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.

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).

All campaigns, including independent expenditures, should spend time creating a written strategy statement during the beginning of the campaign planning process. The strategy statement should clearly lay out a path to victory (or how to achieve the campaign’s goals) and act as the campaign’s north star. Keep the strategy statement in mind when making major campaign decisions involving its people, time and money. Every effort the independent expenditure is making should fit in with the strategy statement.

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.

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.

Testimonials can work wonders for your ballot measure campaign—especially if you’re dealing with an issue that’s abstract or polarizing.

So you’ve decided you’re running for office. What are your first steps? Maybe calling friends and family to let them know the news? Starting to ask for donations for your campaign? Hiring a campaign manager? It’s possible you haven’t yet thought about some key digital items that will make your big announcement a big success.