social media marketing agency for political campaigns with a full suite of services to meet your needs. Speak to us today for a free consultation.

Ontario Elections 2022 - 5 key Facebook stats you should know

5 Key Stats that You Should Know About Facebook Advertising in Ontario Elections 2022

Social Media and Politics

Political advertising on Facebook has increased considerably in Canada over the past few years. The 2021 federal elections, for example, saw a large amount of advertising money spent primarily on Facebook. Therefore, it was not unexpected to see this trend continue during Ontario’s recent provincial election as well. During the campaign period, Facebook remained the leading digital platform, with a total of approximately C$2 million being spent on it by the five key provincial parties.  As a digital and social media marketing agency for political campaigns, we analyzed these trends to provide insights into how effectively parties utilized this platform. Here are five facts regarding Facebook advertising in Ontario Elections 2022 that you should know: 1. Total money spent on Facebook Advertising in Ontario Elections 2022 As part of their efforts to promote their ideas and mobilize their supporters, the five main parties in Ontario (Liberal Party, PC, NDP, Green Party, and New Blue Party) did not hesitate to open their wallets for online advertising. Publicly available data indicates that the total budget for Facebook advertising for all parties was close to C$2 million during the campaign period only (May 4th – June 2nd). By spending the staggering amount of C$1.25 million on Facebook ads, The Liberal Party of Ontario outspent all of the other parties and spent more than double what the PC Party spent – C$537 K. Despite the fact it did not win the voters over as they would have hoped, it was certainly a very well-conceived and crafted online strategy. Based on these findings, Facebook advertising is by no means going away as a tool for political advertising anytime soon. 2. Total spending by party leaders combined The leading provincial parties in Ontario also conducted online campaigns through their leaders’ Facebook pages. The Liberals also outspent the other parties by ten times via their leader’s official account to make sure that the little-known Steven Del Duca would be able to garner some brand recognition among the Ontario electorate. While the strategy didn’t turn out favourably at the polls, it does indicate that the Liberals considered Facebook as a viable platform to increase brand awareness for their leader. Steven Del Duca and Doug Ford were jointly responsible for the expenditure of C$182,000. 3. The number of ads ran in total on Facebook All five parties posted a total of 4414 advertisements on Facebook during the campaign period. Considering the amount of money spent, it is unsurprising that the Liberal Party of Ontario was also leading in the number of advertising campaigns it ran – 2697, to be exact. Additionally, the PC party made an overall total of 811 ads, the NDP- 698, ON Green- 201, and the New Blue- 7 ads. In the same manner, as during the Federal elections in 2021, this data indicates that the Liberals engaged in a more sophisticated marketing strategy than their opponents – constantly testing new formats and messaging with new demographic audiences in mind. 4. Money spent by Elections Ontario to get out the vote Elections Ontario utilizes Facebook to inform citizens about all the ways to vote as well as encourage them to exercise their democratic rights. In the three months between March 18th, 2022 and June 15th, 2022, the official Facebook page of Elections Ontario spent over $400,000. 5. Money Spent by 3rd Parties and organizations Besides the five most prominent parties, a number of other third parties and organizations are also using Facebook to get their message across to a wide audience. For instance, OECTA – the Ontario English Catholic Teachers Association – spent over $41K, CUPE Ontario spent over $36K, and the Ontario Nurses’ Association spent over $15K. Combined with other key organizations, such as the Ontario Public Service Employees Union, Ontario Federation of Labour, and Ontario Home Builders’ Association, OPSEU spent close to $130K on Facebook advertising. As a digital and social media marketing agency for political campaigns, we recognize that these investments significantly influence voter outreach. It is also important to consider that there are also a large number of other political organizations and unions that advertise on Facebook, so we could easily increase this number by $50,000. What do you think about the amount of money provincial political parties and leaders spent on Facebook advertising in Ontario Elections 2022? Share your thoughts below! Be sure to follow EOK Consults Inc on social media for the latest updates and insights on political digital marketing in Canada.

Conservatives Leadership Race 2022- FB Advertising tracker

Conservatives: Leadership Race 2022 – Facebook Advertising spending tracker

Leave a Comment / Campaign Advertising Insights

In Canada, Facebook has emerged as a leading digital platform for political advertising over the past few years. Regardless of whether it is a federal, provincial, or municipal election campaign, candidates are taking advantage of the platform because of the high return on investment and wide audience reach that it provides. This holds true for party leadership elections, where a digital and social media marketing agency for political campaigns can play a pivotal role in shaping candidates’ strategies. With the Conservative Party’s race for a new party leader around the corner (scheduled for September 10, 2022), each of the six verified candidates is taking advantage of Facebook to strengthen their positions and build the trust among their supporters. During the months before the elections, it is fascinating to observe how much political candidates are spending on social media advertising, on Facebook in particular. In order to make tracking the leader’s advertising expenditures easier for you, we present here a dynamic Facebook advertising spending tracker. With this tool, you can see the total amount of money spent on Facebook by the six Conservative party leadership candidates: Scott Aitchison, Roman Baber, Patrick Brown, Jean Charest, Leslyn Lewis, and Pierre Poilievre. The data is directly sourced from Facebook’s advertising library and will be updated daily based on the last 30 days! Go ahead and take a look!  Our Insights: Currently, we observe an interesting dynamic between the six candidates vying to become the next leader of the Conservative Party. As of now, Pierre Poilievre is taking the lion’s share of spending, nearly $25,000. This amounts to almost $5K more than what all of the other candidates have spent combined. Digital and social media marketing agencies for political campaigns are likely to analyze these trends and adjust their strategies accordingly. Will this advertising strategy enable Pierre Poilievre to take over the reins of the Conservative Party of Canada and potentially form the next government? We shall see! Stay tuned to our blog for more insights and updates regarding digital media advertising in Canadian politics!

