What is this B.S.!?
Doomscroll 8.18.2024
Hello, and welcome to another edition of Doomscroll! I’m not really sure how or why the word “demure” is all over my social media right now, but what the hey. Let’s be demure and get to some scrolling?
One Question
Thanks to everyone who answered last week’s One Question about why the GOP is being, yet again, outspent on digital. And no, I’m not done ranting about this. Why? Because everyone is starting to notice. Like, everyone. You guys are too. Out of everyone who answered the poll, freaking 100% said that yes, Democrats are taking digital more seriously this cycle. No surprise:
As to the why…here are some of your theories:
Dems are more likely to take a carpet bombing approach on platforms like YT. Not writing that they are incapable of being more surgical but they can afford to spend more at lower rates while Republicans are targeting specific audiences.
I think we still have a buy-in problem from some principals/consultants/other key decision makers on ad strategy.
I love the top of the ticket and hope Trump wins for us all! But. I'm going to say the dirty truth: The Trump team and RNC are not doing a good job with ads this year. The content is meh, the investment isn't meaningful. And if you peel back a layer to the onion and look at the TYPES of ads they're running, you can tell that their strategy is very 2018. (They're only investing in Hard Ask, it appears they're only looking at ROAS and not cost per donor, etc...). It's like they're not thirsty. What happened to Trump being the king of digital ads in 2016 and 2020? We could be doing a lot better. So team Trump, if you're reading this, please try to sell the campaign on meaningfully investing in acquiring unique donors via ads.
Unwillingness to adapt
I concur with all the above. Someone else left this insightful comment:
I have candidates and consultants alike who love the “why do we need this” and the first thing they cut is digital. Then they ask why their content isn’t performing as well as their opponents. When the old guard on the right changes out maybe we’ll have campaign teams taking it more seriously and understanding digital is more than just pushing buttons.
Is our problem as simple as the “old guard” not wanting to invest in digital? I mean, maybe. I think that’s a huge problem and it has been for years. Don’t get me wrong: I love me some “old guard” General Consultants, but there is a culture problem on the right that doesn’t believe that investing in digital pays off. I KNOW I’m not the first person to say this. But there’s a lot of GC’s out there that expect digital to raise ALL THE MONEY ONLINE without actually investing in digital. And then when ALL THE MONEY ONLINE isn’t being raised, they revert to their priors, assume digital is pointless, and give massive budgets to their 60-year-old friends who buy TV ads and have convinced their pals that OTT/CTV belongs in the TV space and so they should be getting massive budget for that too on top of the massive budget they get for their very inefficient linear TV buys while skimming a nice, fat percentage for themselves off the top.
And while they’re doing that, digital ad budgets get cut. And cut some more. And cut some more. Even though the GC’s have been telling the digital teams for months to “JUST WAIT UNTIL LABOR DAY THEN YOU’LL HAVE YOUR ADVERTISING BUDGET BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH”. And also is there a part of me that thinks there’s a little bit of an ageism thing going on here as well? I’m just going to say it: When digital first took off, every 22 year-old fresh out of college was sent there. The stereotype became: digital is young, they just push buttons, they goof off, they have no idea how to campaign or win races, they don’t move the needle etc etc. Well guess what, people? That was 15 years ago. And now, the best digital people in the biz have been around for quite a while. We know a thing or two and it's time for everyone else to start acting like it. End rant.
Ok, today’s One Question is about the Trump - Elon Musk X Spaces that happened earlier this week. I know a lot of people were dumping on it because of the technical difficulties at the beginning, but you know what? I liked it. I’m a fan of stuff like this. I wouldn’t do it for a presidential campaign rollout or anything like that (cough cough), but as a campaign tactic? A media ploy? Yes, sign me up - technical issues notwithstanding. I’m a fan of experimenting, going outside the box, pushing boundaries, and trying new things. Just do it. Elon interviewing Trump is a whole lot better and more informative than two running mates interviewing each other about white guy tacos. I want to know what you all think, though. Am I in the minority here and it was really a train wreck? Or are we all good with the Trump-Elon interview? (Also there’s an extra bonus question in there as well I’d love for everyone to take a look at).
Who’s Doing What
—I effing love this B.S.
I’ve been noticing a new…trend lately in fundraising pitches. At least, it’s new to me. What is with the foul language, people!? Look, I drop 4-letter-bombs as much as the next person here and IRL, but never have I ever done so in a fundraising email. But apparently some of us have decided it’s a strategy worth taking. Does it work? I’m curious, but also…hesitant. Should we really be swapping fake matches and scary threats with “this is bulls***”? Or “this pisses me off”? Ugh - I’m not bashing the strategy, just saying it’s been making me raise my eyebrows lately. When we’re going up against Kamala “JOY” Harris, I’m just wondering if this is the right track. Maybe it is! Just asking questions. Curious to know what others think.
—-Is the GOP still the pro-life party? Depends on where you live
A couple abortion ads caught my eye - yet again - this week. In Nevada, Sam Brown is running a 15-second ad that’s just a clip from an interview in which he says he will respect state law that allows abortion up to 24 weeks and won’t vote for a federal ban. His stance there isn’t new, but it’s telling he’s running ads on the topic right now. Close by in New Mexico, GOP Senate candidate Nella Domenici is running a spot in which she says abortion should be - I kid you not - “safe, legal, and rare,” and women should be trusted to make the choice that’s best for them. Woof. If I didn’t know any better, I’d think Domenici was running as a Democrat. Honestly, this just goes to show how much abortion has radically warped our politics. The Democrat Party is SO EXTREME on this issue, it’s pulling Republicans farther and farther to the left. If you’re a Republican in a pink or purple state these days, it’s like you HAVE to be pro-choice. At least, that’s what it seems like this cycle. Again: I applaud any Republican who isn’t just running from the issue, but it’s also bizarre to see so many come out as pretty pro-choice. And yes I think there’s still a huge difference between being pro-abortion and pro-federal abortion ban. You can oppose a national ban AND oppose abortion. Why can’t we make that case to the voters?
