Pollinate research reveals "You're The Voice" Yes Campaign is not being heard

Pollinate has announced that the "You're The Voice" Yes ad campaign, featuring John Farnham's popular song has had zero or a negative influence on Australians ahead of the Indigenous Voice to Parliament Referendum on October 14. 

34% of current "No" voters say the ad has reinforced their voting plans and 55% say it has not influenced them at all.

Pollinate has found that despite an estimated media ad budget of more than $4 million, the campaign is not swaying voters. 

Almost two-thirds of people who haven’t decided yet how to vote said the TV commercial has not influenced them, with a further 16% saying it has made them more confused. Despite extensive media coverage of the ad and a heavy rotation schedule, only 28% of people said they had seen it.

The latest findings from Pollinate reveal that 44% of people plan to vote “No”, up five percentage points since the first wave of research in late August, followed by 35% of people who plan to vote “Yes” (up four percentage points) and 21% at “undecided” (down nine percentage points).

68% of people surveyed believe the referendum will be voted down, the same proportion as in late August.

Pollinate chief executive officer, Howard Parry-Husbands said: ”In the few weeks since our first round of research on the Voice, the ‘Yes’ vote remains smaller than the ‘No’ vote and the gap was widened a little.

“The ‘You’re The Voice’ TV commercial has exposed an angry and divided Australia. The ad clearly evokes powerful emotions but our research suggests it has hardened people’s opinions.

“Many of the ‘No’ voters think there is not enough detail and are angry at the lack of clear information for such an important issue. They want clarity, not a cuddle,” he said.

See also: Beyond Canberra: Behind the scenes of NITV’s coverage of The Voice referendum