RICHMOND, Va. (WTVR) - Voters expect candidate television commercials and robo calls during campaigns, but this election cycle online advertising is taking voters by surprise.
"It's intrusive, it's evasive. It reeks of lies," Rob Martin, an active internet user said.
"Every time I try to watch a video on youtube that has any kind of ad space there is a political ad there," Martin added.
Campaigns have spent millions in the last few months online alone. According to Federal Election Commission, President Obama and Governor Romney spent a combined $25 million in September.
Even though the online advertising is annoying, marketing experts say its effective.
"If you can get a soundbite across that's accomplishing something," Dr. Thomas Myers, a professor of marketing at VCU, told CBS 6.
Myers added however that not all internet users are treated equally. Myers says campaigns are able to use software that allows advertisements to be demographic specific.
"They understand our online habits, they understand our online interests that can start revealing our lifestyles which reveals our values," Myers said.
