Republican presidential hopeful, Vivek Ramaswamy, is altering his campaign’s advertising approach in the crucial weeks leading up to the Iowa caucuses. This comes as data reveals the campaign has not reserved any future television ad space.
According to AdImpact, a data tracking firm, Ramaswamy’s campaign has no upcoming ad bookings despite a previously announced eight-figure advertising campaign targeting Iowa and New Hampshire in November. The campaign has already invested $1.8 million in TV ads in Iowa and an additional $1.3 million in New Hampshire.
The campaign indicates this shift away from TV ads is a strategic move to target specific voters more effectively. In a recent social media post, Ramaswamy criticized the spending on TV ads as “idiotic” and “low-ROI”, suggesting that younger voters may not be regular TV consumers.
“Presidential TV ad spending is idiotic, low-ROI & a trick that political consultants use to bamboozle candidates who suffer from low IQ. We’re doing it differently. Spending $$ in a way that follows data…apparently a crazy idea in US politics,” Ramaswamy stated.
Despite rumors that his lack of TV spending could indicate his campaign is winding down before the Iowa caucuses on January 15, Ramaswamy hinted at a “Big surprise coming on Jan 15.”
The Ramaswamy campaign has spent a total of $4.7 million on TV advertising since its launch in February, a relatively modest sum compared to his Republican rivals. The campaign has relied heavily on media interviews and social media to disseminate their message.
In contrast, the campaigns and super PACs supporting former President Donald Trump, former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis have all invested tens of millions of dollars in television advertising throughout the campaign.
Tricia McLaughlin, a spokesperson for the Ramaswamy campaign, told CNN that the campaign is preparing a new TV advertisement to air soon. She emphasized that their spending levels have remained consistent and highlighted their use of data to guide spending decisions.
“We are focused on bringing out the voters we’ve identified—best way to reach them is using addressable advertising, mail, text, live calls and doors to communicate with our voters on Vivek’s vision for America, making their plan to caucus and turning them out,” McLaughlin said. “As you know, this isn’t what most campaigns look like. We have intentionally structured this way so that we have the ability to be nimble and hyper targeted in our ad spending.”
NBC News was the first to report on the Ramaswamy campaign’s shift away from TV advertising.