Clive Palmer’s $100 million marketing budget falls flat with voters

Mining tycoon Clive Palmer’s $100 million political advertising budget has not resulted in significant political victories – money talks, but it doesn’t always win.

There was probably no one busier than Palmer during this federal election campaign. The man was everywhere; he was on billboards, his party sent text messages and he even had an hour-long commercial on Channel 10.

Who can forget when Palmer spent millions on infamous YouTube ads? Only for them to be removed for violating ad policies – ouch!

But, interestingly, the giant spending did not result in seats. the Guardian reported that while Palmer’s party, The United Australian Party, spent $100 million on advertising, it didn’t translate to voters.

In fact, his primary vote fell short of 5% nationwide. In comparison, The One Nation Party managed to have more discount with 6% and supposedly less spend.

So, while Palmer was talking a lot: no one was actually listening.

Politics aside, it’s an interesting lesson in publicity. A big budget can’t do much if the content doesn’t engage people.

In this election, Palmer threw away everything, including the kitchen sink and his checkbook, but it didn’t resonate.