Facebook: every political candidate’s and electoral issues’ best friend and biggest foe.
The social media platform has come under fire in recent months for fake news, fake accounts and election issues before Congress and in the court of public opinion. As the November 2018 midterms approach, many candidates will take to social media to get the best bang for their buck and reach the masses in a more tightly-controlled digital environment.
For the campaign officials and their media consultants, it is critical to understand the changes and new rules tied to political ads as Facebook attempts to force candidate’s hands at transparent and accountable advertising. Everyday consumers will see very little change to the naked eye, but small details are being updated in a big way, supporting a fair and honest elections through social media presence.
The most visible change will be the new political ad label: “paid for by,” mimicking traditional advertising and providing added transparency. Now to the nitty-gritty, not-so-enjoyable details…
For those operating the digital campaigns, Facebook will now require authorizations for ALL US-based page administrators and advertisers running political ads whether they are electoral or issue-based on both Facebook and Instagram.
To receive authorization and run political ads, the following steps MUST be completed. This process may take several weeks, so take action NOW!
- Page and ad account admins will need to submit their government-issued ID and provide a residential mailing address for verification.
- Facebook will confirm each address by mailing a letter with a unique access code that only the admin’s Facebook account can use.
- Once authorized, advertisers will have to identify which ad account(s) will be used to run political ads.
- Page admins/advertisers will have to specify a “paid for by” disclaimer for all ad accounts running political ads for additional transparency.
Ready to streamline your campaign’s digital marketing strategy? Digital Tulip will be working with a handful of candidates and will be abreast to each step of these updates. Contact Digital Tulip for social media management assistance so your candidate can spend time on what really matters. Digital Tulip can step in to set up authorizations on your candidate’s page, strategically craft a social media campaign, and share transparent reporting with feedback, navigating the ever changing political landscape on Facebook, providing a safe and authentic virtual community.
How did Digital Tulip obtain this information? The agency was recently selected for the Facebook Partner Program and is now among a global community of companies known for excellence on the platform. Digital Tulip was selected as one of the TOP 2,500 agencies out of 30,000 based on revenue growth, growth patterns and overall agency potential. A direct benefit of this program is access to and implementation of VIP support, marketing intelligence reports and strategic guidance, among other perks.
