Online Political Ads Have Been Slow to Catch On

For all of the advances in the use of data and digital tools, broadcast advertising still claims the largest share of campaign budgets. Digital advertising is still a work in progress, especially at the level of House races and further down the ballot.

Targeting voters with online ads is difficult, messy work, even under ideal circumstances. It can be easier to accomplish in statewide or national campaigns, where building a large enough audience is less of a problem. Television isn’t always much better, and can be much less efficient, although technology can help with that problem, too. But it provides reach to a mass audience, which campaigns like, and it is straightforward. The problem for campaigns -- and advertisers working in other industries -- is that fewer people are watching live television, and for those who do, there are many more choices of networks and programs. Meanwhile, the consumption of media on phones, tablets and other devices is increasing. “Digital is going to get more pervasive,” said Ray Kingman, chief executive of Semcasting, a company that matches voters not with online cookies but with neighborhoods. “Maybe these campaigns are getting a little more sophisticated in the sense of knowing what to ask for.”