The Campaign Workshop Blog

Coalition Building Can Make All The Difference in Your Campaign

Your organization has spotted a need for change, and you are ready to do something about it. Often, the hardest part of what comes next is figuring out how to get started. Do you have enough resources, money and otherwise, to make this happen? Are there people out there who also care about your advocacy ballot issue or candidate, and is there anyone who might be inclined to work against you? How will…

Non-Partisan Elections? No Party, No Ideology? Think Again. 

We work on a lot of down-ballot county and municipal campaigns across the country. Many of these races—including campaigns for judge, sheriff, county executive, school board, city council, and mayor—are non-partisan, meaning candidates do not run with a political party designation. However, don’t let the absence of party labels fool you into thinking you can run a campaign without staking out your ideology. In local non-partisan…

Pick the Right Campaign Tools Check out Joe's Top 10 Campaign Tool Picks of 2018. 

Working on campaigns can be chaotic, which is why it comes as no surprise to us that it can be hard to prioritize your campaign needs. Between meeting your fundraising goals and generating engaging content, you probably have your hands full and are working against the clock. So why not make things easier by taking advantage of all the great campaign tools out there? We know the second challenge then becomes discerning which tools are most reliable. These days,…

What you need in a campaign manager contract... 

So you decided to run for office and you quickly found out that you couldn’t do it alone. You found a jack of all trades to be your campaign manager and everything seems just a bit easier now. As the days get longer and the campaign picks up it’s easy to forget to formalize your campaign manager’s role with a campaign manager contract. Campaigns move quickly and it’s important to get contracts signed and finalized before you’re in the thick of it. A contract ensures that you and your campaign…

People are searching for your campaign, do you have a digital campaign to show them?

From a small, local candidate for city council to a statewide campaign, all political campaigns have a digital presence these days. It’s easy, cheap and one of the best ways to stay engaged with your supporters. Here are five things we think every political campaign should be doing digitally. 1. Social Media: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, Tumblr. All of these are free for you to use, so why not? They are a fun, interactive way to communicate with…

How David Pepper came to write a book that predicted the 2016 election

Ohio Democratic Party Chairman David Pepper has worked in Ohio politics for 15 years. He’s run for office statewide in Ohio and served in city and county offices in Cincinnati. And if he isn’t busy enough, David Pepper also authored the fictional book The People’s House, which is the story of an Ohio political reporter who undercovers Russian election meddling in a Congressional district.…

How to Have an Effortless Pre-Election Cycle Vacation 

Practice self-care this pre-election cycle with a vacation! We are officially on the cusp of the 2018 election cycle. Most primaries are either completed or happening in the next few weeks. The warmer weather provides the perfect time to get in a pre-cycle vacation. This list will provide five ways to take self-care and ensure an effortless pre-election cycle vacation: 1. Get Your Mobile Passport Let’s begin with the best part of Mobile Passport, its free!  Mobile Passport is a program of…

A Recommended Reading List from TCW Interviewees

We always try to ask the political pros we interview in our “7 questions” blog series what they’re reading. As a result, we’ve gotten some great recommended reading ideas from these folks. Some of these reads help shed light on the state of the American electorate; others will give you the break you deserve from the state of our politics. Behold, our latest recommended reading list, brought to you by experts in Democratic polling, messaging, political science, decision-making, fundraising, and…

7 Questions on Harnessing the Social and Behavioral Sciences with Meg Ahern

Meg Ahern is a social and behavior change expert working in international development, and author of the new guide, The Science of Influence: Harnessing Neuroscience and the Social Sciences for Effective Democratic Campaigns. She focused her dissertation at Michigan on the role of emotion and social context in perception, cognition and memory, and did her postdoc in the sociology of knowledge at The University of Chicago…

Your Digital Strategist Needs 5 Key Pieces of Information

Any time you work with a digital strategist to craft a digital ad campaign, they’ll want to know 5 things to build the right plan for you. Your digital strategist will want to know your goal, budget, targets, timing, and the geographic area you want the ads to run in. It can be helpful for you to think about these things ahead of time so you and your digital strategist can get on the same page and build a campaign quickly and efficiently. Goal Setting a goal is the first thing your…