According to The Hill, Google is ramping up its political advertising team. This comes as mid-term election campaigns begin to take form, with candidates expected to make extensive use of Google to reach potential voters.
The use of search engine optimization (SEO), social media, and online fundraising has become an increasingly popular way for politicians to reach voters. In the 2008 presidential elections, President Barack Obama spent 4 percent of his ad budget on online marketing – up from the 0.8 percent candidates used in 2004. Massachusetts Senator Scott Brown similarly used online marketing, utilizing Google Ad Words in his recent campaign for a seat in the Senate.
"The test for 2010 is, can this medium be as beneficial for local candidates as it is for national candidates?" Peter Greenberger, Google’s political specialist, told The Hill. "We knew after 2008 that 2010 would be the next big opportunity."
Google is encouraging candidates to think of creative ways to utilize online marketing, instead of just traditional websites and ads. For example, Google suggested that candidates may want to put an emphasis on video messages that could go viral.
Just earlier this year, the Supreme Court overturned a set of rules limiting how much corporations could spend to support candidates. This could result in unprecedented amounts being spent in the upcoming political campaigns.
