Community leaders such as elected officials, business owners, philanthropists, and volunteer leaders can also be key partners. “Oh, that person has run for office and lost nine times—they definitely seem like the right choice to solve my community’s problems,” said no one, EVER. At the end of the day, you should feel confident that your budget covers the cost of executing your political campaign strategy well and getting you across the finish line. It’s not about you, it’s about the voters. Your campaign budget will have a direct impact on the activities you will undertake. These can also be characterized as campaign tactics. Engage the public via live video. By focussing debate on an issue that unites their team but divides … These include factors like age, gender, race, education, location, income, etc. Self-funding is one way to raise money for your campaign. It. In essence, a strong political campaign strategy (meaning, the overall plan to achieve an electoral victory) should rest on a foundation of some very basic building blocks and principles that will help to carry you across the finish line. Know More About Your Political Rivals. A lot of this will seem like common sense (and it is), but bear with me, because a lot of this stuff often falls by the wayside as campaigns are being built. It outlines all the steps in a political campaign from the time you decide to run until the polls close on election day. Even if you’re running in a non-partisan election, party affiliation is important for a couple of reasons. Similarly creates a correlation between your potential audiences towards your election manifesto. Now you need to figure out how you’re going to communicate that value proposition to those segments. If you want an idea of the potential cost of your election, research previous races for the same office. Political campaign strategy should be 20% strategy and 80% implementation. Cocktail napkins get thrown away (or spilled on, if you’re having a great night), and mental lockboxes are not a thing (your brain is not a server!). For serious. Traditional media. Get as much information about … At a minimum, they can serve as an information source to inform your campaign strategies and tactics. and with all of that information in view, make an educated decision about whether there’s a real path to victory. Candidates need a social media strategy to … And it’s not a mission. In most cases, your political party (assuming you are running as a Democrat or Republican) will have certain resources like voter databases, training, events, fundraisers, etc. Another indirect channel is grassroots organizations. Live video has taken over political social media. What is a political campaign strategy? The … This mission, of course, is based on a standard, two-party election landscape. We’ll discuss in our next blog post, How to Create a Political Campaign Plan. Know that asking people for things is part of a campaign. Joe Fuld and Voter checklists are typically available from local governments if you don’t have access to a party database. The most important aspect of any political campaign is the narrative. Without a well-developed political campaign strategy, your campaign is simply a series of tactics that may or may not be well-aligned and effective. Your vote goal is a piece of information that should undergird almost everything in your campaign plan, and it’s a central piece of the puzzle when you’re formulating a strong political campaign strategy. If I had a dollar for each campaign I’ve spoken with that keeps their campaign plan through some combination of writing on cocktail napkins and a mental lockbox, I’d own the pony I’ve always dreamed of. Resource and Planning. Political Campaign Strategy apps contains 1) Campaigning 2) Campaign Plan and Strategy Work with your team to get a real understanding of what a winning campaign will cost. in Government – Political Campaign Strategies & Management, available fully online with some on-campus options, will equip you with the tools needed to influence the direction of American government at the local, state and federal levels. In business terms, you can think of voters like your customer base. A classic strategy in political circles where parties vie to maximise their vote share. Regent’s M.A. This is not just about making sure you’re engaging voters from different backgrounds. Paid – Advertisements on social media, websites, newspapers, radio, television, etc. Run for the right reasons. Politics is a comparative game. Most non-profit organizations are prohibited from endorsing candidates. In his economic treatise Human Action, Ludwig von Mises spells out an effective model for motivating people to take action. Effective surrogates include community leaders, business leaders, family members, etc. But, creating an entire plan is no small feat. When you run for local office for the first time, you learn two things very quickly: Most of the advice the people offer as well as the top Google results you’ll find on this subject are, in fact, really a list of tactics and not a political campaign strategy. Political Campaign Strategy app contains a political campaign strategy and planning to assist political parties and candidates in developing effective, strategic electoral campaigns. Campaigners use this knowledge to create their strategy, which g… Political campaigns are a means to getting a message out, but they are not the message itself. A more well-funded campaign might be the complete opposite. My political campaign strategy in Nigeria on this post will focus on a new media political campaign strategy in Nigeria. There is a great deal of overlap between political strategies and tactics in the campaign world and in the world of governing. Digital Public Relations Social media and the Internet have added a new layer to public relations and political campaigns. You need to create a reason for voters to choose you and that reason should be woven throughout your campaign activities. How to Create Your Political Campaign Strategy, Everyone has advice you “must follow” in order to win, You don’t have enough time or money to follow everyone’s advice. Rather, it means that you’ve got a starting place and a way to make sure everyone on your campaign team can refer to it to make sure you’re all working toward the same goal with the same basic parameters in place. Know how many votes you need to win. Other media you can use to reach voters directly include mail, social media, radio, television, etc. You already understand the various segments in your district and have developed your value proposition. Similarly, grassroots organizations and political action committees (PACs) are important partners as well. Vote goals don’t need to be that complicated, but