Facebook Advertising For Political Campaigns in Canada: 6 facts to consider

Facebook Advertising for Political Campaigns in Canada – 6 Facts to Consider

Political Digital Strategy

In the run-up to Ontario Provincial Elections 2022, digital political advertising is in full swing. During election cycles, political parties hire marketers and agencies to design and manage digital campaigns, including Facebook advertising, to help them woo voters across their ridings.  This article serves as a timely reminder of why Facebook advertising is essential to any successful political campaign that aims to grow the voters’ support. In failing to understand the benefits and challenges of Facebook advertising, you would be missing out on a potentially game-changing platform for your campaign’s success, especially when considering the insights from a digital and social media marketing agency for political campaigns. Here’s a list of 6 facts that you should know and consider about Facebook advertising for political campaigns in Canada: 1. Advertising on Facebook is extremely popular Did you know that Canadians are the world’s most active Facebook users? Accordingly, about 72% of all Internet users in Canada are currently on Facebook, and most of them check their pages several times a day. Furthermore, people often use social media for more than two hours every day on average. Hence, political leaders cannot ignore Facebook since their voters – present and potential – are on it every single day. Given that, during last year’s federal elections in Canada (2021), the leading parties ran a total of more than 14,000 ads for a total worth more than $6.7 million between June 17th, 2021, and Sept. 14th, 2021. Facebook offers a very engaging and powerful platform for your campaign to find and reach your constituents. 2. Facebook provides precise audience targeting Facebook advertising has the advantage of reaching your target audience quickly and effectively. As an advertisement or micro-targeting platform, Facebook offers the best results. People can be selected based on their age, gender, interests, profession, behaviour, and location. Facebook’s targeting capabilities are unlike any other platform and you can combine its features to ensure you have a very targeted audience of potential voters in your riding. As audience quality is more important than audience size, you should reach voters who are likely to support you during the next election as opposed to random users. You have many options when it comes to selecting audiences. However, setting up those audiences as part of a specific strategy is certainly necessary to achieve your political objectives. 3. Facebook advertising is critical for your campaign In the last few years, Facebook has reduced the visibility of pages in news feeds, which is an unpleasant update of algorithms for all political organizations and candidates. Even Mark Zuckerberg has confirmed that Facebook will prioritize publications from friends and family. To summarize, the days of organic reach and easy viral success on Facebook are over. Hence, it is necessary to utilize Facebook advertising to achieve success. Despite the fact that you are building a community of followers, you should be aware that only a few of them actually see your posts. If your political organization wishes to adapt to the current situation by expanding its reach and voter base, Facebook advertising is an absolute necessity. 4. Best ROI and Measurable Results In spite of Facebook’s wide range of audience targeting options and features, its advertising costs are relatively low. We should not forget that here, too, the price is determined by many factors, including the overall objective of the campaign, the advertisement quality, the size and relevance of the audience, as well as the level of competition. You are able to run ads for any budget you can afford, even as low as $5 a day per campaign. This means that Facebook’s Ads Manager is a great tool for you to experiment with political advertising and measure ROI before doubling down on a winning strategy. Facebook also provides measurable results, including metrics regarding demographics, click-throughs, messages sent, collecting leads, assessing a party’s awareness, measuring ad views, and engagement, etc.  When used wisely, all of these metrics can provide a wealth of information about current results, user behaviour, and more. As you can imagine, reading them and following up takes many years of experience, and this is why it is always valuable to engage a team of digital experts that can help you craft the winning strategy for your campaign. 5. Building and maintaining a presence is a big responsibility On a social networking site, users spend approximately two to three seconds on a post. If it does not catch their attention, they seek out more interesting content. Moreover, people scroll through 90 meters of mobile web content each day. Thus, an engaging mix of images, videos, and text is necessary to attract attention. Successful Facebook advertising for political campaigns requires a clear message with a vision that’s well-crafted in a short piece, but that can be difficult to achieve. In this context, engaging a digital and social media marketing agency for political campaigns can provide the expertise needed to create compelling content that resonates with voters In a nutshell, it is crucial to consider how sponsored advertisements are designed to reach the specific audience – whether the political campaigns are aware of who they are talking to and who their potential supporters are, or whether the advertisements are simply “scrollable” and will have no impact on the audience. 6.   Facebook Advertising for Political Advertising isn’t easy to manage, despite improvements While Facebook has made many user-friendly updates to its ad manager and business manager tools, it still isn’t an intuitive platform for most users. Many political candidates and parties believe that a simple ‘boost’ post is the easiest and most effective way to get started. The reality couldn’t be far from that. Achieving good results and optimizing campaigns to bring the best returns for advertisers including political campaigns requires a great deal of experience and skills. A properly managed account and a well-structured campaign strategy can make it possible to advertise effectively on Facebook. Defining which metrics to monitor is yet another important task. Another critical component of any digital political

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