Commentary

The Futurist: Third Party's Fourth Screen

  • by October 2, 2008

The Futurist: Third Party's Fourth ScreenTonight, as we await election results from across the country, let's take a look back at the watershed media moments of the 2016 presidential race. This was the year that technical innovation and marketing creativity forever reshaped the contest for the White House.

In 2004 nearly one-third of President George W. Bush's campaign contributions came from small donations by individuals. Sen. Barack Obama saw that number surge to 45 percent in 2008. By 2016, more Americans donated to presidential hopefuls then ever before, thanks to technical improvements that removed obstacles to donating and created new opportunities (like the highly contested "impulse donations").

When wireless phone carriers shipped the first handsets with speed-pay technology - which allows shoppers to pay by waving their phones at the register - no one predicted that innovation would impact campaign fundraising. But by now most Americans have seen "change for change" text messages: "Want to round up your purchase from $25.34 to $26 to support your Republican, Democrat or third-party candidate? Just press 1 for Republican ..." This year, the mobile wallet changed campaigning.

In 2011, when Verizon Wireless struck deals with the cable companies to allow click-to-buy functionality during commercials, no one thought it would lead to $100 million in political fundraising the following year. Some opted to donate $500 to receive the first full 3D video player wireless application (and 3d political presentation) sent right to their phones. It is unclear if this swayed votes, but research indicates voters prefer candidates who embrace technological innovation.

With all the buzz the national conventions have received in the past 12 years - the superstar cameos, the impromptu Stevie Wonder concerts, the unveiling of the latest hybrid cars - it's no wonder the parties used seats at this year's conventions as the ultimate lure for political dabblers. How could we forget that moment during the Democratic candidate's historic speech, when tens of thousands were so moved that they texted in to win an all-expenses-paid trip to the DNC? Was that $10 well-spent? Perhaps so: Everyone who entered received a text alert as soon as the DNC DVD boxed set was available for purchase, beating the rush.

These fundraising innovations were critical because 2016 was the most expensive year ever to run a presidential campaign. Breakthrough outdoor technologies wrapped entire buildings, transforming them into video screens. Cool, but expensive. Wall-to-wall video installations at JFK and LAX were a stroke of campaign genius, but the production costs for super high-def OLED screens were just as stunning.

Even yard signs got pricey. Thanks to e-paper and Wi-Fi, candidates could not only update the signs in real time, they could also geo-, day-part and demo-target their messages, and even change their headshots.

Of course, the biggest story of the year was the rise of the third party. This was the year we asked, Will the democratization of media lead to re-democratization of the democracy? Before the Republican and Democratic political machines geared up, our favorite third-party candidate was already building her online social networks. No one noticed when she struck a deal with Social Vibe to allow consumers to donate a fraction of a cent at a time (the value of an impression on their own social networking pages) to her campaign. Three years later, people were awed when they realized that effort had amassed $158 million and platform-neutral "media credits." Although the third party used less traditional paid media, estimates show the total value was just shy of what Democrats and Republicans spent.

And it was not just new media: In a groundbreaking program involving Navic and Visible World, she was able to hypertarget commercials based on who was actually watching the TV. More than 75 percent of the spots spoke to issues relevant to the specific viewer based on assumptions made about age, income, gender and values. An online meta-data video search revealed 25 different spots (15 issue, five anti-Democrat, five anti-Republican), each of which had at least 32 customizations.

Which brings us back to election night. The ads have stopped, the votes are in. Regardless of the outcome, 2016 will be remembered as the year the democratization of media forever changed the campaign process.

Dave Rosner is vice president and director of innovations at Initiative. (dave.rosner@us.initiative.com)

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