any political campaign worth its salt needs a vote goal. Running repeatedly is not a sound strategy when it comes to building name recognition or creating a road map to victory. You will need to convince voters that you have the integrity and will to finish the fight. In large city or state-wide elections, the costs may reach millions. Before taking action, successful campaigners learn as much as possible about: 1. the existing situation 2. who is affected by the campaign issue both positively and negatively 3. what changes could improve the situation 4. what resources, tactics and tools are available to implement a campaign that will address the issue. Get An Attractive Campaign Logo. The infrastructure required for your political campaign will also vary depending upon its size. Your campaign will require human resources and physical assets. At the highest level, it’s worth thinking about the demographics of your voter base. However, you will need volunteers to help make calls, stuff envelopes, canvass neighborhoods, etc. The second is trustworthiness. You can leverage relationships with them to access voters, donors, and other key resources. Who are your political rivals? download a sample political campaign budget. Take the time to get to know the people you want to represent and what matters to them—you’re running to serve their interests and advocate for policies that will make their lives better, don’t lose sight of that as you build your political campaign strategy. These are great opportunities to reach voters who are engaged on issues you’ve identified as part of your value proposition. This doesn’t mean that once you write your plan it’s done and dusted—a campaign plan is a living, breathing document. Vision of a Better State: Describe to them in specific terms what their life will look like once a solution is implemented. The third leg of your political campaign strategy is a map of channels you’ll utilize to contact voters. Create a table of the most important demographic segments in your district along with the value propositions and channels for each: Sample table of voter segments as part of a political campaign strategy. Running for office is a tedious task. That means thinking about hiring practices and who makes up your team (from campaign managers to consultants), it means taking a deep dive into your “like me” bias and making sure your preferences and requirements are clear and that they don’t accidentally exclude people. Donor outreach (i.e. However, many of them conduct surveys, sponsor meet-and-greet events, etc. An effective political campaign strategy will divide the voter base into segments and then apply the most effective resources for each through the appropriate channels. That’s absolutely important, but this should be deeper than winning votes—approaching your campaign with an equity and inclusion lens is really about living our values as progressives and making sure equity and inclusion are more than transactional. Political parties are usually the first and most valuable partnership for a candidate. Using Radio, Television, Billboards, and snail-mail to communicate to voters. Don’t just budget for any campaign; make sure you plan to have the money you need to win your campaign. by Jon DiPietro | Jul 29, 2018 | Campaign Strategy | 1 comment. Understanding that math and its impact on a particular race can mean the difference between running in the right race and running a race that you can’t win. For example, Millennial voters may be far less concerned about property taxes than retirees and the channels you’d use to reach them both are very different. Create a contrast. Campaign Best Practices. Your political campaign strategy needs to prioritize the key activities you will undertake. In most local campaigns, you won’t have paid staff. Path to Get There: Explain – in very broad terms – how you will help create that transformation. Make it personalized to them. Don’t run unless you have a chance to win. Due to the influence it has with voters, public relations is among the leading political campaign strategies. It’s also a series of collective organized efforts to change someone’s views on exclusive agenda. In fact, it’s often the case that the more times you run and lose, the less likely you are to win. Campaign Plan, First, most state and local political parties have voter databases that may be available to you as a registered party candidate. Note: Campaign finance and disclosure laws vary greatly across states and localities. The simple act of creating a vote goal can save you a lot of time campaigning for a race that isn’t the right fit. Terms | Privacy Policy, Designed by Elegant Themes | Powered by WordPress, [button link="https://candidatebootcamp.com/lp/raise-first-500/" type="icon" icon="question"] TAKE A LOOK[/button], TAKE A LOOK. Democratic Campaign, It allows you to examine a Facebook audience broken down according to broad demographic groups, narrow interests, and everything in between. The Management Center has a great set of resources on this, and though it’s aimed at managers within an organization, the same basic principles apply to just about any situation. The product, in this case, is the electoral platform, the message or proposal that they want to highlight and which one to vote; the party, the ideology or the politician it represents. Budget for a winning political campaign. Tailoring your value proposition and voter contact channels to these groups is also crucial. The amount required will depend on your strategy and campaign plan. Share on Facebook Organizations like businesses and PACs (political action committees) will donate to candidates. The mission may sound more like, “I need to earn X,XXX votes by mobilizing them to fight against [issue].”