How Can Broadcast TV Stations Prepare for Unprecedented Political Spending?

Current polling suggests American voters are not excited about a presidential election rematch between Joe Biden and Donald Trump, except maybe for broadcast television stations and cable news outlets.

Analytical intelligence firm AdImpact expects political ad spending to reach at least $10.2 billion this cycle across broadcast, cable, radio, satellite, digital, and connected TV or free ad-supported TV channels (FAST). That would be a 13% increase over the previous record: $9.02 billion during the 2019-20 cycle.

According to AdImpact, broadcasting is still expected to see the most spending, with $5.1 billion, or about 50%, followed by cable at $1.9 billion, or about 18%. Connected TV is expected to total $1.3 billion, or about 13%. “As voters continue to ‘cut the cord’ and shift away from traditional forms of media, reaching them regardless of consumption habits has become a main goal of advertisers,” according to AdImpact. Digital, meanwhile, is projected to reach $1.2 billion, led by Google and Facebook.

Candidates are never NOT going to buy local news on broadcast TV stations. So, what can stations do to prepare for the onslaught of billing and maximize their take? Here are a couple of things that ShareBuilders helps with that can aid a station’s effort:

1. 📱 Issue to Candidate Calculator - our calculator considers various factors such as your political forecast, the amount of political dollars already booked, the amount of issue vs. candidate dollars, and what sort of premium exists on those issue dollars. ShareBuilders can add a percentage into our software to calculate those premiums for you.

2. 🎋 Inventory Tree Management - we can help stations break down local news from hour-long blocks into half hours on the ShareBuilders side - even if station skims do not reflect it. The purpose is to set stations up to maximize political dollars.

3. ‼️ Priority Code Management - with the click of a button, ShareBuilders can show you weekly p-code data during the political window and ensure they align with the station rate card structure. 

4. 🗣️ Speak With Consultants Who Have Been Through Political Cycles - sometimes, a discussion can spur deeper thought into what the market can expect. How many contested races exist in your state/city/congressional district? Do the candidates have any backing from PACs? Are they getting support from the NRCC (National Republican Congressional Committee) or DCCC (Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee)? There can be as many as six advertisers for one race.

The better prepared you are, the better you will be able to handle what’s coming. ShareBuilders would be thrilled to help you navigate to a prosperous 2024!