It looks like we’re all in for an interesting ride over the coming weeks, thanks to Sunak’s snap election. announced yesterday.
Six weeks might be a long time in politics, but for the rest of us it’s less than one pay day away.
Political campaigning has already started, with what is expected to be the highest-spending general election contest ever. According to the i newspaper, political parties accepted £93m in donations between them last year – nearly double the amount they were given in 2022.
However, the Electoral Commission has put restrictions on the total amount each party can spend during the election period to ensure there is a level playing field. This was increased last year – from £19m to a seriously impressive £34m.
It’s also worth noting that – anticipating some of the less favourable campaign activities – the chair of the Committee of Standards in Public Life has written to political party leaders about their campaign strategy in the run-up to election day.
The letter asked Sunak, Starmer et al to “set clear expectations about the standards of conduct that you expect of your campaign team, election agents and candidates as they campaign ahead of the general election.”
It specifically said that: “inflammatory language and actions should not be tolerated”.
So how much can marketing – and those fat advertising budgets – really affect voter’s decisions between now and the 4 July? And with just six weeks to go and a spending limit of £34m, what do we expect to see on the campaign trails?
T&Pm global client lead, Benedict Pringle
“There’s only two election campaigns: ‘It’s time for a change’ and ‘It’s not time for a change’.
“The Labour Party, the challenger, will be running the former. The Conservatives, the incumbents, will be running the later.
“The early indications are that Labour’s election slogan will be a single word: ‘Change’. The Conservatives’ election slogan is ‘stick with the plan that’s working’, which is a nice take on “It’s not time for a change – their issue will be making the message seem credible.
“The main thing the parties will need to get right is planning their budget and adjusting their message appropriately. How much should they spend on persuasion vs turnout? What’s the most effective message for floating voters in one constituency and for getting your base to turnout in another?
“It will be a fascinating contest.”
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The Hunger CEO, Richard Pinder
“If you called up any marketing director and offered them £34m of paid media and unlimited access to press interest in just one country to get away over just six weeks they would bite your arm off. Or check the date wasn’t 1 April.
“And if they were any good at their job, they would do it with panache and incredible impact.
“Mercifully they wouldn’t think to use a cheesy static image attacking a competitor on a diesel advan driving around our cities. Something our political parties marketing teams might want to reflect on…”
The News Movement editorial director, Becca Hutson
“Gen Z is set to play a significant role in this election, and it will be interesting to see how both parties engage with these young voters. Traditional campaigning will not deliver results – you have to take the battle to the platforms they frequent, and that’s social: 60% get their news from social platforms and parties need to recognise this.
“And they have to change how they talk about politics. No jargon, but useful information, delivered by people they can relate to. This is where influencers play a vital role in sharing information, and that should reflect on the parties’ digital advertising budgets too.
“If politicians want to engage with these voters, they need to understand the opportunities and challenges of the social platforms, and watch the grammar of the internet carefully. Things live and evolve at lighting-speed – just look at the volume of memes that circulated after the announcement yesterday.
“There were so many, that the actual message was hard to uncover from them. To stand out, the parties will have to find a way to authentically demonstrate their value and relevance to these audiences – and they have to do it quick.”
Social Element Co-CEO, Linn Frost
“Social media is at the heart of our society and it’s becoming a lead source of information. It acts as a magnifying glass, revealing the darker side of society which is especially prevalent in times of political turmoil.
“People will inevitably turn to social to inform opinion, so education, regulation and understanding is key.
“As an industry, our key takeaways should be listening to your audience and being ready to protect them with regulators being on the front lines of social. Making simple changes like turning on your comments allows you to hear your audience, while also being ready to take responsibility and protect them from harmful content.
“Elections can be a great way for brands to understand how social will be integral to opinion in the future so getting it right now is crucial.”
Chief Marketing Officer at The Beyond Collective, Oli Richards
‘”It’s hard to imagine a bigger “Turkey of the Week” than a launch spot featuring a rain drenched brand mascot, set to the tune of your biggest competitor’s most famous ad – but that’s what we got yesterday, and I’m here for it.
Both parties will need to mobilise their core supporters fast – especially with the backdrop of hotter summer months, the start of the school holidays in Scotland and a major football tournament. On both sides, I’d expect to see a reductionist approach to their core value proposition, with Labour doubling down on ‘Change’ and the Tories pointing their comms at ‘Stability’.
It’ll come as no surprise that we are expecting to see A LOT more traffic in the next 6 weeks as both parties pile their war chests into digital channels like Google and Meta. And with the advent of more advanced content creation / ai tools, these ads are likely to be targeted like never before – with audiences segmented based on the issues that impact them the most.”
