Online Content

MailChimp vs. Constant Contact

Nov 02, 2015 by Ben Holse (he/him)

MailChimp vs. Constant Contact: Which Works Best for Campaigns?

For campaigns, email is an important and cost effective means of communication. While I am not an email expert and do not have in depth knowledge of open rates, conversions, etc., I have worked with both the MailChimp and Constant Contact. In truth, both MailChimp and Constant Contact are fairly similar services and can both work within the confines of small to mid -sized campaigns. With that said, below is our assessment of which would work better for small campaigns, MailChimp or Constant Contact.

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Advocacy Message Consistency

Jan 19, 2015 by The Campaign Workshop

 Advocacy Message: The Key is Simplify, Simplify, Simplify

Maintaining message discipline is critical to advocacy message campaigns. If your organization doesn’t have a advocacy message document, or even a mission statement, it’s time you create one. The statement should be specific to your work, but broad enough that all of your campaigns are able to fit comfortably under it, That way, you can continue to maintain overall organizational message discipline over the life of a specific advocacy campaign. It should also be brief—no more than a couple lines on a page, two sentences max.

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Winning Advocacy Strategies for 2015 and Beyond

Jan 05, 2015 by Joe Fuld (he/him)

The Evolution of Advocacy Strategies

Advocacy strategies have changed a lot over the last 20 years. When I was a chief of staff in the New York State Legislature, I don't remember there ever being a real advocacy campaign around public support of an issue that focused on legislators. The main way groups moved legislation was to hire a lobbyist and that was really it. There were occasional print ads and lobby days, but day-to-day mass contact from constituents that were driven by member groups were few and far between. Today, we spend a lot of time running advocacy campaigns on the state level.  Issue advocacy tactics that were once only used on large, federal issues are now seen on smaller federal issues as well as state and municipal issues.

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Campaign Toolbox Tips

Dec 11, 2014 by Joe Fuld (he/him)

Open up Your Campaign Toolbox, What Will You Find?

We understand what it’s like to operate a campaign on a tight budget, so we’ve found some free tools to include in your campaign toolbox to help you along the way.  We hope you will find them useful as you launch your campaign or look for ways to better organize it. to ve clear no campaign tool will solve all of your campaigns problems.  Whether fundraising for a nonprofit, managing an independent expenditure campaign, or seeking office, a few of these tools will surely help you along your way.

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Measuring Conversions Across Devices

Nov 13, 2014

Measuring Conversions Across Devices Using Facebook

Recently Facebook launched cross-device reporting for Facebook ads, which will help in measuring conversions of all of an individual's devices. We have grown beyond just using desktops. Now folks are using multiple devices and advertisers and publisher are adjusting to connect with consumers.  Facebook's cross-device reporting enables advertisers to see how people are moving between devices before they convert into donors, supporters, volunteers, etc. Reaching supporters across multiple devices is incredibly important for digital advertising today and it’s not exactly groundbreaking that people are surfing the web on more than just their desktop computer. When you look specifically at Facebook, it’s even more apparent that people are checking their accounts on every device they have.

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Micro Targeting Online Advertising Can Help Your Budget

Apr 07, 2014

Micro Targeting for Online Advertising Is All the Buzz

We’ve talked a lot about targeting online, but lately micro targeting has gotten even more specific and it can really help boost your online advertising campaign. It’s common knowledge these days that online advertising can get the same type of sophisticated targeting that direct mail can. One way advertisers are using micro targeting online advertising is with geo-fencing.

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What Is Franked Mail?

Jan 13, 2014 by The Campaign Workshop

Franked Mail: The Original Political Mail

In a nutshell, franked mail is mail sent from congresspersons to their constituents to communicate official business. You might even say that franked mail is the original political mail.

The history of the congressional frank dates back before the founding of the United States, to the English House of Commons in the 17^th century. The frank was authorized by the American Continental Congress in 1775 and the first franking law was enacted in 1789.

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Making Political Direct Mail More Democratic

Dec 16, 2013 by Joe Fuld (he/him)

Tips to Make Political Direct Mail More Democratic

We find it sad that as Democratic political direct mail consultants, the mail we see is often very un-democratic. It’s hard to get real engagement from voters or constituents if you don't even try. Here are some tips on how to increase engagement in your campaigns and make real democratic direct mail.

Map it Out: Maps are a very simple way to get engagement in a campaign. For instance, we deigned Democratic direct mail for a primary in Philly that used a simple map of the city to showcase the candidate’s accomplishments. We have used similar maps to show early voting locations or the consequences of a ballot measure. Whatever the purpose, maps allow voters to engage with political direct mail.

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Obama's Innovations Online and Your Campaign

Aug 05, 2013

Online Advertising Testing

Over the last two Presidential election cycles, the Obama campaign has done some really innovative work online. There has been a lot of discussion in the progressive community about how other campaigns and organizations can take some of these tactics and apply them to their own causes. While it’s true that not all campaigns will have access to the same resources – budget, consultants, in-house staff – that the Obama campaign did, there are still some great lessons that can be applied to your campaign, regardless of size. One of the biggest takeaways from the campaign that can easily be applied to campaigns and organizations of all sizes is testing. The Obama campaign took testing to another level and tested everything from emails to online ads.

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Political Email: Does More = More?

Jul 19, 2013

All the Political Email, All the Time!

If you signed up for political email lists during the last election, you probably noticed a lot of email traffic. A lot. If, like a lot of us here at The Campaign Workshop, you were signed up for the political email lists of multiple candidates, campaign committees, advocacy organizations and more, you probably had an inbox flooded with emails. Which makes us wonder: is more political email better?

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