The Campaign Workshop Blog

Direct mail can be your campaign saving grace. Running for office can be overwhelming. There is a steep learning curve with very little room for error and a lot to consider. Always remember that once you formulate a strong, clear message for your campaign, the most important part of a primary campaign is getting that message out to voters. What better way to do this than via direct mail? 

Building a strong political direct mail program for your campaign doesn’t have to involve the amount of back-and-forth you may expect (or fear). Having a clear dialogue and a shared understanding of goals between the political consultant and the campaign team from the get-go can streamline the process and reduce the number of headaches for both parties along the way.

An independent expenditure is an effort that expressly advocates for or against a candidate which is not made in coordination with any candidate campaign by a third party entity. When planning an independent expenditure campaign for or against a particular candidate it’s important not to make these three common mistakes.

A political internship is something revered by many college students, but finding the right one, and then being selected for it, can seem like a daunting challenge. Still, the benefits of working to further the causes you are passionate about and learning the ins and outs of the political world make the pursuit of a political internship worthwhile! Here are three dos and three don’ts for landing an internship in politics.

It’s 2019, so by now you’re probably well aware that television extends beyond traditional broadcast and that your independent expenditure campaign’s paid media plan probably should as well. But what is the difference between all these different video buying terms and which tactic is the best for your campaign? We’re here to break it down for you.

While we’ve given tips on how to run independent expenditure campaigns in the past, we wanted to answer some basic independent expenditure frequently asked questions (FAQs). From simply defining what an independent expenditure is to discussing contribution limits, this article aims to provide background and clarity on IEs and how they work.

While they share a number of similarities, independent expenditure mail and candidate campaign mail also have quite a few differences. Both independent expenditure mail and candidate campaign mail may have the same primary goal (i.e., getting a candidate elected), but the means that they use to get there can vary.

Unlike TV or radio, digital IE spending doesn’t come with an easy competitive report to help you track who is spending what and where. It’s a bummer, I know. That said, in their efforts to stave off regulation, oversight, and additional congressional inquiries (or maybe I’m too cynical and it’s actually out of the kindness of their democracy-loving hearts), many of the large platforms have started to provide real-time databases for political advertising. To find out what an IE is spending, it will certainly help to know the name of the committee (especially if you’re working in a cluttered independent expenditure field), but there’s a fair amount of flexibility in the search terms, so you should be able to find what you’re looking for using related keywords (think: the candidate’s name).

When it comes to your independent expenditure strategy, earned media doesn’t need to be your enemy, it can be your friend. Earned media can actually help you raise awareness for your independent expenditure campaign and improve engagement with your campaign amongst the general public. Whether you attract positive or negative attention, well, that’s on you!

If you’re running political ads for your independent expenditure campaign, you already have to make extra sure that everything you’re doing and saying is legal. All of your content will likely need to be reviewed by lawyers, especially if it could be controversial. But one area that’s relatively new to this kind of review is making sure your digital ad accounts and/or pages have been verified to run political ads in the US.

An 8.5 x 11 piece  of direct mail may not sound like a thrilling medium for relaying your campaign message to voters at first blush, but direct mail leaves a lot of room for creativity. In fact, if you’re running an independent expenditure (IE) campaign, mail can be one of the most effective ways to make a difference for the candidate you’re supporting. What’s more, your mail doesn’t have to be disconnected from the digital sphere—mail and social media can be the perfect complements to make your messaging stand out.

Just like all campaigns, a good ballot measure campaign will include a strong digital presence on both organic and paid media. One big differentiator for ballot measure campaigns is that you’ll likely need to focus on persuasion more heavily than with other campaigns.

We’ve discussed in past blogs that a large part of executing a #winning political campaign is doing your background research, and ballot measure polling is the best way to find out if you can win and how you can win.