Presidential Elections & Meta Ads Costs: Here's How to Beat the Surge

I know its not the usual Sunday email - but I’ll be honest, things have been really busy on my end and I wanted to help you with Meta Ads. I’m actually currently in Europe, meeting with some of my EU clients. (If you’re in the EU, reach out - I may ask you for reccomendations).

Now, lets talk about the elections and the impacts to Meta Ads. It’s no secret that ad costs are climbing as we head into the 2024 U.S. elections, and if you’re running campaigns on Meta, you’ve probably felt the hit - trust me, we have too.

Here’s the deal: political campaigns are throwing billions into Meta, driving CPMs and CPCs through the roof. This means a lower ROAS if your targeting customers in the US.

But don’t panic - we’ve got your back.

How We’re Tackling the Surge

We’ve tested multiple strategies in-house, and while Meta’s Advantage+ audience is great, in times like these, it’s essential to get more specific. Here’s what worked for us:

1. Custom Targeting: Instead of leaving everything to Meta’s algorithm, we manually added suggested audience segments. By narrowing down our targeting, we started seeing a drop in CPMs and cost-per-purchase.

   

   It’s a constant trial-and-learn process, but narrowing your audience can help cut through the noise of big-budget election campaigns.

2. Lookalike Audiences: Retargeting and creating lookalikes of your most valuable customers is another golden ticket. With all the election ad dollars flying around, you want to ensure your ads land in front of people who actually care about your product. This gave us a higher chance of converting despite the political spending storm.

3. Time Scheduling: Don’t sleep on time slots! High-spend periods like elections call for a return to basics. We revisited time schedules to figure out when our ads were performing best. Hint: It wasn’t when everyone else was bidding

   

   By optimizing the times our ads were running, we cut down on competition and boosted our ROI.

Old Fashioned Targeting Comes Back

Political campaigns are casting wide nets, which means the cost for broad targeting is through the roof.

Instead of relying on Meta’s Advantage+ audiences, we’ve shifted to old-fashioned, manual targeting. By refining specific audience segments and leveraging first-party data, we’ve managed to regain control of CPMs and focus on more qualified audiences, even in a high-spend environment.

Focus on Lower-Funnel Conversions

Rather than focusing on branding campaigns during these high-cost periods, we’re concentrating on lower-funnel conversions. Retargeting campaigns and nurturing warm leads are much more efficient during this time. By focusing on users already familiar with the brand, we’ve maximized our budget without losing out to the political ad frenzy.

Why This Matters Now

Total U.S. political ad spend will hit $12 billion in 2024 - a 30% jump from 2020. Digital channels are seeing a 156% increase alone. If you’re wondering why your ad costs are going haywire, this is why. But here’s the good news: this period is temporary, and with the right strategy, you can come out on top.

One Last Thing…

Whether you’re already leveraging Meta Ads or looking to start - now’s the time to craft and optimized ad strategy. Election year or not, smart targeting and timing will help you push through without burning through your budget.

If you’re even thinking about running Meta Ads, do reach out to my team and see how we can help you.

You can also book a call with my team directly.

Best,

Harsh

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