Author name: Harneet Singh

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

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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!

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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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social media in Canadian politics

Facebook Advertising in 2021 Canadian Federal Elections: 4 Facts You Must Know

Political Digital Strategy

Over the last few years, political digital marketing has become more and more prevalent in Canada. In terms of social media platforms where political advertising is permitted, Facebook and its platforms have a lopsided share. Ever since new political advertising legislation in Canada mandating digital archives and other reforms was enacted, many platforms such as Twitter and TikTok responded by opting out of participation. Due to additional public pressure, especially after the 2016 US Elections, these platforms went a step further and banned all paid political advertising altogether. Therefore, Facebook advertising, particularly when guided by a digital and social media marketing agency for political campaigns, presented an ideal opportunity for Canadian political parties and candidates aiming to woo the population online. Interested in seeing how this impacted the recently concluded Canadian federal elections? Here are four facts regarding Facebook advertising in the 2021 elections that you must know. Total spending by all parties combined In terms of digital marketing for political campaigns, parties and candidates did not hesitate to spend millions of dollars. As per data publicly available, the total budget for Facebook advertising for all parties combined was more than C$6.7 million between June 17th and September 14th, 2021. This doesn’t include the millions of dollars spent combined by all candidates and third-party advertisers. For comparison, the amount spent by the three parties on their entire digital campaign in 2019 totaled around C$9.7 million. As can be seen from these statistics, politicians 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.  Number of Ads placed on Facebook by all parties It is important to note that in 2021, the number of ads made on Facebook alone varied considerably among the three major parties. Based on information from Facebook’s Ad Library, the Liberals made over 12,000 Facebook advertisements during the last election. Comparatively, the Conservative Party ran only 1243 advertisements, while the New Democratic Party produced 1148 advertisements. As shown by the statistics, Liberals are the ones putting up more Facebook ads than any other party. In total, the Liberal Party placed five times as many advertisements as the New Democrats and the Conservatives combined. This speaks volumes (pun intended) about their sophisticated digital media strategy and resourceful social media team. The Liberal Party of Canada outspent its rivals Each of the three leading parties in Canada spent a proportionate amount on their advertising relative to the number of advertisements they ran. In the period between June 17, 2021 and September 14, 2021, the Liberal Party spent a staggering amount of $2.3 million. Comparatively, the Conservative Party had spent C$1.4 million during the same period while the New Democratic Party spent C$1.1 million. Taking these numbers into account, there are two important conclusions that can be drawn. First, the Liberal Party spent more on Facebook advertising than the Conservatives and NDP combined. Second, they spent twice as much as the Conservative Party which won the popular vote but still lost key ridings and their chance to govern. A/B testing and dynamic advertising: The winning formula In addition to a difference in the number of ads and money spent, there was also a key difference in the number of ad variations. While the Conservatives published over a thousand different ads on Facebook, the Liberals generated more than 5,000, and the NDP conducted approximately 750. This data demonstrates that the Liberals had a more sophisticated marketing strategy than their competitors. Having a variety of content layouts and messages indicates that the Liberal team was proactively responding to online engagement, voter preferences and demographic targeting. This dynamic digital advertising phenomenon clearly stands out as the winning formula employed by the Liberal Party of Canada, possibly enhanced through a digital and social media marketing agency for political campaigns, to retain power for the third time. There was also an indication of this trend during the previous federal elections in 2019, where the Liberals ran 7500 ad variations, while the Conservatives ran about a thousand ad variations between June and October. During the 2021 Federal Elections, it was the Liberals who clearly dominated Facebook advertising and digital marketing when compared with its national counterparts. The data does not only relate to the amount of money spent on Facebook, but also the number of advertisements and variations on the ads. Our recent blog post provides further details regarding the last federal election in Canada, which gives some unique insights into digital advertising and campaigning. To learn more about our digital campaigning services, contact us today! Check out our blog regularly for the latest information on digital marketing for political campaigns in Canada.

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Political Digital Campaigning - Canada Federal Elections 2021

