NEW YORK (AP) — Voters in New Hampshire and Iowa who surf the Internet are probably seeing ads for Mitt Romney and President Barack Obama alongside those for shoes and holiday gifts.
The ads will then follow them around the Web, popping up on news sites, Google searches and on social networking sites like Facebook.
Online advertising was once used primarily as a way to reach young and heavily wired consumers. It’s now emerged as an essential communications tool in the 2012 presidential contest.
While few expect Web ads to supplant television commercials anytime soon, strategists say online ads may be the most nimble, efficient and cost-effective way to reach voters.
Targeting is key. Web ads are geared specifically to people based on their ZIP code, demographics and, most importantly, their Internet browsing history.