—Marky Mark
North Carolina has arguably the most important gubernatorial race this year. Incumbent Governor Roy Cooper is term-limited so it’s an open seat, but according to polls Democrat nominee Josh Stein is leading Republican Mark Robinson by sizable margin. Anyway, that’s kinda sorta the state of the race for now, but what about Robinson’s digital? It occurs to me I haven’t done a deep dive on his online presence yet, which is OBVIOUSLY a grave disservice. FWIW I have no idea who’s doing his digital (if you do, hit me up!). But it ain’t bad. His website gets a solid B-, and that’s being a bit generous for something that looks to be built with Squarespace. Don’t hate me for saying this (whoever runs it), but it’s a tad janky. I appreciate there’s merch, but woof. Can we get a better layout? And some better designs? I also am intrigued by the decision to make the lowest amount on the homepage donation button $250. Reaching for the sky, there! Pros: There’s an issues page. Con: There’s an empty Events page. Con: The gray menu bar at the top is more than a little irritating.
His organic social presence is legit. No real complaints there. On Facebook, he’s got some good fundraising ads going that look decent. On Google, he’s running his now-infamous abortion ad which talks about his and his wife’s decision to have an abortion 40 years ago while clarifying his position today. I actually think it’s a pretty good ad. Whether it helps him remains to be seen. He’s also got a 30-second spot on the economy and a bio spot that emphasizes his upbringing. They’re all good spots; they are. But here’s the thing: I live in the upstate of South Carolina. I’m a cord-cutter, so I have YouTube TV and I get Robinson and Stein ads all the time (overlap from the Charlotte DMA), and I have to tell you: The Stein attack ads on Robinson are BRUTAL - especially this one about Robinson’s daycare. There’s lots of back-and-forth between the campaigns about it, but that doesn’t really matter. It’s still running. Another ad that’s been gracing my YouTube wires for weeks resurrects an old comment Robinson made about women not being able to keep their skirts down. Yeah.
Anyway, good luck to Mark Robinson. He’s gonna need it!
Merch Shout-out
It’s been a few weeks since I’ve done a merch shout-out, so I’m tipping my hat today, once again, to the Congressional Leadership Fund, which always kills it in this area. I love this “Don’t California my America” bumper sticker. It’s a great way to fundraise for House candidates that also ties into the national narrative. Good job, CLF! Get yours here (and support 5 House candidates while you’re at it!)
Who’s Spending Where
P2P
Industry Watch
Sometimes it’s worth really getting into the weeds. I liked this explainer on traffic shaping in the programmatic ad space. From the intro:
According to executives from three large SSPs, the standard fill rate for SSPs is 1%. That means there is a 99% chance that an SSP's bid request will not see a bid from an advertiser.
There is a tremendous amount of waste introduced into the programmatic ecosystem every single day, but there are ways to stand out in an increasingly competitive marketplace.
Programmatic bloat has led ad tech vendors to introduce features like traffic shaping to better deal with a tsunami of bid requests and capitalize on gains in efficiency.
2024 Watch
This is where I make note of a few other things that caught my eye this week.
Eric Hovde, my reigning “king of content,” is officially the Republican nominee for Senate in Wisconsin. Read about it here.
Speaking of Eric Hovde, his wife stars in an epic spot calling out Tammy Baldwin. Watch it here.
A while back I wrote about abortion ads in Missouri…well, an amendment to enshrine abortion into the state’s constitution will officially be on the ballot in November. Read about it here.
JD Vance and Tim Walz will debate on October 1. Can’t wait.
The Grapevine
Michael Duncan asks a good question.
Peruse new Gmail sender guidelines here.
Got a tip for The Grapevine? Job announcement? Job opening? Email ‘em to me at itsthedoomscroll@gmail.com
Last But Not Least
From the other side of the aisle:
I don’t really have much to add to the conversation about the Axios piece that exposed the Harris campaign’s sketchy search ads. But I’d feel really dumb if I didn’t at least mention it here so you all know I’m not living under a rock.
But in preparation for the DNC convention this coming week, here’s another Axios special about how the Dems plan to…WAIT FOR IT…stream vertically:
Democrats will stream their convention next week using vertical video on TikTok, Instagram and YouTube, committee staffers told Axios.
Why it matters; The party hopes making the stream available via vertical video apps will draw in younger viewers who get most of their news on their phones. … Reality check: While the convention will be streamed by an array of news networks, the vast majority of people who view conventions — or a live broadcast of any major political event — tend to be older than 55.
Loving the reality check. Because when else is “we will stream this on TikTok” news worth writing about? Man, it must be nice to be a Democrat.
From the other side of the tracks:
This was a cool piece about the designer behind the Olympic logo. One thing it made me appreciate? Maybe our design/approval processes in the political world aren’t so bad after all! Ha!
That’s all for this week. Thanks for reading! Did you like it? Consider forwarding to your friends!