2021 Canadian Elections Were Truly Digital: Here’s What We Learned

Campaign Advertising Insights

Canada’s 2021 federal elections were ‘special’ (pun intended). Not only was it the first ‘pandemic election’ in Canadian history, but PM Trudeau called it midway through his second term. Digital technologies became the norm as Canadians hunkered down in their homes to protect themselves and their loved ones. This transformation extended to the world of politics as well. Canadian political parties have embraced digital media wholeheartedly to make sense of a 36-day campaign period, the shortest possible election under federal law, and woo voters. A digital and social media marketing agency for political campaigns can be instrumental in navigating this fast-paced environment, helping political organizations build effective strategies to reach voters through multiple digital channels. Here are our top takeaways from the 2021 Canadian Federal Elections and the world of digital political campaigning. 1. Digital campaigning was already gaining traction. The pandemic accelerated the growth to unprecedented levels With more than 85% of the Canadian population on social media, online political campaigning was already gaining traction. However, in the wake of Covid-19 stay-at-home orders, internet and social media use skyrocketed. Inevitably, parties naturally turned to social media and online advertising to tap into their base and first-time voters. Political organizations and politicians had to adapt to the changing environment. After all, they preferred the reach and high engagement of digital tools over the traditional methods of political campaigning. 2. Digital Political Campaigning: Record amounts of advertising dollars Spent Given all the interest social media and online platforms have attracted, political parties invested a record amount of advertising dollars. Just in the first half of the campaign, all the federal parties combined spent over $2.7 million, only on Facebook and Instagram! The Liberals consistently outspent their Conservative and NDP counterparts, especially when some initial polls found them lacking behind the Conservatives. Furthermore, analysts saw an increase in online political advertising even with parties who usually don’t spend millions on such campaigns. Namely, the Bloc Quebecois – 700+ ads during the 2021 elections compared to the 16 Facebook ads they ran in the 2019 elections. In the context of other online platforms (news outlets; media conglomerates), the online political advertising estimates for Canada’s 2021 election range from $10-15 million. 3. Facebook and Instagram took the lion’s share of political advertising online With the introduction of Bill C-76 in 2019 and the mandate for online advertisers to maintain a digital archive of all political ads, the options for political campaigning were limited. Importantly, Google banned all political advertising citing the new rules, while TikTok and Twitter had already made global ban announcements after the 2016 US elections. On offer for Canadian politicians and campaigns managers in 2021 were Facebook and its subsidiary Instagram and a host of news conglomerates like Postmedia group. As a result, the majority of digital advertising budgets went to Facebook and Instagram, with estimates pegged at 90%. 4. TikTok helped raise awareness and youth engagement but is not necessarily a vote-getter As TikTok gained popularity worldwide and in Canada, politicians scrambled to appeal to its younger demographic segment by setting up new profiles and ‘experimenting’ with viral content creation. For instance, a prime example is NDP’s leader, Jagmeet Singh, the only federal leader with a TikTok profile and over half a million followers. His unique style and catchy videos generated a lot of media interest at the start of the 2021 campaign and had his campaign strategists believe that “millions watched the NDP leader’s content and got involved”. Even so, Jagmeet’s popularity did not necessarily translate into the electoral success the NDP wanted. Singh and his team had to contend with one more seat and about 2% more vote share in 2021 compared with the 2019 federal election. To sum up, the hotly contested election in 2021 resulted in Justin Trudeau’s Liberals retaining power, albeit in a minority. The party spent nearly twice as much on social media and digital campaigning as the NDP and Conservatives combined. Electoral ideologies, strategies, and campaigns may change as we approach new elections (Ontario and Quebec in 2022; Alberta in 2023). However, one thing is clear – digital political campaigning is here to stay. A digital and social media marketing agency for political campaigns will continue to play a critical role as parties adapt to the new realities, accelerated by pandemic and societal changes. Continue to read our blog to learn more about digital marketing for politics in Canada. Lastly, do not forget to contact us to learn how digital media can add an x-factor to your political campaign!

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Is your campaign ready for a digital election in Canada?

Is your campaign ready for a digital election in Canada?

Political Digital Strategy

Canada’s Political Landscape A snap election has been called, and Canadians are heading to the polls on September the 20th, 2021. This represents the shortest allowable election under federal elections law for what will be the most digital election in Canada.  This will be the first Federal Canadian election that occurs during pandemic conditions in recent memory. Justin Trudeau’s Liberal Party of Canada seems to be feeling confident on the back of their handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Conservative Party of Canada under Erin O’Toole is looking to shake things up this election and attract more voters to their tent than the last federal campaign. Jagmeet Singh’s NDP has been supporting the efforts of the Prime Minister during the COVID-19 pandemic, but have acknowledged that they disagree on the fundamental strategies for helping the country heal.  What does that mean for Canadians? How will the election process be affected by COVID 19 restrictions? These are all important questions that we will endeavour to answer today.  Delta/4th wave and an Election? It seems that many Canadians aren’t particularly interested in politics right now. Certainly, this is uncharted territory, as Canadians have never voted Federally during a pandemic situation before. We did see some low voter turnout during provincial elections during the pandemic, meaning that election strategies could be very important as some ridings may be decided by historically low numbers of votes. As we go through this election cycle, it will be interesting to see what strategies the major players undertake.  Will we see a return to normalcy as the main talking point? Will Prime Minister Trudeau be criticized for calling an election even as Delta cases rise? What does a digital election in Canada mean? Only time will tell.  COVID-19 and Technology We’ve seen Canadians embrace the digital world during the pandemic. Between 66%-80% of Canadians spent more time on the internet since the pandemic began, meaning that this trend will likely continue until COVID-19 is no longer an issue in Canada.  What does this mean for an upcoming federal election? We can expect that an increase in digital advertising, paid media, and social media exposure will all be key elements of the major parties’ campaign strategy. We may even see innovation from candidates across the country as they attempt to reach Canadians who are spending more time on their computers and smartphones than ever before.  Voting in the COVID Age Elections Canada has a plan to address an election that occurs while COVID-19 is still an issue in this country. Certainly, social distancing, single-use pencils, and serious cleaning plans are all tools we expect to see deployed during this election. We can also expect an increase in mail-in ballots. These ballots can take longer to count but are less likely to lead to an increased risk of exposure to COVID-19.  Digital Election in Canada Best Practices Messaging and branding are going to be very important during this election cycle. With fewer Canadians attending in-person campaigning events, they might only be receiving limited information regarding a candidate’s platform and position on important issues. Because of this, having succinct information available online will be crucial for candidates looking to get their message out in a likely crowded digital space.  Digital marketing and online advertising has been popular in the Canadian political landscape for a long time and it simply works.  Parties should be looking now to experienced digital and social media marketing agency for political campaigns organizations with political experience to develop more best practices for this digital election in Canada, set during a pandemic.  EOK Consults is a leading digital and social media marketing agency for political campaigns specializing in political campaigns and data-driven strategies for organizations and nonprofits. We have a proven track record of launching successful digital political and advocacy campaigns across municipal, provincial and federal levels of the Canadian political spectrum. 

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