DAVENPORT - - Each keyboard click means votes for Brian Dumas.
"It's very affordable to be able to target voters," he said, on Thursday, March 30.
It's a way to target votes for the dozens of candidates he represents at Victory Enterprises in Davenport.
The firm and its 65 employees recently won a national award for digital media from the American Association of Political Consultants.
"We can turn content around and be up very quickly for candidates," he continued. "It's where people get their news."
From President Trump's tweets to local campaigns, social media is reaching more voters than ever.
Facebook offers inexpensive, targeted messages for a specific audience.
"Being able to deliver ads as people are looking at their phones and scrolling through their feed," he said. "We can deliver ads directly to these folks."
Digital media may account for about a quarter of a candidate's budget these days. Even so, that still leaves room for old-fashioned campaigning with yard signs, mailers and door-to-door contact.
That's why their print shop is a bustling place. It's where they make signs for campaigns all over the country.
Sometimes the immediate, instant contact of social media backfires.
"It caught me off guard," said Monmouth mayoral candidate DuWayne Brooks.
Brooks is contending with slurs posted on his Facebook page.
"There's no place for it," he said.
Dumas advises clients to simply delete profane comments, but he recommends answering tough questions. That back-and-forth can promote a good discussion, along with the candidate.
"When you go too far with something and say something that's out of line, most people have the common sense to ignore that and move on to a real discussion," Dumas said.
These days, those political discussions will include social media.
"It's a very powerful tool," he concluded.