4As Issues Guides For Brand Ads In Face Of Political Onslaught

The American Association of Advertising Agencies (4As) has issued an advisory bulletin to members with some tips for dealing with the chaos that lies ahead on the airwaves, due to the expected Tsunami of political ads as the election nears.

Two years ago during the fall election season, political ads accounted for up to 70% of the prime-time inventory of some TV stations. This year, with so-called “SuperPACs” raising unregulated amounts of political donations, and with both presidential candidates foregoing federal funds for campaigning (and thus avoiding caps on their spending), estimates are there will be a record $9 billion in political ad spending. Thus, the clutter of political ads on the airwaves is only expected to get worse, making it more of a challenge than usual for brand advertisers to get their own messages on the tube during election season.