Recently, data from our study of political ads in email newsletters was featured in MediaPost:

“The 2020 election is about a year away, but political ads are seeing a much higher engagement rate compared with non-political ads. Political ads have a conversion rate 10 times higher and a click-through rate (CTR) three times higher compared with non-political ads.”

We’re very proud of our work with campaigns on the LiveIntent platform, which reaches 250 million verified people monthly through email. We also know that political ads in email make sense. In 2012, the majority of Barack Obama’s $690 million online fundraising came from emails, with simple yet innovative subject lines like “Dinner?” and “Hey.” This year, the homepages of 2020 presidential candidates are dominated by email signup boxes. And despite how they may relentlessly flood supporters’ inboxes – emails work, as The Wall Street Journal reported.

According to Forrester, 89% of marketers say the email address is their most important piece of data – allowing them to reach customers and track behaviors across devices and platforms. Politicians would likely say the same. Still, even with the best email marketing efforts, average email open rates are stuck at 10-20%.

So, what if you could reach people in emails they’re already reading? You can. With programmatically placed ads in email inventory, political campaigns can reach everyone on their email lists – all without sending another email. And as our study found, LiveIntent political placements offer 10x higher conversion rates and 3x higher CTR than standard email ad placements.

Here’s a look at what else we found, as covered by EContent and Cynopsis Media.

• Political ads on mobile devices see a 50% higher conversion rate and 2x higher CTR than ads on desktops and tablets.
• Political ads in newsletters about law, government and politics, and business see a 33% higher CTR and 50% higher conversion rate compared to the average. On the other hand, political campaigns in newsletters about travel and food and drink see the lowest CTR and conversion rates.
• Political ads distributed on Monday, Wednesday, and Sunday see the highest conversions. Tuesday and Friday are the worst days for conversions.
• Political ads shared from 9–11 am and 2–4 pm see the highest conversions. The worst times of day for conversions are 11 pm and 4 am.
• Political ads perform equally well among men and women, though men see more of these ads through programmatic placements.
• Political ads perform best among people aged 65+, with 40% higher conversion rates and 30% higher CTR. The 18–20 age group performs worst, driving an 80% lower conversion rate and 70% lower CTR.

For more data-backed strategies that reach audiences this election season, check out our guide to launching political ads in email newsletters.