With political parties getting into the campaign mode, political advertisements across media platforms is set to rise by around 20-60% this time compared to the 2019 parliamentary elections.
According to media planners, total spend on political advertisements could be in the range of Rs 3,000-4,000 crore. The same was around Rs 2,500 crore for the 2019 general elections.
Media planners maintain that over 60% of the total adex (advertising expenditure) this year will go towards digital media.
“During the 2019 elections, parties were heavily exposed to TV, print, radio, and out-of-home (OOH) platforms, which will this time shift towards digital,” said a media and entertainment industry expert who doesn’t want to be quoted.
In the last one month, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has spent around Rs 1.3 crore on ads on the Meta platforms alone (as per the Meta ad library) with over 2,586 ads. The Indian National Congress (INC), on the other hand, spent Rs 5 lakh with 20 ads on the platform during the same period. According to Meta library data, Rahul Gandhi’s spend during this period stood at Rs 32 lakh with 100 ads. The All India Trinamool Congress spent over Rs 36 lakh on 216 ads and Telugu Desam Party (TDP) spent around Rs 5 lakh on 58 ads.
Within the digital ads, around 25% is expected to be spent on influencer marketing activities by various parties, according to the digital media agency SoCheers.
Going by the Election Commission’s estimates, this year’s election will see nearly 20 million young voters, or those between the ages of 18 and 29, which has brought a steep shift in how parties target the masses. “Influencer marketing is allotted significant budgets due to their advantages: laser-focused messaging tailored to specific demographics and the ability to reach out to the youth. Platforms like Instagram, YouTube, and Twitter are being heavily utilised for direct engagement. In this, AI and technology play a crucial role in data analysis, personalised messaging, and identifying potential voters. This trend will likely dominate even further in the future, influencing political decision-making,” said Siddharth Devnani, co-founder & director, SoCheers.
Hoping to connect with the country’s 850 million online population— from PM Narendra Modi organising the first-ever National Creators Awards earlier this month to his onboarding of Ankit Baiyanpuria, a social media fitness influencer from Haryana, to be part of PM’s shramdaan programme of the ‘Swachhata Hi Seva’ campaign— party leaders seem to be waking up to the impact content creators or influencer can have on internet consumers. Quite recently, other leaders from the BJP including Smriti Irani, S Jaishankar, and Rajeev Chandrasekhar have appeared on YouTuber Ranveer Allahbadia’s channel which has more than seven million followers.
For its part, INC collaborated with influencers for its Bharat Jodo Yatra. Besides, the party leader Rahul Gandhi was seen discussing his fitness regime with Kamiya Jani, who hosts Sunday Brunch on her YouTube channel Curly Tales with over two million subscribers. In one of her other episodes, Aaditya Thackeray of Shiv Sena was seen discussing his favourite eating joints in Mumbai.
“Such collaborations offer mutual benefits. For parties, it provides an avenue to tap into the influencer’s audience, thereby expanding their reach and visibility across various demographics. Additionally, influencers bring a personalised touch to political messaging, making it more relatable to their followers and potentially enhancing the perception of candidates and their policies,” said influencer marketing agency KlugKlug’s co-founder and CPO, Vaibhav Gupta.
While the monetary aspects of these collaborations are often undisclosed, there is clear evidence of political parties supporting influencers, possibly with a budget allocation starting in the single-digit percentage, noted digital marketing agency Social Panga’s co-founder, Himanshu Arora. Though some influencers may receive financial compensation for their involvement, others may choose to support candidates based on shared values or beliefs.
These collaborations have demonstrated significant reach and impact, although questions regarding transparency and ethical guidelines remain pertinent— if there is a monetary or quid pro quo arrangement, the audience rarely gets to know, remarked Devnani, who said, “It would be the first time those overseeing the election process will need to be mindful of this – as the scale has grown manifold – the scale of investments, and the scale of potential impact”.
There are some other potential drawbacks such as the risk of backlash if the collaboration is perceived as opportunistic or insincere. Maintaining transparency and integrity in these collaborations is crucial to preserving credibility and trust among voters, experts highlighted.