. The sooner you get on board with that reality, the better off your campaign will be (and hopefully you’ll feel a little more at peace as well). Mar 02, 2020 by As an entrepreneur, I tend to take a more business-oriented approach. Required fields are marked *, Article: How to Run for Political Office in 2018, Ⓒ 2020, Candidate Boot Camp, LLC. Because nothing thing cannot be compromised for another. Share this page on LinkedIn, The Management Center has a great set of resources on this, Five Books to Shape Your Political Campaign Strategy, Post-Election Campaign Shutdown Checklist, 7 Questions with Pollster Ben Lazarus on State Legislative Races, How to Ensure Canvasser Safety During a Pandemic, How to Turn Campaign Endorsements into a Victory at the Polls, 7 Questions on Political Polling in a Pandemic or Crisis with Alan Secrest, Digital Tactics for Your Ballot Measure Campaign, Best Practices for Your Campaign Twitter Account, Facebook Campaign Strategy for Political Candidates, Are You Ready to Run? Don’t run to help your insurance business, or because you feel wronged by your opponent. That’s why a campaign plan is such a vital tool for any candidate. For more information, read our blog series on fundraising. A logo is an identity of a political party. But voters are not homogenous. But because America was established as a democracy, the political game changed. Getting out the vote is one of the most important activities any political … Do your homework in advance so you’re not surprised, and make sure you have a viable plan to get to that number (or past it, if you’re really cooking with gas). Your email address will not be published. You can use Facebook’s Audience Insights tool as a voter segmentation research tool for your political campaign strategy development. A written plan is key. After both are complete, you can (and should) formulate a campaign budget (click here to download a sample political campaign budget). That means looking at the costs of similar successful campaigns, as well as assessing the potential competition. You need two things in order to answer that question. There are two channel categories. A popular misconception regarding this point is that people do not fall for lavish setups and treats. What are the qualifications, credentials, skills, and experience you have to offer? Make communication inroads into their lives. It should communicate your theory of change, the political context you are working in, the problems and solutions, your goals, power analysis, tactics and timeline. You may be asking, “How do I calculate the number of votes I will need?” It is a great question. I don’t know many candidates who would say they love call time. Take a hard look at what it takes to win (qualifications, political circumstances, fundraising metrics, etc.) Many ideological or issue-based concerns cross party and demographic boundaries. Many candidates will loan themselves money at the start of the campaign and then pay them back as donations are received. Generally, over the course of an election cycle, I hear from candidates who are sick of calling people for money, asking friends, family and supporters to knock on doors, asking organizations for endorsements, etc. A campaign can be seen as an organised, purposeful effort to create change, and it should be guided by thoughtful planning. It serves as a practical guide for campaigning in any context. The basic steps for developing a winning political campaign strategy are: Technically, this not part of your political campaign strategy. If you are successful in motivating people to care about the issues that you care about, there is still one more step. Best political campaign strategies are essential for winning elections. Direct Mail Edition. Of course, the extent of assistance and level of competency can vary widely from party to party, region to region, and even year to year. Good campaign planning is your road map for victory. What are the key activities you will undertake in your campaign? In democracies, political campaigns often refer to electoral campaigns, by which representatives are chosen or referendums are decided. Listen more than you talk. Campaigns still relied on tried and true ways to persuade voters, such as sheet music, and direct contact between voters and candidates. The Midwest Academy (http://www.midwestacademy.org) propose a simple campaign planning grid with columns for each of the following elements of strategy: vision; goals; objectives; organisational considerations; constituents… Write. In these cases, it may make sense to run a single-issue campaign. Follow the RSS feed for this page: ← Prev Page. A political campaign is an organized effort which seeks to influence the decision making progress within a specific group. While his work was focused on economics and public policy, professional marketers use this three-step approach (whether they realize it or not). At best, you can gain access to networks of donors and voters or maybe even a surrogate who will campaign on your behalf. You are reading page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10. Get your campaign plan written down, make sure that everyone involved knows where it lives and is bought in on how that plan is going to be implemented. As with construction plans, this campaign plan should serve as a guide to be referred to when questions … Voters had the ability to support candidates they liked. Contact Jay Townsend for your FREE Political Consultation. Beyond your voter targeting and your plan for outreach to different communities, take stock of choice points across your whole campaign. Here is a partial list of some of the tactics you need to consider and prioritize as part of your political campaign strategy: As discussed previously, third-party organizations can deliver much value to your campaign. A direct channel connects you with the voter, either in person or through a medium. Do the name recognition work in advance by building your credentials and credibility in your district. On every political campaign, there are many moving parts. I frequently bump into campaigns that are surprised by what things cost and how much money will likely need to be raised. But that’s not detailed enough to be of much use. In fact, it’s the single most important question you need to answer for your political campaign. Your campaign budget will have a direct impact on the activities you will undertake. Additionally, there are usually advocacy groups that already recruit and communicate with these groups. A Strong Political Campaign Strategy Means a Strong Campaign At any level, campaign fundamentals can mean the difference between building a winning or losing political campaign strategy. Any political campaign strategy should be predicated on a clear contrast between the candidate and anyone else in the field (even if it’s super crowded and includes more candidates than the 2020 presidential primary). From Roman emperors holding gladiator fights to European monarchs building city improvements, leaders seeking to gain the favor of the people is not anything new. I take a slightly non-traditional approach to political campaigns both in terms of strategies and tactics. That said, as you set out on your political campaign, now is a great time to do a lot of that strategy. Free/Organic – Dropping literature, social media engagement, Earned – Letters to the editor, journalists, local radio and television. The fact is if you’re a candidate, you’ll spend the majority of your time doing asking people for things. It’s crucial to understand the numbers of registered voters of all parties in your district. Uploading voter Files to Facebook: is it a good idea to examine Facebook. 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