The election this coming November will be very tight if you believe what the polls are telling us. Dead even right now, as a matter of fact. I would imagine that nominees will be trying to do everything in their power to get the advantage as we approach that ever fateful day election day.

Didit came out with a new study showing “nearly 7% of those surveyed reported that were likely to change their vote before the election.” Now, I don’t want to rehash the survey — enough bloggers out there will do that for me. But I want to discuss the titanic effect these last-minute changes of mind could have on the election and the opportunity for the campaigns on each side of the presidential ticket to use paid search to influence those votes.

Instead of buying votes via friends in high places in the state of Florida, the candidates have the opportunity to basically win the election fairly (7% would decide the election if it happened today), albeit a loophole in campaign financing. If I was Barack Obama, I would be plastering my paid search ads in the obvious places: the issues, political terms, John McCain’s name (even Cindy’s name if he has the budget), etc. But, I would also go after lifestyle terms of people known to be swing voters, independents or the undecided. If an undecided mom is online, I would go after the term Tide detergent and throw and ad out there that states Obama understands the stay at home mom’s peril with the cost of food increasing. I think I would even throw some terms in there that were cool/hip or had a little fun; it would show the lighter side of him, just like his Letterman appearance. The idea here is the opportunity for candidates to use search marketing to relate to voters and get their attention through their lifestyles, especially on topics or demographics where Obama, for example, might feel that McCain has the upper hand.

This is all a hypothetical scenario, but it is amazing how online media, specifically search, plays a role in our lives and shapes the environment we live in. It shows you that if you really want to be a business that is involved in that world being shaped, you better be influencing the search landscape.

Now, I wonder if John McCain has internet access in all of his homes…

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